What is this? October?!

After watching Melodifestivalen, you've certainly noticed the abundance of pink stuff everywhere. What is up with all the pink gear? Balloons, feather boas, ties, lights, glittery hats... The crowd always seems to be bedecked in a sea of pink. Is this October or something?

YouTube screenshot/youtube.com

If you didn't know better, you might think you stumbled upon a Breast Cancer Convention in October with all those pink balloons waving in the air. Or, seeing all the pink hats and boas, you might think the crowd was waiting to be inducted into the Red Hat Society. It's not either one. It's just Mello mode.

Melodifestivalen is about having fun and enjoying the party-like atmosphere. And when you're in Mello mode, you don't care what others think. Such an outlook can be the opposite of a typical Swede at times. And maybe that's why people in the crowd enjoy dressing up in crazy pink garb and waving scribbled handwritten signs. Melodifestivalen gives Swedes tacit consent to break out of the ordinary and do silly things, if only for a few hours - at least until they have to get back to work and school on Monday.

It took two girls to hold up this poster for Anton during the Friday March 8th practice for the final show.

If you're wondering about the origin of the pink color, it all started in the northern city of Umeå. The city started the trend, but the city of Skellefetå brought it to the next level. In 2006, city planners trucked in a huge pine tree, placed in smack in the center of town, and flocked it head to toe in pink. From that point, pink has been the unofficial color of Mello. A city official from Skellefteå had this to say, "We painted a Christmas tree in pink; we chose pink as the schlager colour and tried to dress the city in pink. It looked like crap... but the point wasn't to make it look good, it was meant to create publicity...and it sure did!" (Andersson and Niedomysl, 2008).

Maybe Karlstad took their cue from Skellefteå when they dressed up the ugliest statue in the country in Melodifestivalen garb...

Andersson, Ida & Niedomysl, Thomas. Clamour for Glamour? City competition for hosting the Swedish tryouts to the Eurovision Song Contest. Royal Dutch Geographical Society. Vol. 101, No 2. pp. 111-125. Retrieved from EBSCOhost databases. 09 February, 2013.

Gathering for the Grand Finale

Melodifestivalen is a way to socialize. It's a way to connect. It's something to gather around. It brings us together and gives us something to talk about. If you don't watch it, you can't talk about it the next day. I've heard each of these descriptions from different people in the past three weeks. They tell me it is very Swedish to gather for the final with food, a party, and an opinion. In that way, the contest helps people get together, socialize, and enjoy a little time out of life.

Get Ready with Festival Food, a free recipe booklet from grocery store sponsor, Coop.

What better way to celebrate the final event than to do just that? I'll be watching the final with a group of students from the Royal Institute of Technology. Alexander, my CouchSurfing host, is a member of the student union and has invited me along to watch the show on their big screen TV. I've heard their broadcast equipment is top of the line and the sound is impeccable. 

You can watch online via SVT Play, starting at 8 PM CET ( 2 PM Eastern Standard US Time):  http://www.svtplay.se/video/1071366/finalen-med-forsnack

The Best or the Worst? It Depends.

The song contest creates a reaction and immediate opinion, no matter who you ask. You may hear disgust or delight or even apathy. This year's contest has brought record viewing numbers, yet I initially had difficulty finding people who have watched the program - or will admit to it anyway.

The people at Friends Arena were fans, clearly. They wouldn't have paid money otherwise to be there. Two of those fans are Joakim and Mia. They saw the final last year and decided to watch again this year. The contest is something they grew up with and still enjoy watching today. When they're not watching the final at the arena, they are usually home watching it with friends. Mia thinks the concept of the contest, with six weeks of programming, is a uniquely Swedish idea since other countries in Europe don't spend as much time finding their Eurovision entries.

Joakim and Mia think Yohio will win the contest this year.

Across town, fans at Torget celebrating the contest with a club sponsored Melodifestival evening. These fans mingled and danced to a mix of old and new Mello songs. I met a young gentleman dressed in a Brooklyn NYC jacket outside. I didn't catch his name, but we spoke at length about the contest. He felt it has become too commercial and felt that the artists weren't real. He thinks the artists should both perform and write their own songs. (Several of the artists did so this year, although he was not aware of this to begin with). He even told me Sweden does not deserve to be in the contest and felt the international jury was a bit much. "It is just too much all around", he said. 

I also met a woman named Johanna, who had lived in California. She had been hanging out with several gentlemen from London who had come to Sweden to see the contest too. She introduced me to them and I found out they usually come to Sweden every year to watch! Apparently, the contest has many British fans since Scandinavian pop music is booming, thanks to sites like Scandipop.co.uk.

I also met David and Alexander outside the club just as I was leaving. David started by saying, "This must be the worst year the contest has ever had". "Despite the best ratings in history?", I asked. He told me there is nothing wrong with the music itself, but he is a fan of the classic schlager sound and songs from the 80s. Those genres are nearly nonexistent this year. He feels the music is more pop and electro these days, but he still thinks it's good since Sweden gets more votes at Eurovision later. David also said the contest itself isn't Swedish but the concept itself is Swedish since it gives people a good reason to gather around on Saturday nights and go out afterwards. Alexander thinks the pop music in the contest is typically Swedish since the country has had so much success within the music industry, both nationally and abroad.

Late night photo. David and Alexander outside Torget.

Views from the Arena

Reporters setting up for screenshots.

Up the steps to a Texas sized arena.

The stage now has an extra LED level, presumably so it doesn't look so small in the big stadium.

Melissa showing her support for Sean Banan

Jonas, another crazy Sean Banan fan.

A colorful sign including a photo of Anton from his #1 fan, Felicia.

Oh So Many People

 The last two artists on the schedule are David Lindgren and Yohio:

David Lindgren performing Skyline

David Lindgren's Skyline

Yohio merchandise for the younger crowd

The elevators are packed and everywhere else, too.

People finding any free space they can get.

The presenter holding up a Yohio poster, which elicited a teen squeal fest. I remember those days. 

                                                                                                                                                                            

Yohio's Heartbreak Hotel

The signing table is wrapped so deep, there's no way Yohio can meet everyone. There was a rush to get to the table after the performance. I was wondering if the shopping center was going to bring out the guards to corral people, but Swedes are still pretty good about order, even when trying to meet their favorite singers. The line is calm yet long. Very long.

Ulrik is Popular

The shopping mall is crowded with young kids and teens because Ulrik Munther just appeared on stage. The line for autographs was out the door. A little girl about three years old just passed me singing Munther's song in perfect English. You have to buy something to get anything signed, but these kids don't mind. Their parents happily give them the cash to buy a CD and meet their favorite singer.

A few photos from the event:

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The front row waiting for Ulrik Munther

Just one of the many economic opportunities created by Melodifestivalen.

 Ulrik and the presenter chatting. Ulrik did not sing since he's saving his voice for the final.

Girls in a store on the second level watching from above.

10,200 Expectations

Yesterday's competition in Malmö Arena held 10,200 spectators. Each person has an individual expectation of the evening's event. I spoke with a handful of spectators before the show about the program.

Friends Maria and Johanna ready for the show to begin.

Decked out in little pink crowns and lovely feather boas, Maria and Johanna were in high spirits. Their smiles radiated across the rows and their joy spread to those around them. I was swept along in their happiness when I walked by and was given their camera to capture the moment. I took the chance to take my own photo of the moment and to ask them about their visit.

These two friends grew up watching the program on TV. This was their first visit to the live event. They decided to go all out, as you can see. Is there anything especially Swedish about the show? Johanna thinks it is more European since it is a qualifier for Eurovision. Maria added that different countries have specific qualifying systems. Germany, for instance, has one singer perform every entry and people vote on the best song. So, the system of qualifying could be seen as Swedish, Maria suggested. Johanna considered the question further, "The Swedish winter is more fun because of it. Every Saturday you look forward to it. You can look forward to it after Christmas is over." Did they have a favorite song this evening? "No! We have not decided yet. This will be the first time we hear the songs live. We wanted the whole live experience", Johanna added.

Looking around, I noticed more fans decked out in fancy feather boas. I saw a woman with a long pink feather boa sitting with her husband, Jonas. Ingela had just purchased her boa minutes before I arrived. I asked her to explain the phenomena, and she said "I have a boa because this is a party. It's a party atmosphere." This was the first time Ingela and Jonas had seen the production live and the first time she bought a pink boa, she noted. What is Swedish about the contest? "Everything!", Ingela mentioned. Jonas thought it was the artists that made it especially Swedish.

It was 6:55 PM and the house band started setting up. Before the band got underway, I stopped to chat with Annika and Stephen. They sat in the first few rows waiting to be showered with hearts and fire. Before the show and all its ensuing antics, I asked them about their experiences. The pair had been at the rehearsal show last year and planned to be at the live even this time around. What is Swedish about the contest? The experience factor looms large for Annika. "In Sweden, you don't have many shared cultural experiences. Twenty five years ago, people watched the same TV show or movie. Today, it is not too common." Shows like Melodifestivalen bring people together around one central touchstone. Annika added, "If you don't watch, you won't have anything to talk about at the office on Monday."

Fan Geek Travel

What do you do when you have a 2 1/2 hour flight to Philly? You break out the pen, paper, and your inner fan geek.

You know where my allegiance lies

Melodifestivalen fans love to show support for their favorite artists. You'll see signs and banners with artist names written on them, like my sign. They get much fancier than this though. They can also be an afterthought. During the second week show, someone used the bottom of a pizza box as a sign. 

I couldn't let the opportunity to make my own sign pass me by. I spent the entire flight with three pieces of paper and a Sharpie. The marker is almost out of ink now. Fan geeks unite!

I won't be making any more signs during my flight to Amsterdam. It's now 3 am in both my head and central Europe, which means I'be sleeping on this flight. Or at least attempting it. So, a goodnight to you! It's time to fly and dream. We'll meet up again at Schiphol Airport mid-morning.