Eurovision 2021 is on the horizon, and a decision is expected to be made soon by Icelandic organisers about Söngvakeppnin. Will they run it as normal, or will they internally select Daði Freyr, who wants to compete again? This article will discuss the factors in play and recent news about the Eurovision 2020 favourite.
In a recent interview with Berliner Zeitung, Daði spoke about many aspects of the past year. This includes his original Eurovision journey, living in Berlin and his plans for the future, including his talks with the Icelandic broadcaster RUV about Eurovision 2021, where he is expecting a decision soon.
Daði and his family have had their lives changed by the success of Think About Things. The millions of streams and his favourite status in Eurovision got his career plenty of media attention.
According to the interview, Daði remains adamant on his original stance about Eurovision 2021. This is that he would only take part in Eurovision 2021 if the Icelandic act, himself, is selected internally. He thinks that it ‘wouldn’t make sense’ to do the whole [Songvakeppnin] again, and that better focus can be spent on making sure his entry is prepared for the contest.
The only way we’ll go to Eurovision is if they send us straight there.
Daði Freyr
As reported just over a week ago, there is a gap in Daði’s schedule in May. With no concerts planned for that month at all, should he choose to do Eurovision, he is available. We know he wants to compete in Eurovision through the Berliner interview, he said as much there and elsewhere. This gap is likely planned with that in mind.
Will Söngvakeppnin be held?
However, this requires cooperation from the Söngvakeppnin organisers. It is now almost a binary. If Söngvakeppnin is held, Daði Freyr will not be the entrant, as he won’t enter. If it is not held, he very likely will be the entrant, as Icelandic decision-makers would surely be encouraged by his favourite status. The precedent set by many other nations selecting the same artist for 2020 and 2021 may also help.
They would likely welcome Daði’s name power, but they may also wish to hold Söngvakeppnin as normal and give a chance for all Icelandic acts to submit a song, selecting a song in the normal fashion. Since the first edition in 1986, Söngvakeppnin has always been held when Iceland have entered Eurovision, and until 2020, the winner always went on to Eurovision. Tradition is sometimes hard to break, and while these may be unprecedented times, they may wish to keep the 141,000 viewers who tuned in for the 2020 edition of Söngvakeppnin happy with another show.
What is the most watched TV show in Iceland not going ahead seems quite far-fetched, even for an artist who turned out to be a Eurovision favourite. However, nothing is impossible. Another route is Daði relenting and competing, though with him on record multiple times as saying that won’t happen, that would also count as a rather unlikely outcome.
Also to consider is the impact of the pandemic. It’s almost certain that precautions will be taken to be able to run Söngvakeppnin if the Icelandic delegation wished to. However, avoiding the selection altogether by taking the quiet internal selection route may make this a more likely year for Iceland to turn internal than most others.
Sooner rather than later
Bringing the issue to the fore, on the day of the Berliner-Zeitung interview, a few days ago, Daði stated that he was expecting a decision on this “in the next few days,”. While there’s no indication whether this decision will be made public immediately, it would make sense to expect an announcement from Iceland rather soon.
To hear more from the Icelandic Delegation side about their plans for next year, check out our interview with Felix Bergsson from the delegation, conducted this July:
Iceland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020
Daði, along with his band Gagnamagnið, won the Icelandic national final with the song ‘Think About Things’. They would have represented their country in this year’s contest in Rotterdam. Daði was no stranger to the Eurovision world, taking part in Söngvakeppnin 2017 with “Is This Love?”.
They quickly became one of the favourites to win. Unfortunately, along with the other 40 acts, they were unable to represent Iceland in Rotterdam this year. Will the announcement come soon that confirms if they will or not?
What do you think RÚV should do? Is a new Söngvakeppnin the way to go? Should Daði and Gagnamagnið be selected internally? Which would be better for Iceland? Be sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter, @escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! Also, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to see our reactions to the over the coming months.
