Following their first rehearsal yesterday, our Rory got a chance to catch up with Diljá to discuss her Liverpool experience so far.
Watch our interview with Diljá right here:
During their interview, Rory and Diljá talked about how her first rehearsal went and what will be changed in the second rehearsal later today. The pair also discuss Diljá’s upcoming single “Crazy” which is being released on Tuesday (May 9th), as well as seeing if Diljá has indulged in British culture in the time she has spent in Liverpool.
Diljá’s Eurovision Journey so far
Diljá was selected to represent Iceland through through national final Söngvakeppnin. Diljá’s song “Power” was selected to represent Iceland at the Contest after receiving over 164,000 votes.
In the lead-up to Eurovision 2023, Diljá has performed live at the Barcelona Eurovision Party, the Polish Eurovision Party in Warsaw, Eurovision In Concert in Amsterdam and the London Eurovision Party.
On Tuesday, Diljá performed on the Eurovision stage for her first rehearsal. You can find out more about her first rehearsal, and our thoughts on that here.
Who is Diljá?
Diljá – whose full name is Diljá Pétursdóttir is a 21 year old singer from Kópavogur in Iceland. Diljá’s career kickstarted when she took part in Ísland’s Got Talent in 2015. In 2020 Diljá moved to Copenhagen to undergo her physiotherapy degree as well as move intensive singing lessons.
As of 2023 Diljá’s Eurovision entry “Power” is her only song release, there is also an Icelandic version of the song which is entitled “Lifandi inni í mér”. In the first semi final of the national final Diljá performed the Icelandic version of the song, before settling on performing the English version at Eurovision. Diljá’s “Power” was written by herself alongside Pálmi Ragnar Ásgeirsson.
Iceland’s Eurovision Journey
Iceland made its debut on the Eurovision stage in 1986, finishing 16th with the song “Gleðibankinn” (Bank of fun) by ICY. In their 34 appearances, Iceland has finished in top 10 an impressive 7 times. Their best result to date is second place, which they have achieved twice. The first time was in 1999, where Selma Björnsdóttir received 146 points for her performance of “All out of luck”. The second time was in 2009, with Yohanna singing “Is It True” and receiving 218 points. Iceland’s most recent representative on the Eurovision stage was Systur, singing “Með hækkandi sól”, finishing 23rd with 20 points.
What do you think of our interview with Diljá? Do you think they will qualify for the final this year? Where would you like Iceland to finish this year? As always, let us know what you think by commenting below. Also, be sure to follow “That Eurovision Site” on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Tiktok as we cover the rehearsals of Eurovision 2023!
News Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo Credit: Sarah Louise Bennett / EBU
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