Country Finland Selected entrant Waldo's People | Selection process Euroviisut 2009 Selected song "Lose Control" | |
Selection date(s) Semi-finals
9 January 2009
16 January 2009
23 January 2009
Second Chance
31 January 2009
Final
31 January 2009 Semi-final result Qualified (12th, 42 points) | ||
Finland was present at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009, held in Moscow, Russia. The country was represented by Waldo's People with "Lose Control".
Contents
Euroviisut 2009
The final was held in Leonardo Hall in Tampere, hosted by Jaana Pelkonen and Mikko Peltonen. There were three semi-finals held on 9, 16, and 23 January 2009 and composers had until 1 November 2008 to submit songs.
The 12 artists to compete in Euroviisut 2009 were announced on 25 September 2008. They include many former Euroviisut participants, including 12-time Euroviisut participant Tapani Kansa, 1994 participant Janita, 2002 participant Sani (as part of Aikakone), 2004 participant Riikka and winner of Euroviisut 2004 Jari Sillanpää. Each artist has been drawn into a semi-final, and the songs that each artist will sing were released on 3 December 2008.
Semi-finals
Three semi-finals will be held, each with four artists. the top two artists through televoting will qualify for the final. The three tables below show the semi-finals of "Euroviisut 2009". The two songs that fail to qualify for the final will proceed to a second chance round, where two more songs will qualify for the final. The running order for each song was announced on 3 December, along with each song being published on the YLE website.
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final of Euroviisut 2009 was held on 9 January 2009, and featured four songs. Two songs qualified for the final, while the other two acts would progress to the Second Chance round.
The first performance of the show was Kwan with "10,000 Light Years". The song is a hip-hop/pop song which the group performed in black outfits. Fire, light and pyrotechnics was used frequently on stage for visual presentation. Second on stage was Riikka, performing "Meren" (The sea). The song is an ethnic piece, performed in a blue haze on stage. Riikka, dressed in a black and white dress, is joined by five female backing singers, all in black. Next on stage was Tapani Kansa, performing "Rakkautta on, rauhaa ei" (There's love, there's no peace). The song is a ballad, which Kansa performs in a black, and he is joined on stage by five female backing singers in white. During the start of his performance, however, Kansa loses his cue and stops singing, however he starts again shortly afterwards. The final performance of the night came from Tiara, who performs "Manala" (Underworld). The song is a rock number, which Tiara performs in a black and red dress. She is joined on stage by a three-man band and two female backing singers, all in black.
Tapani Kansa and Kwan were revealed to be the qualifiers to the final, having gained 37.4% and 31.9% of the televote respectively. Riikka and Tiara went to the Second Chance round.
Results
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final was held on 16 January, with another four songs competing. Two more songs qualified for the final, with the remaining songs going to the Second Chance round.
The first act on stage from the second semi-final was Sani with "Doctor, Doctor". The performance is 60s inspired, featuring many classic Finnish items on stage. Sani begins her performance sitting in a ball chair, with three female backing dances in black and white Marimekko dresses, and two female backing singers in black dresses. The song itself is an up-tempo pop number. Favourites to win, Passionworks are next on stage, joined by Tony Turunen. The female soloist is in a long purple dress, featuring a large snowflake protruding from the back. Turunen begins the performance of this rock song on a black piano on stage, before standing up and singing. Remu gives the penultimate performance of the night, singing "Planeetta". He performance the rock number in a black suit with burgendy suit, and is joined on stage by three female backing singers/dancers. two of the backing performers wears black suits, while the remaining backing performer performs in a burgendy suit, wearing a Halloween mask. Waldo's People is last on stage, however the band are absent from the show in order to emphasize the vocals and performance. Waldo, dressed in a black top, jeans and cap, is joined on stage by three female singers, dressed in black, as well as two backing performers juggling fire, also dressed in black leather. Fire is used throughout the performance for effect.
Waldo's People and Remu Aaltonen qualified for the final, receiving 44,3% and 28,6% respectively. Pre-contest favourites Passionworks, and Sani, failed to qualify and competed in the Second Chance round.
Results
Semi-final 3
The final semi-final was held on 23 January, with another four songs competing. Two more songs qualified for the final, with the remaining songs going to the Second Chance round.
First on stage was Signmark, with Osmo Ikonen, with the song "Speakerbox". The song is a hip-hop song which includes the use of sign language during the performance. Janita was next on stage, singing "Martian". The song is a rock number, which Janita performs in a black dress, and she is accompanied on stage by a lead and bass guitarists and a drummer, all in black. Rock band Vink was the penultimate performance for the night, with "The Greatest Plan", an energetic pop-rock song. The group and backing singer were all in black for their performance. The band and backing singers are dressed in black jackets and colourful T-shirts. The final song to be performed was "Kirkas kipinä" (Bright spark) by Jari Sillanpää, who represented Finland at the 2004 contest. Sillanpää performed the ballad in a black suit, and was joined on stage by four backing singers who moved about on stage during the performance, dressed in shades of white and black. Gymnast Marleena Saresvirta also performed on stage during the song.
From this semi-final, Signmark and Jari Sillanpää qualified to the final, receiving 46.5% and 34% of the televotes. Janita and Vink failed to qualify, proceeding to the Second Chance round.
Results
Final
The final of Euroviisut 2009 will be held on 31 January 2009. Eight songs will compete - the six direct qualifiers from the semi-finals, as well as the two winners of the Second Chance round, held immediately before the final.
During the final, performances by male dance group 'Scandinavian Hunks' and metal cover band 'Northern Kings' will be made.
Second Chance
The Second Chance round contained the six semi-finalists that failed to qualify to the final, getting the least votes in the televote. They performed again for the chance to qualify to the final. The two qualifiers were Passionworks feat. Tony Turunen with "Surrender" and Vink with "The Greatest Plan".
Final
The final featured the eight acts that qualified from the semi-finals and the Second Chance round. The top three songs in the televote will perform again, when another televote will decide the winner.
The top three songs decided by the televote were Signmark, Waldo's People and Second Chance qualifiers Passionworks.
Super Final
The Super Final featured the top three songs of the final, Signmark, Waldo's People and Passionworks. Waldo's People were the winner with 45.1%, with Signmark coming second with 42.2%. They will represent Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest with their song "Lose Control".
At Eurovision
Since Finland was not one of the "Big Four" and was not the host of the 2009 contest, it competed in the first semi-final and was qualified to the finals. Finland performed with the entry number 24 in the final, and it placed last, receiving only 22 points. Finland's commentary was provided in Finnish on YLE TV2 by Jaana Pelkonen, Mikko "Peltsi" Peltola, and Asko Murtomäki, while Swedish commentary was provided by Tobias Larsson.