NRK has published details about the three singers who will support the Norwegian entry, KEiiNO, in Eurovision 2019.
On Monday, the Norwegian delegation for Eurovision travelled to Tel Aviv ahead of their first rehearsal on the big stage on Tuesday. Amongst the delegation are three backing vocalists who will provide support to the three singers of KEiiNO.
The backing singers are Frode Vassel, Kine Ludvigsen Fossheim and Marianne Pentha. They are amongst the most talented voices Norway has to offer and were chosen as being especially suited to KEiiNO’s Eurovision entry, Spirit in the Sky.
Frode Vassel is a seasoned singer on TV shows including The Voice and Idol. This year will be the third year in a row that he has provided backing vocals for the Norwegian entry. This year, he has had to learn a new skill: joik. He will be supporting Fred-René Buljo who performs the joik part of the Norwegian entry.
Kine Ludvigsen Fossheim has worked as a backing singer and a lead artist. She participated in Melodi Grand Prix in 2000 with the song Wings of Love. She became a child star as a nine-year-old when she released the song “Sarajevo”, which was made for Lillehammer Olympic Aid.
Marianne Pentha is another experienced backing vocalist who participated in The Voice in 2012. Her father is from Kautokeino in Northern Norway and she is therefore familiar with Sami and joik singing.
KEiiNO will compete in the second semi-final of Eurovision 2019 from Tel Aviv on Thursday 16th May hoping to reach the Grand Final on Saturday 18th.
Who are KEiiNO?
KEiiNO is a group made up of Sámi rapper and joiker Fred-René Buljo, and Norwegian singers Tom Hugo Hermansen and Alexandra Rotan. The latter are no strangers to Melodi Grand Prix, as they both appeared in the 2018 edition of the contest, with Alexandra finishing in the superfinal alongside Stella Mwangi. The trio created KEiiNO towards the end of 2018, specifically for Melodi Grand Prix.
Source: NRK
Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest
Norway debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1960, and have won the contest three times – in 1985, 1995 and 2009. The country has the dubious record of finishing last the most times, eleven in total, and have received nul points four times. Norway last won the contest in 2009 when Alexander Rybak broke all records with his song “Fairytale”. He scored 387 points in the final, receiving 16 sets of 12 points and scoring points from every country.
