Get ready for some exciting music news! Norway's Melodi Grand Prix 2026 is heating up, and the competition is fierce!
The talented duo, Sander Silva and Victorjus, have taken the lead with their captivating song, "Fritt fall" (Free fall). Their performance earned them enough votes to advance to the semifinals, scheduled for January 24th. But here's where it gets controversial... they defeated Aranja, who also put up a strong fight.
According to NRK, the Norwegian broadcaster, eight out of nine finalists have already been chosen for Melodi Grand Prix 2026. The last spot will be determined through an intense radio duel on Nitimen, where listeners will cast their votes. The ninth finalist will be revealed on January 26th, along with the release of all the finalists' songs. It's a nail-biting process!
Each day, two artists will battle it out, with only one advancing to the next round. The voting window is a tight 24 hours, from 10:00 AM CET to 10:00 AM CET the following day. You can cast your vote on delta.nrk.no. The winners of these daily duels will face off again on Saturday and Sunday, and the final two artists will go head-to-head on Monday morning (final).
The wildcard round is still up for grabs, with Raylee and Thomas Jenssen competing on January 23rd. The current wildcard acts fighting for a spot in the semifinals on January 24th are Skrillex with "Into The Wild", GOTHMINISTER and their song "The Spell", and of course, Sander Silva & Victorjus with their powerful "Fritt fall".
The confirmed lineup for Melodi Grand Prix 2026 is a diverse and talented bunch:
- Storm - "Lullaby"
- Alexander Rybak - "Rise" (a previous Eurovision winner!)
- Emma - "Northern Lights"
- Hedda Mae - "Snap Back"
- Jonas Lovv - "Ya Ya Ya"
- Leonardo Amor - "Prayer"
- Mileo - "Frankenstein"
- Silke - "Forevermore"
And this is the part most people miss... Alexander Rybak, the Eurovision Song Contest winner of 2009 with "Fairytale", is back! He represented Norway again in 2018 with "That's how you write a song".
Melodi Grand Prix 2026 will take place on February 28th in the iconic HÃ¥kons Hall in Lillehammer, the same venue that hosted the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2004. The event will be hosted by Ronny Brede Aase, Marte Stokstad, and Markus Neby.
Norway has a rich history in the Eurovision Song Contest, making their debut in 1960. They've won the contest an impressive three times - in 1985, 1995, and 2009. However, they also hold the record for finishing last the most times, a total of twelve, and have received the dreaded nul points four times. But their wins are legendary, with Alexander Rybak's "Fairytale" breaking all records in 2009, scoring an incredible 387 points in the final and receiving top marks from every country.
So, who do you think will take the crown this year? Will Norway's luck change, or will they continue their streak of unique records? Let us know in the comments! We'd love to hear your predictions and thoughts on this year's Melodi Grand Prix!
