The reunited quartet has been favorites to go straight to the final all week when Melodifestivalen got underway in Linköping.
Afterwards, "the emotions were all over the place" for A-Teens, says Sara Lumholdt, while Dhani Lennevald began to cry with joy.
"Now all the emotions come at once, as Per Gessle would have said," Amit Paul tells TT.
Marie Serneholt, Sara Lumholdt, Amit Paul and Dhani Lennevald broke through in 1998 before going their separate ways in 2004. In 2024, they sang together for the first time in almost 20 years in an interlude at Melodifestivalen - and were left wanting more.
Greczula without a flight
Greczula was first in this year's competition with his fast-paced entry "Half of me". He has consistently topped the odds and when it came down to it, the Falkenberg native charmed TV viewers. He says he hasn't tried to think too much about the result, but...
"It's clear that I believe in my song a lot. I think the song turned out great. So it's clear that I had good feelings."
However, not everything went as planned. The device that was supposed to lift him into the air at the end could not be lowered from the ceiling. SVT informed Aftonbladet that despite the mishap, he was not allowed to perform again. It did not matter in the end.
Greczula, whose full name is Kristofer Greczula, has been releasing music since 2017 and came third in last year's competition, behind KAJ and Måns Zelmerlöw. The name is Hungarian and a tribute to his grandfather who came to Sweden from Hungary in the 1950s.
Jacqline, with her Beyoncé-inspired entry "Woman", secured a place in the final qualifiers, which will be decided after the fifth round on February 28. Two years ago, Jacqline went straight to the finals and came in ninth, but she says she is not bitter about not having made it to the final this year.
"It feels great, I just won bronze," she tells TT.
Fourth time for Dirawi
This year's presenters Gina Dirawi and Hampus Nessvold began the evening with a lavish opening number about how Melodifestivalen alleviates anxiety in gloomy times. It is Gina Dirawi's fourth time as presenter but Hampus Nessvold's debut.
SVT continues with its selections of classic contributions, interludes and presenters for its Hall of Fame. In tonight's broadcast, Janne Lucas' "Växeln hallå", which came second in the 1980 Melodifestivalen, was inducted and interpreted by Maja Ivarsson together with drag queen icons Elektra and Admira.
Ann Edliden/TT
Facts: The result in Linköping
TT
Directly to the final:
Greczula – "Half of me"
A-Teens – "Iconic"
For the final qualifiers:
Jacqueline – "Woman"
Eliminated:
Indra – "Beautiful lie"
Noll2 – "Drunk Words"
Junior Lerin – "Copacabana boy"
