Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008

Norway was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 by Maria Haukaas Storeng

Maria Haukaas Storeng

The following article is a discography of albums and singles released by Norwegian artist Maria Mittet.-Albums:2011: , med Oslo Gospel Choir-Singles:-Featured-on albums:*1991 "Annie" - den norske suksessversjonen...

, performing the song "Hold On Be Strong

Hold On Be Strong

"Hold On Be Strong" is a song performed by Norwegian singer Maria Haukaas Storeng, written by Mira Craig. This song was presented by Norway in the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest in Belgrade, Serbia.-Eurovision Song Contest:...

". Storeng was chosen through the Norwegian national final, Melodi Grand Prix

Melodi Grand Prix

Melodi Grand Prix is an annual music competition organised by Norwegian public broadcaster Norsk Rikskringkasting . It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged almost every year since 1960.The festival has produced three Eurovision winners and...

, organised by the Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK).

18 artists in total competed in the semi-finals of Melodi Grand Prix 2008, with only eight acts progressing to the final, held on 9 February at the Oslo Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum is an indoor multi-purpose arena in east central Oslo, Norway. It opened in December 1990. It is currently owned and operated by Norges Varemesse , who also own and operate the Norges Varemesse conference center in Lillestrøm which is Norway's largest conference center...

. After the votes of both the juries and televoting, Storeng was announced the winner of the contest, and represented Norway at the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade

Belgrade

Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...

, Serbia

Serbia

Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

.

Storeng's song, composed by Mira Craig

Mira Craig

Mira Scherdin Craig is a Norwegian-American R&B artist. Her father is an African American from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America.Craig is a DIY musician who writes and produces all her songs and music videos....

, competed in the first semi-final of Eurovision 2008 on 20 May 2008. She qualified to the final, coming 4th of 19 with 106 points. At the final, closing the contest of 25 competing entries, she placing 5th, receiving a total of 182 points. This was Norway's best placing at the contest since 2003, and their best placing since semi-finals were introduced to the contest in 2004

Eurovision Song Contest 2004

The Eurovision Song Contest 2004, was the 49th Contest and it was held in the Abdi İpekçi Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. This was the first occasion in which the contest was held in Turkey after they had won the competition in 2003 with Sertab Erener singing "Everyway That I Can"...

Background

Norway first entered the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960

Eurovision Song Contest 1960

The Eurovision Song Contest 1960 was the fifth in the series, and was held on 29 March 1960 in London. France's win this year was their second in the contest....

, placing fourth in their debut entry. Shortly afterwards however, Norway began to fare worse at Eurovision, becoming known for coming last place. Having come last place six times, their best place at that point was third place in 1966

Eurovision Song Contest 1966

The Eurovision Song Contest 1966 was the 11th edition and was held on 5 March 1966 in Luxembourg, Luxembourg. The rule stating that a country could only sing in any of its national languages was originally created in this year. This was possibly created due to the 1965 Swedish entry, "Absent...

, when Åse Kleveland

Åse Kleveland

Åse Maria Kleveland is a Swedish-Norwegian singer and politician.A well-known folk singer and traditional guitarist in Norway, she was appointed Minister of Culture in Norway from 1990 to 1996, representing the Labour Party under the Gro Harlem Brundtland administration...

represented the country with "Intet er nytt under solen

Intet Er Nytt Under Solen

"Intet er nytt under solen" was the Norwegian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1966, performed in Norwegian by Åse Kleveland....

". In total, Norway has come last 10 times, the most for any country at Eurovision, with its latest in 2004

Eurovision Song Contest 2004

.

Norway first win came in 1985

Eurovision Song Contest 1985

The Eurovision Song Contest 1985 was the 30th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 4 May 1985 in Gothenburg, Sweden. The presenter was Lill Lindfors, and Norwegian duo Bobbysocks! was the winner of this Eurovision with the song "La det swinge"....

, when duo Bobbysocks

Bobbysocks

For the 1950s teen rage see Bobby soxerBobbysocks! were a Norwegian pop duo consisting of Norwegian Hanne Krogh and Swedish-Norwegian Elisabeth Andreassen. They won the Eurovision Song Contest 1985 with the song "La det swinge" ....

, Hanne Krogh

Hanne Krogh

Hanne Krogh is a Norwegian singer and one half of the duo that won the Eurovision Song Contest 1985....

and Elisabeth Andreassen

Elisabeth Andreassen

Elisabeth Gunilla Andreassen - also known as just "Bettan" - is a Swedish-Norwegian singer who has finished both first and second in the Eurovision Song Contest....

, won the contest with "La det swinge

La det swinge

"La det swinge" is a song in Norwegian, sung by the pop duo Bobbysocks!. It was the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 1985 - Norway's first victory in the contest.- Background :...

". In 1986

Eurovision Song Contest 1986

The Eurovision Song Contest 1986 was the 31st Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 3 May 1986 in the Grieg Hall in Bergen, Norway. It was the first occasion on which Norway played host to the contest...

Norway hosted the competition for the first time in the city of Bergen

Bergen

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....

. Norway won again ten years later, at the 1995 contest

Eurovision Song Contest 1995

The Eurovision Song Contest 1995 was the 40th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 13 May 1995 in the Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland. The presenter was Mary Kennedy. This contest broke the chain of victories that Ireland enjoyed in 1992, 1993, and 1994...

, when Secret Garden

Secret Garden (duo)

Secret Garden is an award-winning Irish-Norwegian duo playing New Instrumental Music, also sometimes erroneously known as Neo-classical music.Secret Garden features the Irish violinist Fionnuala Sherry and the Norwegian composer/pianist Rolf Løvland...

beat the competition with "Nocturne

Nocturne (Secret Garden)

"Nocturne" was the winning song in the Eurovision Song Contest 1995, performed in Norwegian by Secret Garden representing Norway. It was the second time Norway won the contest, after it had won in 1985 with Bobbysocks! song "La det swinge"...

". At the 1996 contest

Eurovision Song Contest 1996

The Eurovision Song Contest 1996 was the 41st Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 18 May 1996 in Oslo Spektrum in Oslo, Norway. The presenters were Ingvild Bryn and Morten Harket. Harket, lead singer of a-ha, opened the show with a performance of his single "Heaven's Not For Saints". Eimear...

, held again in Norway, this time in the capital of Oslo

Oslo

Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...

, Norway came close to winning again, coming second with "I evighet

I Evighet

"I evighet" is a song by Elisabeth Andreassen, The original lyrics were written by Wendell Miller of U.S.A. melody written by Torhild Nigar copyright 1986 was the Norwegian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1996.The song is a ballad, with Andreassen singing about the eternal nature...

", performed again by Elisabeth Andreassen.

Since the country's debut Norsk rikskringkasting (NRK) had been in charge of the Norwegian entry, and is also responsible in broadcasting Eurovision in Norway.

Melodi Grand Prix 2008

Melodi Grand Prix 2008 was the selection process for the 47th song to represent Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

at the Eurovision Song Contest

Eurovision Song Contest

The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...

Planning

NRK began their campaign for the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest on 9 July 2007. An open call for songs was made by NRK for Melodi Grand Prix 2008. NRK also directly invited composers to submit songs for the contest, as they did in 2007. All entries had to be received by NRK by 1 September. Composers of all nationalities were again welcome in the competition, despite the controversy that has arisen in recent years over the number of songs written by Swedish composers that can be found in the competition. However NRK said that they support songs composed by Norwegians, but that they would still like to open the contest to foreign composers, hence all entries were under consideration.

The initial dates and venues for the competition were announced on 28 September, when it was revealed that the second semi-final would be held in Kongsvinger

Kongsvinger

is a town and is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger....

, the third semi-final in Bodø

Bodø

is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...

and the final in the Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum

in Oslo

Oslo

. The first semi-final was later revealed to have been set to be held in Stavanger

Stavanger

Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...

, along with the news that Per Sundnes

Per Sundnes

Per André Sundnes is a Norwegian journalist and talk show host. He is often described as a trend and pop culture expert with a particular interest for music and fashion.-Eurovision commentator:...

would be the host of the contest, having previously commentated for NRK at Eurovision. For 2008, however, it was revealed by NRK that Sundnes would not be commentating for Norway.

Date	City	Venue	Notes
11 January 2008	Stavanger Stavanger Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...	Sandvigå	Semi-final 1
18 January 2008	Kongsvinger Kongsvinger is a town and is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger....		Semi-final 2
25 January 2008	Bodø Bodø is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...	Bodø Spektrum	Semi-final 3
6 February 2008	Oslo Oslo Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...	Oslo Stratos	Second Chance
9 February 2008	Oslo Oslo Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...	Oslo Spektrum Oslo Spektrum Oslo Spektrum is an indoor multi-purpose arena in east central Oslo, Norway. It opened in December 1990. It is currently owned and operated by Norges Varemesse , who also own and operate the Norges Varemesse conference center in Lillestrøm which is Norway's largest conference center...	Final

Format

Melodi Grand Prix featured a total of five shows, held over five weeks from 12 January to 9 February. Three semi-finals were held, each containing six participants. From each semi-final the top two songs in a televote progressed to the final. The third and fourth placed songs in the same televote went on to the Siste Sjansen round, a second chance round held on 6 February where these songs were given a second chance to qualify for the final. The final of the competition, held on 9 February, featured the six direct qualifiers from the semi-finals and the two winners of Siste Sjansen. In the final, the top four songs selected by televoting and jury voting qualified to the Gold Final, where the winner was selected through another round of jury and televoting.

Entries

NRK received 600 submissions for MGP, substantially higher than the previous year's total of 464.

Rumours of who would compete in the 2008 MGP arose early on. The first major name to be mentioned was former Eurovision winner for Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

Carola

Carola Häggkvist

Carola Maria Häggkvist , better known as simply Carola, is a Swedish singer and occasional songwriter. She has been among Sweden's most popular performers since the early 1980s, and has released albums ranging from pop and disco to hymns and folk music...

. However this did not come to pass, having later entered as a wildcard into the Swedish national selection Melodifestivalen

Melodifestivalen

Melodifestivalen is an annual music competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television and Sveriges Radio . It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has been staged almost every year since 1959...

. Another name mentioned as a potential entrant was Lene Alexandra

Lene Alexandra

Lene Alexandra Øien is a Norwegian singer, and former model for FHM magazine, as well a former Norwegian lad's mags Lek and Cats model. She began her musical career in 2007 at age 25 when she released her first single entitled "My Boobs Are OK". The single charted in several European countries and...

, who had previously had success with the song "My Boobs Are OK

My Boobs Are OK

-Story of the title:The initial idea for the song came in summer 2006, when Lene Alexandra was playing football. She hit one of her breasts, and after a few days someone asked her in Norwegian: "Is your boob okay?", to which Lene Alexandra answered in English: "Yes, my boobs are okay".-Music...

". Alexandra later confirmed her participation in MGP in December 2007.

NRK released the names of the 18 composers who succeeded in qualifying to the semi-finals in December 2007. They included Mira Craig

Mira Craig

, Wig Wam

Wig Wam

Wig Wam is a Norwegian hard rock band, which is dedicated to Glam metal and is the style of typical rock bands from the 1980s movement.- Eurovision :...

band members Glam and Teeny, Christian Ingebrigtsen

Christian Ingebrigtsen

Christian Ingebrigtsen is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and musician. He is a member of the British-Norwegian pop group A1.-Biography:...

and Jan Groth. The final list of the 18 competing songs were released on 13 December. However, this list contained solely the song titles and composers, leaving out the names of the final performing artists. This list contained songs which had been composed purely by Norwegian citizens, which arose suspicion over whether NRK has changed their policy on accepting submissions by non-Norwegian composers. Stian Malme of NRK confirmed that no change in policy had occurred, and that the jury appointed by NRK had chosen these 18 songs based purely on merit alone.

The artists for each semi-final were revealed over three weeks in late December 2007 and early January 2008. The artists for the first semi-final were revealed on 18 December 2007, and included the Tinkerbells and Podium, as well as soloists Nicholas Carlie, Ann-Mari Anderson, Michelle, and Veronica Akselsen.

The second semi-finalists were revealed on 28 December. It was revealed that Crash!, who achieved third place in last year's contest

Melodi Grand Prix 2007

Melodi Grand Prix 2007 was the television show in which the Norwegian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 was chosen....

, would return to Melodi Grand Prix in this semi-final. They would be joined by Maria Haukaas Storeng

Maria Haukaas Storeng

, Sven Garås, Anne Hvidsten, Zuma and Cube.

The final semi-finalists, who would compete in the third and final semi-final, were revealed 4 January 2008. Lene Alexandra was officially confirmed as a participant, and would compete in this semi-final, alongside Torstein Sødal, Maria Trøen, Ole Ivars, as well as Avalanche and the King of Trolls.

Semi-finals

The semi-finals of Melodi Grand Prix 2008 began on 12 January 2008. Three semi-finals were held in Stavanger

Stavanger

, Kongsvinger

Kongsvinger

is a town and is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger....

and Bodø

Bodø

, which led up to the Siste Sjansen round in the Oslo Stratos and the final in the Oslo Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum

on 9 February.

In the three semi-finals, the top two songs of the six competing entries qualified directly to the final. The third and fourth-placed songs qualified to the Siste Sjansen round, here they would be given another chance to qualify for the final. Televoting decided the eight qualifiers in all semi-finals.

Semi-final 1

The first semi-final of MGP 2008 was held at the Sandvigå in Stavanger

Stavanger

on 12 January.

Televoting selected "Ándagassii" by Ann-Mari Andersen and "Am I Supposed to Love Again" by Veronica Akselsen to qualify directly to the final, while "Lystgass" by Podium and "Hold On" by the Tinkerbells were selected to proceed to the Siste Sjansen round.

style="font-size: bigger;" | Semi-final 1–12 January 2008
Order	Artist	Song	Lyrics (l) / Music (m)	Results
1	Podium	"Lystgass"	Tørje Lennavik (m), Håkan Fjerdingen (l)	Siste Sjansen
2	Ann-Mari Andersen	"Ándagassii"	Stein Austrud (m), Ann-Mari Andersen (l)	Final
3	Nicholas Carlie	"Colliding"	Nate Campany (m), PK Ottestad (l)	Out
4	Michelle	"Don't Stop the Music"	Fred Ball (m), Hannah Robinson (l)	Out
5	Tinkerbells	"Hold On"	Aina Beate Gundersen (m), Svein Gundersen (m), Jan Groth (l)	Siste Sjansen
6	Veronica Akselsen	"Am I Supposed to Love Again?"	Anne Takle (m), Lalia Samuelsen (l)	Final

Semi-final 2

The second semi-final was held in Kongsvinger

Kongsvinger

is a town and is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger....

on 18 January.

"Get Up" by Crash! and "Hold On Be Strong" by Maria Haukaas Storeng

Maria Haukaas Storeng

were chosen by televoting

Televoting

Televoting, telephone voting or phone voting is a method of decision making and opinion polling conducted by telephone. Televoting can also extend to voting by SMS text message via a mobile cell phone.- Broadcast contest televoting :...

to qualify to the final, with "Always, Always" by Zuma and "A Little More" by Anne Hvidsten proceeding to the Siste Sjansen round.

style="font-size: bigger;" | Semi-final 2–18 January 2008
Order	Artist	Song	Lyrics (l) / Music (m)	Results
1	Zuma	"Always, Always"	Alexander Stenerud (m & l)	Siste Sjansen
2	Cube	"Would You Spend the Night With Me?"	Åge Sten "Glam" Nilsen Wig Wam Wig Wam is a Norwegian hard rock band, which is dedicated to Glam metal and is the style of typical rock bands from the 1980s movement.- Eurovision :... (m & l)	Out
3	Anne Hvidsten	"A Little More"	Anne Hvidsten (m & l)	Siste Sjansen
4	Crash!	"Get Up"	Trond "Teeny" Holter Wig Wam Wig Wam is a Norwegian hard rock band, which is dedicated to Glam metal and is the style of typical rock bands from the 1980s movement.- Eurovision :... (m & l)	Final
5	Sven Garås	"I'm in Love"	Robin Nordahl (m), Ingrid Nørsett (l)	Out
6	Maria Haukaas Storeng Maria Haukaas Storeng The following article is a discography of albums and singles released by Norwegian artist Maria Mittet.-Albums:2011: , med Oslo Gospel Choir-Singles:-Featured-on albums:*1991 "Annie" - den norske suksessversjonen...	"Hold On Be Strong"	Mira Craig Mira Craig Mira Scherdin Craig is a Norwegian-American R&B artist. Her father is an African American from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America.Craig is a DIY musician who writes and produces all her songs and music videos.... (m & l)	Final

Semi-final 3

The third and final semi-final of MGP 2008 before the Siste Sjansen round was held on 26 January at the Bodø Spektrum in Bodø

Bodø

.

The final direct finalists were "Eastern Wind" by Torstein Sødal and "Far Away" by King of Trolls, while "Som i himmelen" by Ole Ivars and "Sillycone Valley" by Lene Alexandra

Lene Alexandra

became the last songs to join the Siste Sjansen round.

style="font-size: bigger;" | Semi-final 3–26 January 2008
Order	Artist	Song	Lyrics (l) / Music (m)	Results
1	Avalanche	"Two Monkeys (On The Roof)"	Kjetil Røsnes (m & l), Kirsti Johansen (m & l)	Out
2	Maria Trøen	"Hear When I'm Calling"	Jarl Aanestad (m & l)	Out
3	Ole Ivars	"Som i himmelen"	William Kristoffersen (m & l)	Siste Sjansen
4	Lene Alexandra Lene Alexandra Lene Alexandra Øien is a Norwegian singer, and former model for FHM magazine, as well a former Norwegian lad's mags Lek and Cats model. She began her musical career in 2007 at age 25 when she released her first single entitled "My Boobs Are OK". The single charted in several European countries and...	"Sillycone Valley"	Ivar Winther (m & l), Kam An Leung (l)	Siste Sjansen
5	Torstein Sødal	"Eastern Wind"	Christian Ingebrigtsen Christian Ingebrigtsen Christian Ingebrigtsen is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and musician. He is a member of the British-Norwegian pop group A1.-Biography:... (m & l), Eivind Rølles (m & l)	Final
6	King of Trolls	"Far Away"	Frode Anderssen (m & l)	Final

Siste Sjansen round

The third- and fourth-placed songs in each semifinal perform in Siste Sjansen (Second Chance) round, held on 6 February at the Oslo Stratos in Oslo

Oslo

. Six songs performed, like in the other semi-finals, with the top two songs from televoting qualifying to the final.

The winners of Siste Sjansen, qualifying to the final, were "Hold On" by the Tinkerbells and "Som i himmelen" by Ole Ivars.

style="font-size: bigger;" | Siste Sjansen - 6 February 2008
Order	Artist	Song	Lyrics (l) / Music (m)	Results
1	Podium	"Lystgass"	Håkan Fjerdingen (m & l), Tørje Lennavik (m & l)	Out
2	Tinkerbells	"Hold On"	Aina Beate Gundersen (m), Svein Gundersen (m), Jan Groth (l)	Final
3	Zuma	"Always, Always"	Alexander Stenerud (m & l)	Out
4	Anne Hvidsten	"A Little More"	Anne Hvidsten (m & l)	Out
5	Ole Ivars	"Som i himmelen"	William Kristoffersen (m & l)	Final
6	Lene Alexandra Lene Alexandra Lene Alexandra Øien is a Norwegian singer, and former model for FHM magazine, as well a former Norwegian lad's mags Lek and Cats model. She began her musical career in 2007 at age 25 when she released her first single entitled "My Boobs Are OK". The single charted in several European countries and...	"Sillycone Valley"	Ivar Winther (m & l), Kam An Leung (l)	Out

Final

The final of Melodi Grand Prix 2008 was held on 9 February 2008 at the Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum

in Oslo

Oslo

. The six direct qualifiers and the two Siste Sjansen winners competed in the final, where two rounds of voting selected the winner that would represent Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008. A round of televoting selected the four songs that would progress to the Gold Final, where a second round of voting, featuring both televoting and jury voting, selected the winner from these four songs.

The interval act for the final was Jahn Teigen

Jahn Teigen

Jahn Teigen is a Norwegian singer and musician. Jahn received a knighthood from H.M. King Harald V. He represented Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest three times, in 1978, 1982 and 1983. His given name was Jan, he added the silent H later. Since October 2006 he has been living in Sweden...

, who represented Norway at the 1978

Eurovision Song Contest 1978

The Eurovision Song Contest 1978 was the 23rd of its kind, and was held on 22 April 1978 in Paris. With Denise Fabre and Léon Zitrone as the presenters - the first time more than one presenter hosted the contest - the contest was won by Izhar Cohen & the Alphabeta who represented Israel, with their...

, 1982

Eurovision Song Contest 1982

The Eurovision Song Contest 1982 was the 27th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 24 April 1982 in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom. The presenter was Jan Leeming. The opening of the contest showed a map of Europe, with the translation "Where is Harrogate?" popping up on-screen from...

and 1983

Eurovision Song Contest 1983

The Eurovision Song Contest 1983, the 28th in the series, was held in Munich, then West Germany, on 23 April 1983. The presenter was Marlene Charell. Corinne Hermes was the winner of this Eurovision with the song, "Si la vie est cadeau". This was Luxembourg's fifth victory in the contest which...

contests, as well as competing in 14 Melodi Grand Prix's between 1974 and 2005. He performed a medley of many songs recorded by him, including many of his previous MGP entries, such as "Optimist" (1989), "Mil etter mil

Mil Etter Mil

"Mil etter mil" was the Norwegian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978, performed in Norwegian by Jahn Teigen.The song is a ballad, with Teigen describing his long journey to find someone and telling this person that he simply cannot walk any further - having walked "mile after mile"...

" (1978), "Do Re Mi

Do Re Mi (Jahn Teigen song)

"Do Re Mi" was the Norwegian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1983, performed in Norwegian by Jahn Teigen.The song is based around the simple joy of making music, with Teigen singing about the sound of the scale itself. He urges his listeners to combine their voices as one and sing the familiar...

" (1983) and "Glasnost" (1988).

The Gold Final featured the top 4 songs of the public televote. The final winner was decided from these four songs in a mix of both jury and televoting. Three regional juries in Stavanger

Stavanger

, Kongsvinger

Kongsvinger

is a town and is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger....

and Bodø

Bodø

gave each finalist 2,000, 4,000, 6,000 or 10,000 votes, and these points were joined by votes from five televoting regions.

The final winner was Maria Haukaas Storeng with "Hold On Be Strong", which received a total of 195,661 votes. This was more than 75,000 votes more than runner-up Torstein Sødal.

style="font-size: bigger;" | Final - 9 February 2008
Order	Artist	Song	Lyrics (l) / Music (m)	Results
1	Crash!	"Get Up"	Trond "Teeny" Holter Wig Wam Wig Wam is a Norwegian hard rock band, which is dedicated to Glam metal and is the style of typical rock bands from the 1980s movement.- Eurovision :... (m & l)	Out
2	Ann-Mari Andersen	"Ándagassii"	Stein Austrud (m), Ann-Mari Andersen (l)	Out
3	Tinkerbells	"Hold On"	Aina Beate Gundersen (m), Svein Gundersen (m), Jan Groth (l)	Out
4	Veronica Akselsen	"Am I Supposed to Love Again?"	Anne Takle (m), Lalia Samuelsen (l)	Gold Final
5	King of Trolls	"Far Away"	Frode Anderssen (m & l)	Gold Final
6	Ole Ivars	"Som i himmelen"	William Kristoffersen (m & l)	Out
7	Torstein Sødal	"Eastern Wind"	Christian Ingebrigtsen Christian Ingebrigtsen Christian Ingebrigtsen is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and musician. He is a member of the British-Norwegian pop group A1.-Biography:... (m & l), Eivind Rølles (m & l)	Gold Final
8	Maria Haukaas Storeng Maria Haukaas Storeng The following article is a discography of albums and singles released by Norwegian artist Maria Mittet.-Albums:2011: , med Oslo Gospel Choir-Singles:-Featured-on albums:*1991 "Annie" - den norske suksessversjonen...	"Hold On Be Strong"	Mira Craig Mira Craig Mira Scherdin Craig is a Norwegian-American R&B artist. Her father is an African American from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America.Craig is a DIY musician who writes and produces all her songs and music videos.... (m & l)	Gold Final

style="font-size: bigger;" | Gold Final
Artist	Song	Lyrics (l) / Music (m)	Jury	Televote	Total	Place
Veronica Akselsen	"Am I Supposed to Love Again?"	Anne Takle (m), Lalia Samuelsen (l)	16,000	93,957	109,957	4
King of Trolls	"Far Away"	Frode Anderssen (m & l)	6,000	109,811	115,811	3
Torstein Sødal	"Eastern Wind"	Christian Ingebrigtsen Christian Ingebrigtsen Christian Ingebrigtsen is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and musician. He is a member of the British-Norwegian pop group A1.-Biography:... (m & l), Eivind Rølles (m & l)	18,000	100,095	118,095	2
Maria Haukaas Storeng Maria Haukaas Storeng The following article is a discography of albums and singles released by Norwegian artist Maria Mittet.-Albums:2011: , med Oslo Gospel Choir-Singles:-Featured-on albums:*1991 "Annie" - den norske suksessversjonen...	"Hold On Be Strong"	Mira Craig Mira Craig Mira Scherdin Craig is a Norwegian-American R&B artist. Her father is an African American from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America.Craig is a DIY musician who writes and produces all her songs and music videos.... (m & l)	26,000	169,661	195,661	1

Voting

Song	Juries				Televoting Regions
Song	Stavanger Stavanger Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...	Kongsvinger Kongsvinger is a town and is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger....	Bodø Bodø is a city and a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Salten region.The city of Bodø was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Bodin was merged with Bodø on 1 January 1968. Skjerstad was merged with Bodø on 1 January 2005...	Total	Northern Norway	Central Norway	Western Norway	Eastern Norway	Southern Norway	Total
"Am I Supposed to Love Again?"	4,000	6,000	6,000	16,000	4,713	10,878	11,505	55,751	11,110	93,957
"Far Away"	2,000	2,000	2,000	6,000	7,520	14,627	15,043	58,797	13,824	109,811
"Eastern Wind"	10,000	4,000	4,000	18,000	5,391	10,423	15,308	46,226	22,747	100,095
"Hold On Be Strong"	6,000	10,000	10,000	26,000	22,056	23,396	21,169	83,342	19,698	169,661

Spokespersons

Stavanger: Kirsti Sparboe
Kirsti Sparboe
Kirsti Sparboe was born on 7 December 1946 in Tromsø, Norway. She Is a musical performer, and an actress. Most of her musical career is based around the widely popular Eurovision Song Contest....
Kongsvinger: Anne Karine Strøm
Bodø: Ketil Stokkan
Ketil Stokkan
Ketil Stokkan is a Norwegian pop artist who has performed as solo artist as well as the singer in the Norwegian band Zoo. 1983 saw him participate in the Norwegian qualifying heat for Eurovision with the song "Samme charmeur" which was placed second...
Northern Norway: Jenni Jenssen
Central Norway: Mona Grudt
Mona Grudt
Mona Grudt Bittrick became the first Norwegian to capture the Miss Universe title in 1990.-Miss Universe:...
Western Norway: Synnøve Svabø
Synnøve Svabø
Synnøve Svabø is a Norwegian talk show host. Svabø is best known for her 1997 boob stunt on Thorbjørn Jagland who was then the Prime Minister of Norway...
Eastern Norway: Linn Skåber
Linn Skåber
Linn Skåber is a Norwegian actress, singer, comedian, text writer and TV personality. She made her stage début on Oslo Nye Teater in 1997, playing the title role in Goldoni's comic opera Mirandolina....
Southern Norway: Jorun Stiansen
Jorun Stiansen
Jorun Stiansen is a Norwegian pop singer and artist. She won the Idol version of Pop Idol in 2005.She grew up with adoptive parents in Vennesla...

Promotion

Shortly after winning Melodi Grand Prix "Hold On Be Strong" reached number one on the Norwegian singles chart, VG-lista

VG-lista

VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by...

, and was the first Eurovision 2008 song to top the charts anywhere in Europe. Storeng later signed a record deal with Universal Music

Universal Music Group

Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...

and released her latest album in Norway before competing at Eurovision in Belgrade.

Storeng attended the UK Eurovision Preview Party in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

on 25 April 2008 to promote her entry internationally. She performed "Hold On Be Stong" during the event, and performed along with acts from eight other competing countries in the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest.

Before the Contest began it was announced by the European Broadcasting Union

European Broadcasting Union

The European Broadcasting Union is a confederation of 74 broadcasting organisations from 56 countries, and 49 associate broadcasters from a further 25...

(EBU), the organisers of the contest, that Norway would be one of the stops on the Winner's Tour, in which the winner of the Contest would tour Europe.

At Eurovision

The 2008 Contest was the first to implement two semi-finals, with all countries, apart from the "Big Four" countries – Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

and the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

– and the host country, taking part in the semi-finals. The EBU split up countries with a friendly voting history into the two different semi-finals, to reduce the effect of diaspora and block voting seen in the Contest since the implementation of televoting in 1998

Eurovision Song Contest 1998

The Eurovision Song Contest 1998 was the 43rd Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 9 May 1998 at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, United Kingdom. The presenters were Terry Wogan and Ulrika Jonsson...

. On 28 January 2008, the EBU held a draw which determined that Norway would compete in the first semi-final, held on 20 May 2008.

For the contest the commentator for the semi-finals and the final was Hanne Hoftun, who took over from the 2007 commentator and MGP host Per Sundnes.

Semi-final

Storeng competed in the first semi-final on 20 May 2008, performing 9th in the running order, following Slovenia

Slovenia

Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...

and preceding Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

. For her performance she wore a mid-length blue dress, and was accompanied on stage by three female backing singers and two male backing singers, dressed in black and blue. The stage was filled with blue light, and a starry background was shown on the LED

LED display

An LED display is a flat panel display, which uses light-emitting diodes as a video display. An LED panel is a small display, or a component of a larger display. They are typically used outdoors in store signs and billboards, and in recent years have also become commonly used in destination signs...

screens surrounding the stage. At the close of the voting Storeng received 106 points, placing fourth in a field of 19. Norway received points from all voting countries in the semi-final except for Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

. As such, Storeng qualified to the final of the contest, after being the last name to be pulled out of envelopes revealing the 10 qualifying entries.

925,000 viewers watched the first semi-final on NRK TV, gaining more than 200,000 viewers over the 2007 semi-final when Norway failed to qualify.

Final

After qualifying to the final Storeng was asked by the Norwegian delegation to cancel all activities and to not speak until the final, so that she would be able to give the best performance she could on the night of the final.

Storeng gave a repeat performance in the final on 24 May 2008, where she performed 25th and last in the running order, performing after eventual winners Russia. She received 182 points in the final, placing fifth of 25 competing countries. Storeng received the most points from neighbouring Finland and Sweden

Sweden

, who each gave their 12 points to Norway. She also received 10 points from Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

and Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

, as well as 8 points from Estonia. Norway itself gave 8 points to Iceland, 10 to Bosnia and Herzegovina and their maximum 12 points to Denmark. Her result was Norway's first top 5 placing in the contest since 2003.

Over 1.5 million Norwegians watched the final of Eurovision on television, with viewership increasing to almost 1.8 million during the voting. This was almost 82% of the TV share available who watched the show, as was the second highest viewing figures experienced for Eurovision ever seen in Norway, beaten only by the 1996 Contest

Eurovision Song Contest 1996

, which was held in Norway.

After Eurovision

Storeng returned to Norway after the final as a heroine, with much praise given to her after her fifth place in Belgrade. "Hold On Be Stong" was later released in Sweden after Eurovision, where it peaked on the Sverigetopplistan

Sverigetopplistan

Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association ....

at #8. The song also reached #37 on the Danish singles chart.

In November 2008, Storeng performed in the musical Grease

Grease (musical)

Grease is a 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical is named for the 1950s United States working-class youth subculture known as the greasers. The musical, set in 1959 at fictional Rydell High School , follows ten working-class teenagers as they navigate the complexities of love,...

at the Oslo Spektrum

Oslo Spektrum

, playing the character of Betty Rizzo. She becomes one of the many number of artists who have competed at Eurovision to go on to perform in Grease, with others including Sally-Ann Triplet, who represented the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

in 1980

Eurovision Song Contest 1980

The Eurovision Song Contest 1980 was the 25th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 19 April 1980 in The Hague. The presenter was Marlous Fluitsma, although each song was introduced by a presenter from the nation represented...

and 1982

Eurovision Song Contest 1982

, and Olivia Newton-John

Olivia Newton-John

Olivia Newton-John AO, OBE is a singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who has amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles and 14 of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA...

, who represented the United Kingdom in 1974

Eurovision Song Contest 1974

The Eurovision Song Contest 1974 was the 19th Eurovision Song Contest. It was held in the seaside resort of Brighton on the south coast of the United Kingdom...

and became famous for acting in the film version

Grease (film)

Grease is a 1978 American musical film directed by Randal Kleiser and based on Warren Casey's and Jim Jacobs's 1971 musical of the same name about two lovers in a 1950s high school. The film stars John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing, and Jeff Conaway...

of the musical.

After receiving such a strong placing from a Norwegian-composed song, NRK decided to close off Melodi Grand Prix to foreign composers, something which the broadcaster was once reluctant to do. Stian Malme, project manager for Melodi Grand Prix, said that NRK "wants the Melodi Grand Prix to be a forum where Norwegian songwriters can develop and present themselves both nationally as well as internationally." Storeng returned to Melodi Grand Prix in 2009, this time as co-host of the contest with Per Sundnes

Per Sundnes

Per André Sundnes is a Norwegian journalist and talk show host. He is often described as a trend and pop culture expert with a particular interest for music and fashion.-Eurovision commentator:...

.<

Despite hosting MGP, Storeng was rumoured to be one of the participants in the Swedish preselection for Eurovision 2009 Melodifestivalen

Melodifestivalen

. She was rumoured to be competing in the contest as a duet with another former Eurovision artist, Anna Sahlene, who represented Estonia in 2002

Eurovision Song Contest 2002

The Eurovision Song Contest 2002 was the 47th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place on 25 May 2002 at the Saku Suurhall Arena in Tallinn, Estonia....

with "Runaway". Due to conflicting dates with her hosting duties with MGP, the only possible semi-final she could compete in was the final semi-final, held one week after the final of MGP 2009. This news was confirmed by Sveriges Television

Sveriges Television

Sveriges Television AB , Sweden's Television, is a national television broadcaster based in Sweden, funded by a compulsory fee to be paid by all television owners...

(SVT), with Storeng and Sahlene competing in the fourth semi-final, held on 28 February 2009, with the song "Killing Me Tenderly". The duo failed to qualify to the final of Melodifestivalen 2009

Melodifestivalen 2009

Melodifestivalen 2009 was a Swedish song contest held between February and March 2009. It was the selection for the 49th song to represent Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest, and was the 48th edition of Melodifestivalen...

, placing seventh in the semi-final.

External links

History by Country: Norway European Broadcasting Union
European Broadcasting Union
The European Broadcasting Union is a confederation of 74 broadcasting organisations from 56 countries, and 49 associate broadcasters from a further 25...
Maria - Hold On Be Strong - Norway 2008 European Broadcasting Union
European Broadcasting Union
The European Broadcasting Union is a confederation of 74 broadcasting organisations from 56 countries, and 49 associate broadcasters from a further 25...
Melodi Grand Prix Norsk rikskringkasting

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Background

Melodi Grand Prix 2008

Planning

Format

Entries

Semi-finals

Semi-final 1

Semi-final 2

Semi-final 3

Siste Sjansen round

Final

Voting

Spokespersons

Promotion

At Eurovision

Semi-final

Final

After Eurovision

See also

External links