Country Finland Selection date(s) 10 March 2006 Selected song "Hard Rock Hallelujah" | Selection process National final Selected entrant Lordi | |
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Semi-final result Qualified (1st, 292 points) | ||
Finland's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was selected on 10 March 2006 in a final held in the Caribia hall in Turku, hosted by Heikki Paasonen and Jaana Pelkonen. The Finnish viewers chose the band Lordi to perform "Hard Rock Hallelujah", a rock anthem, at Eurovision. The song was a favourite before the competition and also scored major success when released as a single. The song, written and composed by band member Mr. Lordi, went on to win the Eurovision Song Contest in 2006, placing first in both the semifinal and final. This gave Finland its first ever win in the competition.
Lordi is a melodic theatrical heavy-rock band, mostly known for their unusual monster costumes and lyrical themes. The members are Lordi, Amen, Ox, Awa, and Kita. Lordi have released four albums with many hit songs. The members have never shown themselves in public without their masks. Lordi itself says the band doesn't exist without the masks. Before the Athens competition there was some controversy in Finland protesting the selection of such an unusual musical style and stage theatrics. Several newspaper readers' letters called for a reconsideration of the representative in favour of more traditional pop music.
Results of the national final
Before the main final, semi-finals were held in Tampere, in which a song was selected for each of the twelve candidates. These songs competed in the main final, and, after a round of televoting, six were eliminated. A new vote was held for the remaining six, the results of which are below.