Estonia: First 10 Semi-Finalists of “Eesti Laul 2023” Were Revealed

During the “Ringvaade” TV magazine, broadcaster on ERR (Estonian broadcaster), 10 of the 20 semi-finalists of “Eesti Laul 2023” were revealed.

#1. Sissi

Sissi is the daughter of Dave Benton, who was part of the duo that won Eurovision 2001 as Estonia’s representative.
Sissi has already participated twice in “Eesti Laul”:

  • In 2019, she competed with “Strong” and finished in 4th place in the final
  • In 2021, she competed with “Time” and ended up as the runner-up.

This time, Sissi will perform the song “Lighthouse” which she wrote and composed herself.

#2. Wiiralt and Ulthima Thule

Rock band Wiiralt will join forces with Ulthima Thule.
Wiiralt has already participated in “Eesti Laul 2021” with the song “Tuuled“, but didn’t qualify for the final.

This time, they will perform the song “Salalik” (Eng: secretive)

#3. Carlos Ukareda

Carlos Ukareda rose to fame after participating in the “Estonian Poo Idol” in 2018.
This will be his debut in “Eesti Laul”.


He will perform the song “Whiskey Won’t Forget”

#4. Alika Milova

Alika is the winner of the Estonian version of “Pop Idol 2021“.
It will be her first attempt in “Eesti Laul”.

Listen to one of her songs:


She will perform the song “Bridges”.

#5. Janek

Janek Valgepea is a 28-year-old Estonian singer.
He rose to fame in 2012 in the Estonian version of “Pop Idol 2012” where he finished in 6th place.

Watch one of his performances:


He will perform the song “House of Glass“, written and composed by him and the Norwegian musician Kjetil Mรธrland (who represented Norway at Eurovision 2015 as part of the duo)

#6. ELLIP

ELLIP is an Estonian singer, songwriter, DJ, and radio host.
She usually makes music in the fields of jazz, hip-hop, and electro.
As a child, she was part of the “Ice Scream” group.
She started releasing songs in 2019.

Listen to one of her songs:

She will perform the song “Pretty Girl”

#7. Kaw

Kaw is an Estonian rapper and Hip-Hop singer.

Listen to one of his songs:


He will perform the song “Valik” (Eng: Choice)

#8. Andreas

Andreas Poom will try his luck in “Eesti Laul” for the first time.

Listen to one of his songs:


The young singer will perform the song “Why Do You Love Me?”

#9. Meelik

Boy band Meelik will perform the song “Tuju” (Eng: Mood)

#10. Elysa

Elysa will try her luck in the “Eesti Laul” for the second year in a row.
In 2022, she competed with the pop song “Fire” and finished in 3rd place in the final.


This time, she will perform the song “Bad Philosophy”.
One of the songwriters is Stig Rasta, who represented Estonia as part of a duo in Eurovision 2015.
Since then, he has participated in “Eesti Laul” many times.

“Eesti Laul 2023” – Recap

  1. ERR has received 217 submissions for the Estonian national selection โ€Eesti Laul 2023โ€.
  2. 10 songs will compete in each one of the 2 semi-finals. 6 of them will qualify for the final from each semi-final.
  3. The results of each show will be determined by 2 rounds. In the first round, by a combination of 50% jury vote and 50% public vote. In the second round, by the public vote solely.
  4. The dates for “Eesti Laul 2023” are:
    • Semi-Final 1: Thursday, 12th January 2023
    • Semi-Final 2: Saturday, 14th January 2023
    • Grand Final: Saturday, 11th February 2023

What do you think about the first 10 semi-finalists?
Which one of them makes you the most excited?
Will one of them be the Estonian artist for Eurovision 2023?

Tomorrow, the rest of the semi-finalists will be revealed.
Stay tuned!

Doron Lahav is 30-year-old, who lives in Israel. Doron has been watching the Eurovision Song Contest since early 2000s. Doron works as a Data Scientist and shows interest in singing and writing.

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