Since the final of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, questions have been asked as to whether Norway will participate in next year’s major music competition. And now news has finally concluded after talks with the EBU and the new report that was published yesterday: – Now the EBU has recognized that they had problems this year and they are working to improve it. And what we’ve been told, in addition to what they’ve come out with publicly, sounds very good. So now we will work constructively and positively to get Norway into Eurovision in 2025. We will participate, says music manager for Melodi Grand Prix, Stig Karlsen. Music director Stig Karlsen says that Norway is entering next year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Photo: Linda Marie Vedeler / news He emphasizes that they have not received an answer to everything the EBU should do next, but that news’s plan is now clear. The registration deadline for next year’s competition is set for mid-September. There are so far around 16 countries registered for next year’s competition. Both Sweden and Denmark have already confirmed participation. After Nemo won this year’s ESC, Switzerland will host the competition in 2025. It has not yet been announced where in Switzerland it will be held. Karlsen says that news is concerned that the EBU safeguards non-political thought better. – We hope that the EBU ensures that the ESC is not used as a political tool, because there was quite a bit of this this year. It is also important that they become better at communicating, crisis management and security around the event. Promises improvement Against the background of this year’s controversies and protests during the Eurovision Song Contest, the EBU, the organizer of the competition, promised a thorough evaluation and review of the event. Yesterday, the EBU published a report in which they consider further measures to improve the safety of the artists. At the same time, they announced that they are creating new leadership positions in the Eurovision Song Contest, and that they have been recommended to create a crisis team that can prevent and handle crises. The EBU promises improvements in next year’s competition. Photo: Martin Meissner / NTB/AP Karlsen says that news has been clear in its feedback to the EBU and shared its thoughts on improvements. – We see that some of that is reflected in what the EBU came up with now. He says that they will also work to ensure that next year’s ESC participants feel looked after during the event to be held in Switzerland in May 2025. – We must communicate well with the artist and provide an understanding of what we do and how we handle this. It is very important that the artist has a good experience throughout. New Israeli participation Of the countries registered for next year, there is also Israel. There were several demonstrations both here in Norway and several other countries in Europe when they were allowed to participate in this year’s competition. – news has been clear that we do not engage in a cultural boycott. What is important to us is that Eurovision is not used as a platform for politics, and the EBU has not been able to follow this up as well. We cannot have countries that use the competition as a platform for propaganda, says Karlsen. There were several large demonstrations during this year’s Eurovision in Malmö due to Israel’s participation. Photo: Joakim Registad / news The EBU has not made any new statements about Israeli participation next year. Published 02.07.2024, at 14.26 Updated 02.07.2024, at 14.45
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Norway is participating in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest – news Culture and Entertainment
