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It's Rykka for Switzerland!

13 February 2016 at 23:10 CET
Rykka SRF/Mirco Rederlechner
Tonight the Bodensee Arena in Kreuzlingen hosted the Swiss national selection for Stockholm, Die Grosse Entscheidungsshow. Six acts performed not only their competing entry but one more cover song to show their musical versatility and live performing abilities. In the end, Rykka won the show in a combined vote of the televoters and an expert jury. She will sing The Last Of Our Kind in Stockholm.

Die Grosse Entscheidungsshow, the Swiss national final for the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest, was won by Rykka with her song The Last Of Our Kind. The decision was jointly taken by a 50/50 combination of televoting and the verdict of a 10-member expert jury.

Here you can watch Rykka's winning performance once again:

The show was broadcast live from the small town of Kreuzlingen, where the six finalists presented a wide range of music styles and some distinctly elaborate stage performances: There were cow bells and stylized animals during Kaceo's stage act, a smiley-filled LED backdrop to match the smile Vincent Gross always seems to wear, a tree on stage for Theo, and Rykka performing in a mermaid-like pose, reminding of Marilyn Monroe.

The full result as announced by public broadcaster after the show was:

  1. Rykka
  2. Bella C
  3. Vincent Gross
  4. Stanley Miller
  5. Theo
  6. Kaceo

Rykka

Rykka (29) was born in Vancouver, Canada, where she grew up in a very musical family. Her real name is Christina Rieder and her forefathers are Swiss. In Canada Rykka went to a music school and, for a long time, toured the country as a street musician. Meanwhile she has also recorded a few albums.

Right now the versatile artist lives in a farm house close to Zurich, Switzerland, together with her husband, five fellow housmates, cat Charlie and a flock of sheep.

In tonight's show, this was the running order of all artists and their competing songs:

  • Vincent Gross - Half A Smile
  • Bella C - Another World
  • Kaceo - Disque d’or
  • Theo - Because Of You
  • Rykka - The Last Of Our Kind
  • Stanley Miller - Feel The Love

The cover versions performed by the artists were the following.

  • Vincent Gross - Astronaut (original by Sido & Andreas Bourani)
  • Bella C - Empire State Of Mind (Part II) (original by Alicia Keys)
  • Kaceo - Video Killed The Radio Star (original by The Buggles)
  • Theo - Photograph (original by Ed Sheeran)
  • Rykka - Love Me Like You Do (original by Ellie Goulding)
  • Stanley Miller - Hello (original by Adele)
Gallery: The 6 acts in the Swiss final 2016

The host of the show was Sven Epiney. In the interval act, the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest winner Conchita Wurst performed together with Flavio Rizzello, the teenage winner of the talent show Die Grössten Schweizer Talente. She also opened the show, performing Fire Storm.

Of course, last year's Swiss Eurovision Song Contest representative Mélanie René was also a guest of the show - she was part of the expert jury and shared some of her experiences in Vienna with the audience.

Watch all the performances once again!