Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015

Söngvakeppnin 2015 was the national final format developed by RÚV in order to select Iceland's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2015. The three shows in the competition were hosted by Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir, Guðrún Dís Emilsdóttir and Salka Sól Eyfeld and all took place at the Háskólabíó venue in Reykjavík.[4]

Twelve songs in total competed in Söngvakeppnin 2015 where the winner was determined after two semi-finals and a final. Six songs competed in each semi-final on 31 January and 7 February 2015. The top three songs from each semi-final, as determined by public televoting qualified to the final which took place on 14 February 2015.[5] A wildcard act was selected by a jury for the final out of the remaining non-qualifying acts from both semi-finals. The winning entry in the final was determined over two rounds of voting: the first to select the top two via 50/50 public televoting and jury voting and the second to determine the winner with 100% televoting. All songs were required to be performed in Icelandic during the semi-final portion of the competition. In the final, the song was required to be performed in the language that the artist intended to perform in at the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna.

On 26 September 2014, RÚV opened the submission period for interested songwriters to submit their entries until the deadline on 27 October 2014.[3][6] Songwriters were required to be Icelandic, possess Icelandic citizenship or have permanent residency in Iceland. However, exceptions would be made for minor collaborations with foreign songwriters as long as two-thirds of the composition and lyrics are by Icelandic composers/lyricists. Composers had the right to submit up to two entries, while lyricists could contribute to an unlimited amount of entries.[3] At the close of the submission deadline, 297 entries were received. A selection committee was formed in order to select the top twelve entries. RÚV initially included a new rule that half of all selected entries were required to be composed by females.[7] Following public criticism from 1998 Icelandic Eurovision entrant Paul Oscar and 2008 Icelandic Eurovision entrant Friðrik Ómar as part of Eurobandið, the rule was revoked.[8][9] The twelve competing artists and songs were revealed by the broadcaster during a press conference on 8 January 2015.[4] Among the competing artists was previous Icelandic Eurovision entrant Regína Ósk, who represented Iceland in 2008 as part of Eurobandið.

The first semi-final took place on 31 January 2015 where six competing acts presented their entries. The top three entries voted upon solely by public televoting proceeded to the final. "Í kvöld" performed by Elín Sif Halldórsdóttir, "Í síðasta skipti" performed by Friðrik Dór and "Piltur og stúlka" performed by Björn og félagar were the qualifiers.[10][11]

The second semi-final took place on 7 February 2015 where six competing acts presented their entries. The top three entries voted upon solely by public televoting proceeded to the final. "Lítil skref" performed by María Ólafsdóttir, "Fjaðrir" performed by Sunday and "Fyrir alla" performed by Cadem were the qualifiers. The jury wildcard was awarded to an entry from the second semi-final: "Milljón augnablik" performed by Haukur Heiðar Hauksson.[11][12]

The final took place on 14 February 2015 where the six entries that qualified from the preceding two semi-finals and a jury wildcard selected from the remaining non-qualified entries competed.[11] In the semi-finals, all competing entries were required to be performed in Icelandic; however, entries competing in the final were required to be presented in the language they would compete with in the Eurovision Song Contest.[13] Two entries remained in Icelandic, while the other five entries competed in English. In the first round of voting, votes from a jury panel (50%) and public televoting (50%) determined the top two entries: "Unbroken" performed by María Ólafsdóttir and "Once Again" performed by Friðrik Dór. The top two entries advanced to a second round of voting, the superfinal, where the winner, "Unbroken" performed by María Ólafsdóttir, was determined by aggregating the televotes from the first round to the televotes of the second.[14][15] The jury panel that voted in the first round consisted of:[16]

• Einar Bárðarson – radio host, music manager
• Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir – singer-songwriter, represented Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009
• Sigríður Thorlacius – singer, composer, member of the band Hjaltalín
• Stefán Hilmarsson – singer, composer, member of the band Sálin; represented Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 1988 and 1991
• Valdimar Guðmundsson – singer and member of the band Valdimar

María Ólafs at a dress rehearsal for the second semi-final

María Ólafs took part in technical rehearsals on 14 and 16 May,[23][24] followed by dress rehearsals on 20 and 21 May. This included the jury final where professional juries of each country, responsible for 50 percent of each country's vote, watched and voted on the competing entries.[25]

The stage show featured María Ólafs in a champagne-rose tutu dress with golden particles on its upper part designed by Sunna Dögg Ásgeirsdóttir. To the side of María were five backing vocalists dressed in dark blue and black outfits. Selma Björnsdóttir, who represented Iceland in the contest in 1999 and 2005, choreographed María Ólafs' movement routine on stage. The background LED screens displayed scenic images of the Northern lights and shooting stars. Jonatan Gardarsson, the head of the Icelandic delegation, commented in regards to the performance: "The stage performance is based on what Maria is singing about followed by Nordic lights in the background. As you have already seen she has golden feet and the floor will turn gold at some point. It will look like a sun rising after those dark moments." [23][24] On stage, María Ólafs was joined by five backing vocalists: Friðrik Dór, Ásgeir Orri Ásgeirsson, Alma Rut Kristinsdóttir, Íris Hólm Jónsdóttir and previous 2010 Icelandic Eurovision entrant Hera Björk Þórhallsdóttir.[26]

At the end of the show, Iceland failed to qualify to the final and was not announced among the top ten nations.[27] This was the fourth time Iceland had failed to qualify to the final since 2004; the last time Iceland did not qualify was in 2007.[1] It was later revealed that Iceland placed fifteenth in the semi-final, receiving a total of 14 points.[28]

Voting during the three shows consisted of 50 percent public televoting and 50 percent from a jury deliberation. The jury consisted of five music industry professionals who were citizens of the country they represent, with their names published before the contest to ensure transparency. This jury was asked to judge each contestant based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury could be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently. The individual rankings of each jury member were released shortly after the grand final.[29]

Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that Iceland had placed fourteenth with the public televote and fifteenth with the jury vote in the second semi-final. In the public vote, Iceland scored 21 points, while with the jury vote, Iceland scored 15 points.[30]

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Iceland and awarded by Iceland in the second semi-final and grand final of the contest, and the breakdown of the jury voting and televoting conducted during the two shows:[28][31][32][33]