We have even more names rumoured for Melodifestivalen 2022! Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet has revealed another list of artists who may be competing to become Sweden’s Eurovision representative for Turin, including some familiar faces to Eurovision fans – previous representatives John Lundvik and Anna Bergendahl!
Other names familiar to Melodifestivalen fans include Malou Prtyz and Linda Bengtzing, though some debut names have also been rumoured, including Tenori, Theoz and Cazzi Opeia.
Lance Hedman
Lance Hedman is a debut name for Melodifestivalen, though is a familiar face on Swedish television. With a model for a mother and a football star for a father, he has appeared in his mother’s reality TV series Systrarna Graaf (The Graaf Sisters), as well as his own series Lance vs livet (Lance vs Life). In 2019, he placed third on Let’s Dance.
He has already released music as part of duo Lance and Linton. Melodifestivalen 2022 will be his solo debut.
John Lundvik
John Lundvik is a name known to Eurovision fans. He won Melodifestivalen in 2019 and represented Sweden at the contest with his song Too Late For Love, surrounded by The Mamas as his backing singers. He previously finished third in Melodifestivalen 2018 with his song My Turn.
As a songwriter, he was also part of the teams behind the UK’s 2019 entry, Bigger Than Us (performed by Michael Rice) and the 2020 French entry, Mon alliée (performed by Tom Leeb).
Theoz
Theoz is another artist rumoured to be debuting at Melodifestivalen 2022 – and one of the youngest, as he’s only just turned 16! He’s had a tiny taste of Melodifestivalen before, however; he is one of the dancers in Viktor and Samir’s LEDs for their 2017 song Shuffla!
He has a TikTok channel with over 2 million followers, and has already seen chart success in Sweden with his songs Het and a cover of 70s classic Hooked On A Feeling, among others.
Malou Prytz
Malou Prytz is a name that will be recognised by many Melodifestivalen fans. Despite having never won the contest, her two previous entries have cemented her as a name to watch in the Swedish music scene. Her first entry to Melodifestivalen was in 2019 with I Do Me, which reached the grand final and finished in 12th place. Her second entry, 2020’s Ballerina, was knocked out in the andra chansen round.
Cazzi Opeia
Another new name to Melodifestivalen, Cazzi Opeia has had global success as a songwriter, both alone and as part of Sunshine with Ellen Berg. She has written songs for some of the biggest K-Pop bands around, including Red Velvet, Tomorrow x Together and BTS. Despite this, she has also written and released songs as a performer in her own right, with her most recent single being Rich, released in 2018.
Linda Bengtzing
Linda Bengtzing is another name on this list that Melodifestivalen fans will know, having entered the contest seven times in the past! After achieving recognition on the fourth season of Fame Factory in 2004, she made her Melodifestivalen debut the following year with Alla flickor, reaching the final through the andra chansen round. Her following entries included Jag ljuger så bra (2006), Hur svårt kan det va? (2008), E de fel på mig? (2011), Ta mig (2014) and Killer Girl (2016). Most recently, she entered the contest in 2020 with Alla mina sorger, which was eliminated in the semi-final.
Anna Bergendahl
Our next rumoured participant is another who has already taken to the Eurovision stage! Anna Bergendahl represented Sweden in 2010 following her Melodifestivalen win wih This Is My Life, and placed 11th in the semi-final, failing to qualify by a margin of 5 points. Since then, she has returned to Melodifestivalen twice – in 2019 with Ashes To Ashes, and in 2020 with Kingdom Come, which placed 3rd.
Outside of music, she is a Goodwill Ambassador for the Swedish United Nations Association and soon-to-be medical doctor.
Tenori
Our final new name for this update of rumours is Tenori. Very little is known about them aside from that there are two of them, and that their music blends (synth) pop with opera. Watch this space!
The full list of rumoured artists so far
- LIAMOO
- Robin Bengtsson
- Klara Hammarström
- Alvaro Estrella
- Angelino Markenhor
- Lance Hedman
- John Lundvik
- Theoz
- Malou Prytz
- Cazzi Opeia
- Linda Bengtzing
- Anna Bergendahl
- Tenori
The list of artists will be confirmed in late November.
What we know about Melodifestivalen 2022
Melodifestivalen 2022 will be hosted by Oscar Zia, whilst Farah Abadi will follow the journey of the competing artists in the next edition of the competition. Tickets for next year’s competition will go on sale on November 8, with the shows taking place as follows:
- Semi-Final 1 – Malmö, Malmö Arena
- Semi-Final 2 – Gothenburg, Scandinavium
- Semi-Final 3 – Linköping, Saab Arena
- Semi-Final 4 – Lidköping, Sparbanken Lidköping Arena
- Semi-Final 5 – Örnsköldsvik, Hägglunds Arena
- Final – Stockholm, Friends Arena
Sweden’s Eurovision Journey
In 1958, Sweden made their debut in the Eurovision Song Contest, with Alice Babs representing them with the song “Lilla stjärna” which placed fourth. Since their debut, the Scandinavian nation has managed to win six times (1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, and 2015).
In 2021, Sweden was represented by Tusse, who won the 60th edition of the competition and competed with the song “Voices”, which managed to qualify for the Grand Final and placed 14th with 109 Points from the jury and televoters.
Are you excited about Melodifestivalen 2022? Who would you like to see and represent Sweden at Eurovision 2022? Let us know in the comments below or on social media. Don’t forget to follow ‘THAT Eurovision Site’ over at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
News Source: Aftonbladet
Photo Source: SVT / Stina Stjernkvist
