Norway: “Melodi Grand Prix 2026” Wildcard Participants Revealed

Norwegian broadcaster NRK will select its Eurovision 2026 act via “Melodi Grand Prix 2026”.

NRK has received around 1500 songs to participate in the selection.
At yesterday’s press conference, 8 of the finalists were revealed:

“Melodi Grand Prix 2026″ – Participants

1. Alexander Rybak – “Rise”
2. Emma – “Northern Lights”
3. Hedda Mae – “Snap Back”
4. Jonas Lovv – “Ya Ya Ya”
5. Leonardo Amor – “Prayer”
6. Mileo – “Frankenstein”
7. Silke – “Forevermore”
8. Storm – “Lullaby”
9. The wildcard winner

You can listen to the snippets here

Among the participants, we have some familiar names:

• Alexander Rybak represented Norway in Eurovision 2009 (winner) and 2018 (15th place).
• Mileo competed in “Melodi Grand Prix 2023” with “Your’e Mine”.
• Silke performed as a featured vocalist for Jone with“Ekko inni meg” in “Melodi Grand Prix 2023“.

The Wildcard Round

Earlier today, NRK revealed the wildcard participants.
The winner will be decided through 4 duels (details will follow):

The Songs

YouTube Playlist

1. Skrellex – Into the Wild
2. Emmy – Sykt Fin (Eng: Sick Nice)
3. Gothminister – The Spell
4. Vika Anonymous – Har du itte vørri på toten før? (Eng: Have you ever seen a tote before?)
5. Aranja – Pysjamas Song
6. Sander Silva & Victorjus – Fritt Fall (Eng: Free Fall)
7. Raylee – Where Did Your Friend Go?
8. Thomas Jenssen – Smalltown

Duels

1. Duel 1: Skrellex vs. Emmy (Jan 20th)
2. Duel 2: Gothminister vs. Vika Anonymous (Jan 21st)
3. Duel 3: Aranja vs. Sander Silva & Victorjus (Jan 22nd)
4. Duel 4: Raylee vs. Thomas Jenssen (Jan 23rd)

Format

• The duels will be held daily from January 20th to January 23rd.
• The voting window is open for 24 hours, from 10:00 AM to 10:00 AM the next day.
• The winners of the quarterfinals (Tuesday to Friday) will compete in new duels on Saturday and Sunday.
• The final round will be held on Monday, January 26th.
• On January 27th, we will find out thewildcard winner, who will join the “MGP 2026” final

Among the participants, we can find:

• Emmy, who represented Ireland in Eurovision 2025, and competed in “MGP 2020”
• Raylee, who competed in “MGP 2020″ and “MGP 2021”.
• Skrellex, who competed in “MGP 2023“.
• Gothminister, who competed in “MGP 2013” and “MGP 2024”.
• Thomas Jenssen, who competed in “MGP 2024”.

“Melodi Grand Prix 2026″ – Known Details

1. Ronny Brede Aase, Marte Stokstad & Markus Neby will host the show
2. The selection will feature only one final show. The final will take place on Saturday, February 28th, 2026. The show will take place at Håkon’s Hall in Lillehammethe (Old Olympic Hall).
3. This is the first time the MGP final has been held in Lillehammer.
4. 9 artists will compete in the selection. These 8 artists are already known.
5. The 9th finalist will be chosen as a wildcard by public vote, which will take place on January 26th, 2026. 8 artists will face the public vote. and will compete in radio duels.
6. On January 26th, 2026, the 10 songs will be released.

The “MGP” project manager, Mads Tørklep commented:

MGP is NRK’s ​​spearhead when it comes to new Norwegian music, and has become even more important for NRK’s ​​music dissemination. In this regard, we want to make MGP bigger. We hope that Lillehammer can join in and create additional events that make the entire MGP feel bigger

Mads Tørklep sounds quite positive about Norway’s chance in Eurovision 2026:

I think this might be the best MGP in history, if I dare say so. That we can actually win Eurovision

Norway will compete in semi-final 2 (May 14th, 2026).
The country will perform in

Eurovision 2026 will be held in Vienna, Austria, on May 12, 14, and 16, 2026. You can follow the contest HOMEPAGE here: