Eurovision Song Contest 2024: What you missed at the first semi-final
- The extravagant, glitter-dusted pop song contest kicked off in Malmö, Sweden, on Tuesday. Malin Åkerman and Petra Mede serve as co-hosts.
- Night one of semifinals featured performances from 15 artists, including Marcus & Martinus, representing the host nation, Sweden, and fan favorite Baby Lasagna, from Croatia. Ten countries will move on to Saturday's final.
- In the U.S., the competition streamed on Peacock at 3 p.m. ET. Semifinals will continue with a second round on Thursday.
10 countries move on to Saturday's final
- Serbia - TEYA DORA
- Portugal - iolanda
- Slovenia - Raiven
- Ukraine - alyona alyona & Jerry Heil
- Lithuania - Silvester Belt
- Finland - Windows95man
- Cyprus - Silia Kapsis
- Croatia - Baby Lasagna
- Ireland - Bambie Thug
- Luxembourg - TALI
Benjamin Ingrosso performs
Benjamin Ingrosso, known as Benjy to his fans, just performed.
The artist represented Sweden in 2018 with “Dance You Off.” His 7th place finish was seen as a disappointment for Sweden.
He’s also got music in his blood. He’s the son of Pernilla Wahlgren, a popular Swedish singer in the 80s who took part in Melodifestivalen, Sweden’s national selection for Eurovision in 1985, but came up short.
Two-time winner Johnny Logan performs
Two time Irish winner Johnny Logan performed Loreen’s 2012 winning song “Euphoria,” a tribute to the Swedish singer who tied his record when she triumphed last year with “Tattoo.”
Voting is underway!
The performances are complete and voting is now open on the Eurovision website.
Luxembourg is back after 31 years
Luxembourg made their return to Eurovision for the first time in 31 years tonight with "Fighter" by TALI.
The artist has never been alive to see her country perform in the contest. "Fighter" blended French and English lyrics to create a universally catchy pop song.
Portugal's iolanda gives soulful performance
Dressed in all white, iolanda took the stage to perfrom "Grito." She was the penultimate act to perform.
Australia honors Aboriginal history
Electric Fields, the first duo to represent Australia at Eurovision, synthesized modern pop music with the nation's indigenous history.
Their song, "One Milkali (One Blood)" incorporated the Aboriginal language of Yankunytjatjara, spoken by the Anangu people.
Sweden's time to shine on stage
As this year’s host country, Sweden is one of the countries that automatically qualifies for the final, but along with the UK and Germany, they’re performing their song “Unforgettable” tonight so that fans can see their performance before the final.
Marcus and Martinus Gunnarsen are twins from Norway–there’s no rule that you have to be from the country you represent–who were child stars in Scandinavia.
Now 22, Martinus told NBC News in a Zoom interview that the brothers wanted a spectacular production for their staging, working with choreographers Sacha Jean-Baptiste and Keisha Von Arnold to create a dizzying club-inspired performance.
“I remember the first word we said when they asked us how do you want the show to be and we said ‘Super Bowl’. Think big, you know?”
Moldova brings the vocals
Natalia Barbu of Moldova is back on the Eurovision stage after representing the country previously in 2007. Her performance of "In The Middle" might be the most impressive belting we've seen all night.
Did you hear those whistle tones?
Instruments can't be played live during Eurovision
Fun fact: While lead vocals must be live, you can’t play instruments live.
