All opinions expressed in this article are those of the person quoted and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the other team members or That Eurovision Site as a whole.
With less than 48 hours to go until Melodifestivalen 2025 is due to commence, Tim and Daniel had a chance to watch some of the rehearsals for the first semi-final of the competition, where they gave their opinions and predictions for Saturday’s show.
Albin Johnsén ft. Pa – “Upp I Luften”
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
Albin & Pa start off the show stood above an angled platform, with Pa at the base and Albin towards the top. The platform has an LED strip that starts out a Käärijä green, and alternates with a dusky orange colour, with the occasional pink, throughout the song. Around the halfway point Pa gets down from the see-saw looking platform onto the stage and is flanked on either side by two dancers, with Albin joining him down there shortly after. Fit for the song, the platform levels out as the dancers make their way to the B stage as our duo, who are back on the now level platform, are lifted Upp I Luften (Up in the air).
| Tim | Daniel |
| It’s a great way to start the show, I will say that it definitely reminds me of the Panetoz vibes. Personally, I would love for this to go through, and would love for it to happen. | WOW. They weren’t lying, this is absolutely huge. I need to see this performed in a packed out arena instantly, because I just know it would blow the roof off. I was drawn in from the very first second, – it’s immediately right in your face and I absolutely love it. I can see the same happening with the Swedish public, especially younger demographics. There is something about them getting lifted up at the end that makes my brain very happy. |
| Tim’s Predicion | Daniel’s Prediction |
| Direkt Til Finalen | Direkt Til Finalen |
Maja Ivarsson – “Kamikaze Life”
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
We see Maja standing on a platform, waving the mic, with bright lights and smoke appearing in the back, as well as pink and blue paint drops on the LED background. For the second chorus, Maja leaves the platform and sings the chorus on the main stage. When we get to the bridge, Maja leaves the stage goes off stage in the crowd to sing a verse before returning to the main stage and the platform for the final chorus.
| Tim | Daniel |
| I really hate that I have to rank this so low, because it’s become a guilty pleasure | I can see why Tim likes this, but it’s really more his thing than mine. Just about what I expected from Maja Ivarsson, I can’t see this scoring well for anyone except the oldies. |
| Tim’s Predicion | Daniel’s Prediction |
| Out | Out |
John Lundvik – “Voice of the Silent”
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
We see John on stage, where there is a clear plastic ball in the middle of the stage, surrounded by smoke. As the song progresses, John walks towards the front of the stage but stays in the middle. In the second verse, John walks around the clear ball, which would lead to the second chorus, we see John walk more on the stage, surrounded by smoke, and bright lights, shown via the lighting and the LED screens behind. The song ends with John in front of the plastic bubble.
| Tim | Daniel |
| This is certainly different from what I was expecting from John. Personally, it’s not my cup of tea. However, I can see that there would be some people who might see the appeal to this, John is a very capable vocalist and it shows. | Should it go through? Absolutely not. Will it? Yeah, probably. I’ve never really *got* John Lundvik and I’m afraid to say this is no exception. His vocals are good, but we’ve heard this 1000 times before in Mello and we’ll hear it another 1000. |
| Tim’s Prediction | Daniel’s Prediction |
| Direkt Til Finalen | Direkt Til Finalen |
Meira Omar – “Hush Hush”
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
Meira starts out standing amidst a fog effect, which covers her four dancers. The backdrop shows a pink flower sprawling across all three back screens. Her prop of choice is a table which enables a really interesting mirror effect in certain camera shots, as well as there being a tabletop routine for the choreo, of course. The dance routine as a whole is something you’d expect from a song paying homage to her Middle Eastern roots. Towards the end of the song there’s a pyro effect.
| Tim | Daniel |
| Now this is upbeat, and very different to what we would usually get at Mello. I personally like this, but my concern is the audience might not see the merit of this, which is frustrating as always. | Does this count as an ethnic bop? Perhaps the Melfest version of one. The melody is funky, and I could see myself enjoying a studio cut, but this is a song that needs bags full of sass and energy and sadly I’m just not getting that from Meira. |
| Tim’s Prediction | Daniel’s Prediction |
| Out | Finalkval |
Adrian Maceus – “Vär Första Gång”
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
We see Adrian sitting in the middle of a circular light that is on the floor. Throughout the performance, Adrian remains on the circle throughout the performance and is accompanied by white and red lighting, as well as some graphics in the LED screen.
| Tim | Daniel |
| My concern with this one is that its too middle of the road, I do love Adrian’s stage presence, but from time and time again, we know what the ending usually is, but would love to be proven wrong. | This reminds me a little bit of Mello entries by the likes of Lancelot or Klaudy, but with a dash more energy injected throughout the song. Nothing I’ll be rushing to listen to again, but I do like this. Sadly, I don’t think this type of song is all too competitive, but I’d like to be proven wrong |
| Tim’s Prediction | Daniel’s Prediction |
| Out | Out |
Linea Henriksson – “Den Känslan”
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
The song starts with Linnea descending from the ceiling on a heart shaped seat, disembarking on platform with a drummer either side of her. She descends the stairs and is joined by some dancers. There’s a big finish at the end with pyros and bright white lights. The piece ends with her heart shaped swing burning.
| Tim | Daniel |
| It’s very boppy, it’s unique, and I like that nostalgic feel of the track and the performance. It is tough going into this for the first time, and I personally feel that Linnea did a great job on her first attempt. | Perfectly fine, but I don’t see where many votes for this are coming from. There really isn’t anything at all that makes this stand out, I think this could be a contender for last place, sadly. |
| Tim’s Prediction | Daniel’s Prediction |
| Finalkval | Out |
The first semi-final of Melodifestivalen 2025 will air on the 1st of February at 20:00CET. Don’t forget to follow That Eurovision Site to keep up to date with the latest coverage of this year’s selection.
What we know about Melodifestivalen 2025
As we earlier reported 30 songs will participate in Melodifestivalen 2025, two songs will directly qualify for the final from each semi-final, (which will consist of ten entries for the final)
The entry that placed third in each semi-final will still have a chance to make it to the final (which will be made up of five entries). Out of the five participants who placed third in each semi-final, the act with the highest score across all of the Semi-Finals will automatically be given a place in the final, with the remaining four acts fighting it out for the remaining spot. The act with the highest points from the vote will then be awarded the last spot in the final
As usual, Sweden’s Eurovision 2025 representative will be selected via a mixture of televoting and an international jury.
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 seven times (1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, 2015 and 2023).
In 2024, Marcus and Martinus represented Sweden on home soil. As the host entry, their song “Unforgettable” did not need to compete in the semi-finals. At the close of voting in the grand final, they had received 174 points. 125 points were received by the juries, while the twins received 49 points by televoters.
What are your thoughts on this week’s entries? Who would you like to see represent Sweden at Eurovision in 2025? Let us know in the comments or on social media. Be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tik-Tok as we prepare for Eurovision 2025!
News Source: SVT
Photo Credit: Stina Stjernkvist/SVT for Melodifestivalen 2025
Being an oldie, I liked Maja Ivarsson, and am a little put out at the derisive term. For the record, I’m 62.