Will the Swedish people go "delulu" (crazy) tonight and vote Lilla Al-Fadji straight through to the final? It remains to be seen, but for the audience who were at the rehearsal in Sundsvall on Friday evening, there was no doubt. Lilla Al-Fadji herself felt the support of the audience in the arena.
There were a lot of children cheering, and children are our future. If I have the children's votes, I have already won, you know, mentally, verbally and orally, she says.
“Can eat up”
With 34 percent of the audience votes in the Melodifestivalklubben survey, there seems to be a chance that the comedian will advance instead of, for example, Sanna Nielsen, who finished third in the survey. However, according to bookmakers, Nielsen is firmly in first place, with a 79 percent chance of advancing tonight.
"It's a tough starting field so we'll see. I can't really do much more than show that I love this more than anything," she says.
Are you really a winner?
I usually say that I'm not. But I have to eat those words because I'm still running for the eighth time. I guess I'm not that much of a winner anyway.
First-time competitor and American Song Contest winner Alexa comes in second with both bookmakers and the genre audience. With her "Tongue Tied," she brings K-pop to Melodifestivalen, but maybe it's too "explored," she reasons.
I don't think I'm the obvious choice. And I'm really just here to have fun.
Second to last tip
The guys in Juliett are also debutants in Melodifestivalen and have said that they don't think they have a chance of advancing to the final. Bookmakers and the general public seem to agree, as they are tipped last and second-to-last respectively.
We posted on TikTok and joked that we would come last. It's a fantastic competition, with as many good entries as possible, says Valter Wigren.
Would you have been surprised if you still advanced?
"We've seen the odds, so it's clear. It would have been crazy fun, but it's not something we're focusing on," says David Själlin.
Several of the numbers have technical challenges. Alexa couldn't get the laser pointer that was supposed to be used in her number to work, and Lilla Al-Fadji has a spinning scene where she tripped twice during the rehearsal.
"It's a metaphor for life. I want to convey that life is a challenge for all of us. I'm pretty perfect otherwise, so I thought I had to become a little more relatable," she says.
Alexa – "Tongue Tied"
099-908 01 (10 SEK per vote, of which 9.13 SEK goes to Radiohjälpen)
Juliett – “Far from Everyone Else”
099-908 02 (10 SEK per vote, of which 9.13 SEK goes to Radiohjälpen)
Blade – “Who You Are”
099-908 03 (10 SEK per vote, of which 9.13 SEK goes to Radiohjälpen)
Lilla Al-Fadji - "Delulu"
099-908 04 (10 SEK per vote, of which 9.13 SEK goes to Radiohjälpen)
Vilhelm Buchaus – "Hearts Don't Lie"
099-908 05 (10 SEK per vote, of which 9.13 SEK goes to Radiohjälpen)
Sanna Nielsen - "Waste Your Love"
099-908 06 (10 SEK per vote, of which 9.13 SEK goes to Radiohjälpen)
