Latvia decides for Stockholm tonight in the second edition of the selection process Supernova. From a total of 20 songs selected by a professional jury to compete, the four best remain and will battle it out shortly to see who will follow in Aminata’s footsteps and represent Latvia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2016.
Broadcaster LTV received 120 open submissions, from which 20 were chosen to take part in Supernova. Over the course of two heats preliminary and one semi-final this month, the participants were downsized to four finalists. Among them, is Aminata again – she finished sixth in the Grand Final 2015 with the song Love Injected, Latvia’s best placing in a decade – but this time as a composer, penning the song Heartbeat for entrant Justs.
Other returning acts from last year were Markus Riva and ElektroFolk; both of whom have already been eliminated.
Previously, the jury and televote was split evenly in the results, but this evening it is completely up to the television audience to decide who will sing again in May.
The broadcast and our blog begins at 20:25 CET, and the stream can be found here.
The four contestants tonight follow:
- Catalepsia – Damnation
- MyRadiantU – We Will Be Stars
- Justs – Heartbeat
- Marta Ritova – Not From This World
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22:40 – Thanks for watching!
We hope you enjoyed the blog and as well as the show, and above all we hope you like the winner. Thanks for following with us this evening! Don’t forget to share your thoughts.
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22:30 – And the winner is…
JUSTS with the Aminata-penned entry Heartbeat
And of course, an encore is in sights to close out the show
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22:26 – In the homestretch
With only some 10 minutes left of the broadcast, the votes should be revealed any minute. The hosts have gathered all the participants on stage.
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22:16 – Riga Beaver has ‘all the feels’
Inspired by a huge fan of his, Supernova’s furry friend breaks out in Let it Go (from Disney’s Frozen) wearing a princess crown and streamers, accompanied by a tiny ballerina who dances around the stage with him.
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22:10 – Interval: Aminata – Fighter
As expected, Aminata takes the stage with one of her new tracks. She nabbed sixth place in the 2015 Grand Finale, which was Latvia’s best result since 2005.
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21:58 – Interval: Intars Busulis
Intars is on the expert jury panel and has been giving feedback all evening; however, now it is his time to take the stage. He is no stranger to Eurovision, as the 2009 representative for Latvia, who performed his song not in English or Latvian, but surprised the audience with a Russian translation.
Right now, the solo ballad he delicately keys out on the piano is incredibly lovely.
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21:50 – Interval: Bandmaster – Us
An electronic ensemble of two guys and a girl take the stage as the interval act, and they are – quite frankly – down right cool. Us is their newest single, released just a month ago.
Falling in line a bit with the type of composition Aminata favors, could this type of music be Latvia’s new strongpoint? Whether it is so or not, they are certainly good at it.
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21:43 – Voting details
As all the finalists have performed, the details for televoting are explained again, along with phone numbers and a recap.
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21:30 – Marta Ritova – Not From This World
The last song of the evening has finally come, and it’s a piano ballad. Marta’s voice is perhaps the most beautiful this evening! Positioned alone on stage at the piano with butterfly wings behind her, the atmosphere is serene, enhanced by a cold echo on her phrases. The song slowly builds into a steady climax that showcases her playing abilities and vocals, accompanied by some light electronics and strings.
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21:21 – Riga Beaver, man
In the spirit of European culture, our beaver friend performs a little reggae rap number, complete with a Jamaican flag-colored beanie and dreds.
“Love because otherwise you won’t be loved back – bring the love around the world,” he exclaims.
Followed by some of his signature dance moves – break it down and “move your tails”.
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21:10 – Justs – Heartbeat
Now it’s time for the song composed by Aminata, last year’s Latvian representative. The effect of her writing is immediate when the song begins. The funky electronic flourishes are quite similar to Love Injected, as is the cadence with a lot of piercing notes that fall back into a quite verse. Justs does an exceptional job delivering the number, as well. His voice is emotive, even if his placement on stage is rather static.
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20:55 – MyRadiantU – We Will Be Stars
This duo has lovely harmony and chemistry on stage. Against a midnight backdrop, bright lights shimmer that simulate stars. The vocals from both are clear and strong, without faltering on any notes – so that is already an asset to their bid for the title. The song itself is rather simple with no dynamic variations in the progression, but the lilting timbre of both singers and the soft melody come together in an attractive way.
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20:48 – Hey Mambo – this is how beavers make a snowflake
The Latvian Beaver is back! Supernova’s fury friend from last year again provides entertainment between sets. This time he twerks and gives a lesson in “snowflake-ology”, crushing a unique masterpiece out of giant sheets of paper and duct tape.
“It’s problematic with beaver fingers.”
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20:38 – Catalepsia – Damnation
This eclectic five-piece kicks off the performances with a little bit of melodic-metal. The vocals of the lead man are low frequency, at some point morphing into a growl. The set is quite intimate with a black wash and gold lights piercing through the shadow, until the strobe lights kick in at the chorus. The music never reaches full metal status, leaning more on the melody. It’s rather uneventful in terms of energy, despite the expectations.
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20:35 – A slow start
Still waiting for the music 10 minutes in! Seems like we’re getting close, however.
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20:25 – Welcome to the show
We are now 2 hours away from knowing who will represent Latvia this year at Eurovision. Do you have a favorite? Let us know in the comments!
The hosts this evening are Ketija Šēnberga and Toms Grēviņš.
And the expert jury on hand is made up of Intars Busulis (2009), Guntars Račs, Daumants Kalniņš and DJ Rudd.