Melodifestivalen 2024 begins tonight and we are back our weekly #LiveBlog – starting with Heat 1 this evening. The first six acts take to the stage in Malmö, with two progressing to the flash vote at the end of Heat 5 and two to the Grand Final after tonight.

So join me, Richard, from 19:00 GMT/20:00 CET, as we discover who will progress in Sweden. You know what to do by now, refresh regularly to see what we have to say in our #LiveBlog.

Refresh here from 19:00 GMT/20:00 CET

Nu kör vi!!! We start the evening in Carina Berg’s lounge for the opening number – or do we? Of course not, it’s just a set on stage! What a jolly opener to start the 2024 proceedings. We now have the voting details and a run down of tonight’s artists.

Rather than just postcards for introducing the artists this year, we also have pundits, Tina and Ronny, introducing the artists too.

Adam Woods – “Supernatural”

Adam Woods competes for a second consecutive year, after making the Final with Jon Henrik Fjällgren & Arc North. “Supernatural” is a very upbeat entry to start the 2024 competition. The LED projections fit with the beat of the song, with a mix of black/white and more brighter imagery. Adam had strong vocals and proves he doesn’t need to be on stage with others to succeed.

Samir & Viktor – “Hela världen väntar” (The whole world is waiting)

Samir & Viktor are back after a few years away from the Contest. They start at the top of two adjacent staircases facing each other – between them they are joined by five dancers. The particular entry feels like a mash up of their previous entries to be honest. They dismount the staircases once the dancers mover off. It is another upbeat number and Samir & Viktor have a track record of getting Swedish language entries to the Final.

Melina Borglowe – “Min melodi” (My melody)

Melina is making her debut this year. She is on stage dressed fully in green and is stood surrounded by lights, playing the guitar. “Min melodi” is quite a gentle ballad – quite a contrast to the first two entries of the evening. While “Min melodi” is pleasant, it doesn’t grab you to say vote – but that’s my own opinion. Melina’s vocals are faultless for this debut.

Elisa Lindström – “Forever Yours”

Elisa has participated in the competition once, back in 2021. Elisa certainly has the eye contact with the cameras. This is quite a fast paced song and at times I feel her vocals do struggle. The performance is enhanced once the dancers take to the stage. Elisa has an interesting white dress/hot pink boots combination going on too.

Lisa Ajax – “Awful Liar”

This will be Lisa Ajax’s fifth time at Melodifestivalen. Lisa is in a long black dress, looking like she is trying to hide a baby bump. A mid-tempo ballad, “Awful Liar” has more of a vote grab than “Min melodi” does. Lisa is joined by a pair of contemporary dancers on stage, which only further enhances the overall vibes of “Awful Liar”.

We are now in the Green Room.

Smash Into Pieces – “Heroes Are Calling”

Smash Into Pieces are back for their second consecutive year and are hoping to make the Final again like Adam Woods. Ok, we have a similar sound to last year – I could even go as far as saying they’ve re-worked “Six Feet Under”. The back projection certainly gives the idea of a movie blockbuster at times. While this isn’t my taste, I’d be extremely surprised if they don’t qualify for the Final tonight.

The trophy has been brought on stage, so the artists can see what is up for grabs. Ok, this time filling is just dragging things out. Voting has finally opened!

Why have we got a man flirting with Carina? The voting has closed! Were back with the pundits again.

The first act through to the Final are Smash Into Pieces, with their entry “Heroes Are Calling”. The reprise starts from the Green Room in a format change!

The second round of voting has now opened! Were back in the Green Room, with Carina speaking to 2024’s first finalists. Voting has now closed!

Carina’s flirting man is backstage now.

A quick look back at ABBA and Waterloo, before we look at A*Teens from the late 1990’s/early 2000’s. A*Teens have taken to the stage for the first time in 25 years with a melody of their hits. A*Teens has been my highlight of the night – that’s for certain!

RESULTS! The second finalist is Lisa Ajax, while the two artists through to the flash vote at the end of the fifth heat are Elisa Lindström and Adam Woods.

Thank you for joining me on the return weekend of Melodifestivalen – will you join me again next week?

Let us know what you think about Sweden and the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest – either in the comments below or on our FACEBOOK, TWITTER, YOUTUBE, INSTAGRAM and TIKTOK pages.

Author: Richard Taylor

Source: SVT