Starting this Saturday (January 13) Eurovision fans across Norway and around the globe will tune in to the first show of Melodi Grand Prix, the official name of the Norwegian National Final, that will select their entry to go on to Eurovision in May.
Melodi Grand Prix, or MGP as it is often abbreviated, is one of the oldest National Finals, having commenced in 1960, which was the first year that Norway competed in the Eurovision Song Contest. The competition has since been held, choosing the songs and artists who would represent Norway each year except for three: 1970 (when Norway boycotted that edition of Eurovision), 1991 (when the national final was canceled due to the quality of the entrants), and in 2002 (when the country had been relegated due to a poor performance the prior year). Across the more than 60 years that the contest has been held, there have been multiple format changes to make adjustments with the times and rule changes to best ensure that the most competitive entry wins the ticket to that year’s Eurovision.
For Melodi Grand Prix 2024, the broadcaster NRK chose 18 acts to compete across three semifinals, featuring six songs a piece. In this format, the top three of each semifinal will advance to the final. In the final, the winner will be determined by a combined Jury and a public televote score. The jury will determine 40% of the score with the public accounting for the remaining 60%.
Of the eighteen acts competing in MGP this year, there are a couple of familiar faces to fans of Eurovision: Benedicte Adrian who is competing as a part of Mistra represented Norway in 1984 as a part of the group Dollie de Luxe, Margaret Berger who finished fourth at Eurovision in 2013, and Keiino the 2019 televote winners.
The show starts at 7:50 pm CET and can be streamed from the NRK website.