Tuva Råwall, 18, Love Hedlund Stenmarck, 19, and Nicolina-Mercedes Brandström, 16, are vying for the victory in “Idol.” They have competed all fall in the talent show, which has produced several of Sweden’s biggest artists over the years.
Didn't unpack
That one of the three on Saturday will emerge as the winner, a record contract richer, feels completely unreal, they say:
"I thought I could survive a week at most. I didn't even unpack my bag until after a month," says Nicolina-Mercedes Brandström.
The fierce competition has also made it difficult to imagine going all the way to the final.
It's incredible when you think about the level everyone else was at. At first I just felt like "hell", and I took it week by week, says Love Hedlund Stenmarck.
The finalists have struggled with various challenges during the fall. For Love Hedlund Stenmarck, it has been difficult to take care of her voice.
"I'm not an experienced singer, and my vocal cords aren't really hardened. I've been going 100 percent on every rep and it hasn't been sustainable. I've had to learn to rest them," he says.
Nicolina-Mercedes Brandström has had to work on turning adversity into something positive:
"I've been hanging loose every week. That's been the hard part for me, trying to turn it into a fighting spirit," she says.
Tuva Råwall's biggest challenge has been high demands from those around her.
The jury has had high demands on me and there has been a lot of pressure – I would like to meet their expectations and surpass myself every time. But it's not possible, and it has been a bit of a struggle, she says.
Manage comments
Being on “Idol” almost automatically means that you not only get a large audience in TV viewers – followers also flood in on social media. The finalists get a lot of comments, and not only positive ones. How do you handle that?
It's hard. You can get 50 really great comments and one that's negative, and that's the one that sticks. You find yourself almost looking for the negative, says Nicolina-Mercedes Brandström and continues:
"But those people aren't important to me. And I know I have the support I need from family and friends," she says.
Sara Haldert/TT
Facts: The "Idol" finale
TT
Broadcast on TV4 on December 6th.
Pär Lernström is the program host together with Edvin Törnblom.
The finale will also be hosted by former "Idol" participants Erik Segerstedt, Mattias Andréasson and Danny Saucedo in EMD.
