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Finland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 with the song "Blackbird" and performed by Lasse Piirainen and Leena Tirronen under the name Norma John. The Finnish broadcaster Yleisradio (Yle) organised the national final Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2017 in order to select the Finnish entry for the 2017 contest in Kyiv, Ukraine. Ten entries were selected to compete in the national final on 28 January 2017 where the 50/50 combination of votes from ten international jury groups and votes from the public selected "Blackbird" performed by Norma John as the winner.
| Eurovision Song Contest 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country |  Finland | |||
| National selection | ||||
| Selection process | Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2017 | |||
| Selection date(s) | 28 January 2017 | |||
| Selected artist(s) | Norma John | |||
| Selected song | "Blackbird" | |||
| Selected songwriter(s) |
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| Finals performance | ||||
| Semi-final result | Failed to qualify (12th) | |||
| Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest | ||||
| ||||
Finland was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 9 May 2017. Performing during the show in position 7, "Blackbird" was not announced among the top 10 entries of the first semi-final and therefore did not qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Finland placed twelfth out of the 18 participating countries in the semi-final with 92 points.
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Prior to the 2017 contest, Finland had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifty times since its first entry in 1961.[1] Finland has won the contest once in 2006 with the song "Hard Rock Hallelujah" performed by Lordi. In the 2016 contest, "Sing It Away" performed by Sandhja failed to qualify Finland to the final, placing fifteenth in the semi-final.
The Finnish national broadcaster, Yleisradio (Yle), broadcasts the event within Finland and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. Yle confirmed their intentions to participate at the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest on 15 May 2016.[2] Finland's entries for the Eurovision Song Contest have been selected through national final competitions that have varied in format over the years. Between 1961 and 2011, a selection show that was often titled Euroviisukarsinta highlighted that the purpose of the program was to select a song for Eurovision. However, since 2012, the broadcaster has organised the selection show Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK), which focuses on showcasing new music with the winning song being selected as the Finnish contest entry for that year. Along with their participation confirmation, the broadcaster also announced that the Finnish entry for the 2017 contest would be selected through Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2017.[2]
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Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2017
Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2017 was the sixth edition of Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK), the music competition that selects Finland's entries for the Eurovision Song Contest. The competition consisted of a final on 28 January 2017, held at the Espoo Metro Areena in Espoo and hosted by 2013 Finnish Eurovision entrant Krista Siegfrids. The show was broadcast on Yle TV2 and online at yle.fi/umk. The competition was also broadcast via radio on Yle Radio Suomi and with commentary in Swedish by Eva Frantz and Johan Lindroos on Yle X3M.[3]
Competing entries
A submission period was opened by Yle which lasted between 1 September 2016 and 5 September 2016. At least one of the writers and the lead singer(s) had to hold Finnish citizenship or live in Finland permanently in order for the entry to qualify to compete.[4] A panel of experts appointed by Yle selected ten entries for the competition from the received submissions. The competing entries along with their lyric videos were presented during a live streamed press conference on 23 December 2016, hosted by Krista Siegfrids, while their promotional music videos were released on 28 December 2016.[5][6] The competing entries were also presented in a televised preview programme on 31 December 2016, hosted by Mikko Silvennoinen, where a panel of guests consisting of Eini, Tuija Pehkonen, Jaana Pelkonen and Suvi Aalto discussed the artists and songs and selected "Paradise" performed by My First Band as having the best music video. Between 16 and 25 January 2017, each competing artist held a Facebook Live session online, the content of which was up to each artist.[7]
| Artist | Song | Songwriter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Alva | "Arrows" | Arto Ruotsala, Milos Rosas, Aatu Mällinen |
| Anni Saikku | "Reach Out for the Sun" | Mia Kemppainen, Perttu Kurttila |
| Club La Persé | "My Little World" | Princess Julia, Luke Howard, Jaakko Salovaara |
| Emma | "Circle of Light" | Jonas Olsson, Heidi Maria Paalanen, Aku Rannila, Saara Törmä |
| Günther and D'Sanz | "Love Yourself" | Mats Söderlund, Amir Aly, Tomas Cederholm, Robin Abrahamsson, Niklas Nylund |
| Knucklebone Oscar and the Shangri-La Rubies | "Caveman" | Sami Baldauf, Oskari Martimo, Jarno Salomaa, Risto Kumpulainen, Sande Vettenranta, Ulrika Bachér, Claude-Michel Schönberg |
| Lauri Yrjölä | "Helppo elämä" | Lauri Yrjölä |
| My First Band | "Paradise" | Antti Koivula, Heikki Puhakainen, Heikki Kytölä, Juho Vehmanen, Mikko Virta, Jurek Reunamäki |
| Norma John | "Blackbird" | Lasse Piirainen, Leena Tirronen |
| Zühlke | "Perfect Villain" | Nalle Ahlstedt, Christian Ingebrigtsen, Silje Nymoen |
Final
The final took place on 28 January 2017 where ten entries competed. "Blackbird" performed by Norma John was selected as the winner by a 50/50 combination of public votes and ten international jury groups from Estonia, France, Iceland, Israel, Latvia, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.[8] The viewers and the juries each had a total of 430 points to award. Each jury group distributed their points as follows: 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 points. The viewer vote was based on the percentage of votes each song achieved through the following voting methods: telephone, SMS and online voting. For example, if a song gained 10% of the viewer vote, then that entry would be awarded 10% of 430 points rounded to the nearest integer: 43 points. The proceeds from the public voting were donated to the Nose Day Foundation (Nenäpäivä-säätiö), which funds projects in developing nations.[7] In addition to the performances of the competing entries, the interval act featured Jenni Vartiainen performing her single "Turvasana", and Marcus and Martinus performing a medley of their songs.[9]
| Draw | Artist | Song | Jury | Televote | Total | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emma | "Circle of Light" | 53 | 53 | 106 | 3 |
| 2 | Alva | "Arrows" | 15 | 48 | 63 | 6 |
| 3 | Günther and D'Sanz | "Love Yourself" | 37 | 45 | 82 | 5 |
| 4 | Anni Saikku | "Reach Out for the Sun" | 43 | 16 | 59 | 7 |
| 5 | Knucklebone Oscar and the Shangri-La Rubies | "Caveman" | 5 | 13 | 18 | 10 |
| 6 | Norma John | "Blackbird" | 94 | 88 | 182 | 1 |
| 7 | Lauri Yrjölä | "Helppo elämä" | 43 | 15 | 58 | 8 |
| 8 | Club La Persé | "My Little World" | 21 | 29 | 50 | 9 |
| 9 | Zühlke | "Perfect Villain" | 74 | 71 | 145 | 2 |
| 10 | My First Band | "Paradise" | 45 | 52 | 97 | 4 |
| Draw | Song |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Circle of Light" | 1 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 10 | 53 | |
| 2 | "Arrows" | 8 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 15 | ||||||
| 3 | "Love Yourself" | 2 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 37 | |||
| 4 | "Reach Out for the Sun" | 4 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 43 | |||
| 5 | "Caveman" | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | ||||||
| 6 | "Blackbird" | 12 | 10 | 12 | 4 | 12 | 10 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 94 |
| 7 | "Helppo elämä" | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 43 | |
| 8 | "My Little World" | 4 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 21 | ||||||
| 9 | "Perfect Villain" | 6 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 74 | |
| 10 | "Paradise" | 10 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 12 | 45 | |||
| International Jury Spokespersons | ||||||||||||
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Promotion
Norma John made several appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Blackbird" as the Finnish Eurovision entry. On 2 April, they performed during the London Eurovision Party, which was held at the Café de Paris venue in London, United Kingdom and hosted by Nicki French. Between 3 and 6 April, the Finnish duo took part in promotional activities in Tel Aviv, Israel where they performed during the Israel Calling event held at the Ha'teatron venue.[11][12] On 8 April, Norma John performed during the Eurovision in Concert event which was held at the Melkweg venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands and hosted by Cornald Maas and Selma Björnsdóttir.[13]
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According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot.[14] On 31 January 2017, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Finland was placed into the first semi-final, held on 9 May 2017, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show.[15]
Once all the competing songs for the 2017 contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the shows' producers rather than through another draw, so that similar songs were not placed next to each other. Finland was set perform in position 7, following the entry from Montenegro and before the entry from Azerbaijan.[16]
The first semi-final was televised in Finland on Yle TV1, while the second semi-final and the final were televised on Yle TV2. All shows featured a second audio program providing commentary in Finnish by Mikko Silvennoinen and in Swedish by Eva Frantz and Johan Lindroos. The Finnish spokesperson, who announced the top 12-point score awarded by the Finnish jury during the final, was Jenni Vartiainen.[17]
Semi-final
Norma John took part in technical rehearsals on 30 April and 4 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 8 and 9 May. This included the jury show on 8 May where the professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries.[18]
The Finnish performance featured the members of Norma John both in black outfits; Leena Tirronen performed vocals and Lasse Piirainen played the piano which lit up with red and white colours from the inside. The LED screens transitioned from black and blue stormy imagery to red colours during the final chorus of the song with the stage floor displaying visuals reminiscent of water. The performance also featured smoke effects.[19][20][21]
At the end of the show, Finland was not announced among the top 10 entries in the first semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Finland placed twelfth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 92 points: 51 points from the televoting and 41 points from the juries.[22]
Voting
Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding two sets of points from 1-8, 10 and 12: one from their professional jury and the other from televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member as well as the nation's televoting results were released shortly after the grand final.[23]
Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Finland and awarded by Finland in the first semi-final and grand final of the contest, and the breakdown of the jury voting and televoting conducted during the two shows:
Points awarded to Finland
Points awarded by Finland
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Detailed voting results
The following members will comprise the Finnish jury:[26]
- Jonas Olsson (jury chairperson) – producer, songwriter
- Iisa Pajula – singer-songwriter
- Marcus Sjöström – music director
- Vicky Rosti – singer, represented Finland in the 1987 contest
- Kalle Mäkipelto – music producer
| Draw | Country | Jury | Televote | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I. Pajula | J. Olsson | M. Sjöström | V. Rosti | K. Mäkipelto | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | ||
| 01 | Sweden | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 4 | 7 |
| 02 |  Georgia | 14 | 6 | 3 | 13 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 17 | |
| 03 |  Australia | 2 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 12 | |
| 04 |  Albania | 11 | 17 | 12 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 16 | ||
| 05 |  Belgium | 3 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 2 | 10 | |
| 06 |  Montenegro | 15 | 14 | 17 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 8 | 3 | |
| 07 | Finland | |||||||||
| 08 |  Azerbaijan | 13 | 15 | 14 | 11 | 8 | 13 | 14 | ||
| 09 |  Portugal | 1 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 1 | 12 |
| 10 |  Greece | 16 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 15 | ||
| 11 |  Poland | 8 | 13 | 2 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 2 | 11 | |
| 12 |  Moldova | 17 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 8 |
| 13 | Iceland | 4 | 10 | 13 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 |
| 14 |  Czech Republic | 7 | 11 | 16 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 13 | ||
| 15 |  Cyprus | 9 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
| 16 |  Armenia | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 4 |
| 17 |  Slovenia | 6 | 8 | 11 | 5 | 15 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 2 |
| 18 | Latvia | 12 | 7 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 10 | 1 | |
| Draw | Country | Jury | Televote | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I. Pajula | J. Olsson | M. Sjöström | V. Rosti | K. Mäkipelto | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | ||
| 01 | Israel | 18 | 10 | 5 | 12 | 15 | 11 | 14 | ||
| 02 | Poland | 21 | 24 | 11 | 19 | 23 | 22 | 22 | ||
| 03 |  Belarus | 17 | 6 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 21 | 17 | ||
| 04 |  Austria | 19 | 5 | 22 | 20 | 18 | 17 | 24 | ||
| 05 | Armenia | 11 | 22 | 14 | 14 | 8 | 13 | 20 | ||
| 06 |  Netherlands | 16 | 9 | 17 | 7 | 16 | 12 | 16 | ||
| 07 | Moldova | 23 | 7 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 5 |
| 08 |  Hungary | 14 | 23 | 15 | 9 | 25 | 19 | 7 | 4 | |
| 09 |  Italy | 2 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 8 |
| 10 |  Denmark | 13 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 21 | |
| 11 | Portugal | 1 | 3 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 12 |
| 12 | Azerbaijan | 25 | 11 | 18 | 15 | 14 | 16 | 18 | ||
| 13 |  Croatia | 26 | 18 | 26 | 6 | 11 | 20 | 11 | ||
| 14 | Australia | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 15 | |
| 15 | Greece | 22 | 26 | 19 | 24 | 22 | 26 | 23 | ||
| 16 | Spain | 24 | 14 | 16 | 22 | 9 | 18 | 26 | ||
| 17 | Norway | 9 | 19 | 9 | 11 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 2 |
| 18 | United Kingdom | 8 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 13 | |
| 19 | Cyprus | 15 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 12 | |
| 20 |  Romania | 12 | 17 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 24 | 8 | 3 | |
| 21 |  Germany | 7 | 16 | 20 | 16 | 20 | 15 | 25 | ||
| 22 | Ukraine | 20 | 21 | 25 | 26 | 13 | 25 | 19 | ||
| 23 | Belgium | 6 | 20 | 6 | 17 | 24 | 14 | 2 | 10 | |
| 24 | Sweden | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 5 | 6 |
| 25 |  Bulgaria | 4 | 4 | 4 | 18 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 7 |
| 26 | France | 10 | 25 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 23 | 10 | 1 | |
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