LRT, the Lithuanian national broadcaster, has revealed the 23 acts that will take part in Pabandom iš naujo 2021.
The 23 artists were chosen by a working group of LRT members and television professionals. This working group consisted of:
- Gytis Oganauskas – Deputy Director General of LRT, Head of Working Group
- Vytautas Bikus – Composer of “This Time” (Lithuania 2015) and “When We’re Old” (Lithuania 2018)
- Audrius Giržadas – Chief Producer of the LRT Television Program Department
- Ramūnas Zilnys – Editor-in-Chief of LRT Popular Music
- Darius Užkuraitis – Senior Editor of the LRT Music Editorial Board
- Giedrius Masalskis – Head of the LRT Radio Programs Department
- Rūta Putnikienė – Head of LRT Communication and Marketing Department
- Justina Sokolovskė – LRT Communication and Marketing Department Project Manager
- Povilas Varvuolis – Television director
Audrius Giržadas, Chief Producer of the LRT Television Program Department and Head of Delegation for Lithuania, commented:
“Every year, the selection receives a lot of public attention. However, knowing how difficult this period was for the music industry, we anxiously waited for applications from the participants. We are very pleased that the performers and groups did not run away and, considering the whole situation, were quite active in submitting applications. So we will be able to delight the audience with really high-quality and different performances during the selection.”
The 23 competing acts are:
- Aistė Brokenleg
- Aldegunda
- Donata Virbilaitė
- Evelina Sašenko
- Evita Cololo
- Gabrielė Goštautaitė
- Gabrielius Vagelis
- Gebrasy (Audrius Petrauskas)
- Gintarė Korsakaitė
- Martyna Jezepčikaitė
- Milita Daikerytė
- Cosmic bride (Natalja Chareckaja)
- Norbertas/Norbė
- Rapolas Meškauskas
- Thomas Tumosa
- Titas ir Benas
- Sunday Afternoon (Vilija Matačiūnaitė)
- Voldemaras Petersonas
- The Roop
- Twosome
- UnoBand
- Black Spikes feat. Indre Launikonyte
- Be U
Alongside The Roop, who were due to represent Lithuania at Eurovision 2020, two other former Lithuanian representatives feature in the lineup. Evelina Sašenko represented Lithuania in 2011 with “C’est ma vie” while Vilija Matačiūnaitė represented Lithuania in 2014 with “Attention”. The Roop will automatically qualify for the final.
Pabandom iš naujo 2021 will consist of four shows and will start on January 16 at 20:00 CET. The results of each show will be decided by public voting (50%) and a five-member jury (50%). The members of the jury will change every show and their identities will not be revealed until during the show. The jury results will only be available at the end of the show, so as not to influence the public vote. The schedule of shows is as follows:
- Heat 1: January 16
- Heat 2: January 23
- Semi-Final: January 30
- Final: February 6
Lithuania will perform in the first half of the first semi-final on May 18.
Image Source: E. Blaževič/LRT / Source: LRT
Lithuania in the Eurovision Song Contest
Lithuania debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1994, however on their debut they finished in last place with nul points. Lithuania didn’t return to the contest until 1999 when Aiste finished 20th with the song “Strazdas”. Lithuania’s best result came in 2006 when LT United performed “We Are The Winners”; they finished 6th in the final with a total of 162 points. Lithuania’s only other top 10 finish came in 2016 when Donny Montell performed “I’ve Been Waiting For This Night” in Stockholm, he received 12 points from the public in Ireland, Norway & United Kingdom.
