Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2017

Supernova 2017 was the third edition of Supernova, the music competition that selects Latvia's entries for the Eurovision Song Contest. The competition producer Ilze Jansone outlined that the goal of the competition is to find a competitive song and artist with potential for international success.[4] The competition commenced on 5 February 2017 and concluded with a final on 26 February 2017.[5] All shows in the competition were broadcast on LTV1 as well as online via the streaming platform Replay.lv and the official Supernova website supernova.lsm.lv. Alternative broadcasts of the final also occurred on LTV7 with Elza Volonte and Ainārs Ostvalds presenting the show in sign language as well as online at lsm.lv with commentary by Aleksis Vilciņš and Karmena Stepanova.[6][7]

The format of the competition consisted of four shows: two heats, one semi-final and a final. The four shows took place at LTV Studio 6 in Riga and were hosted by Ketija Šēnberga and Toms Grēviņš. LTV broadcast two introductory shows on 22 and 29 January 2017 that covered the background preparation processes and performer auditions that occurred prior to the competition. The competing entries were also announced during the second introductory show on 29 January. The two heats, held on 5 and 12 February 2017, each featured eleven competing entries from which four advanced to the semi-final from each show. The semi-final, held on 19 February 2017, featured the eight qualifiers from the heats from which the top four proceeded to the final. The final, held on 26 February 2017, selected the Latvian entry for Kyiv from the remaining four entries.[5]

Results during the heats and the semi-final shows were determined by a jury panel and votes from the public. In the heats and the semi-final, the songs first faced a public vote where the top two entries qualified. The jury who provided feedback to the competing artists then selected an additional two qualifiers from the remaining entries to proceed in the competition. In the final, a public vote exclusively determined which entry would be the winner. Viewers were able to vote via telephone up to five times or via SMS with a single SMS counting as four votes. The online vote conducted through the official Supernova website allowed users to vote once per each accepted social network account: Draugiem.lv, Facebook and Twitter. Votes conducted through Spotify were based on unique listener counts, with each stream counting as one vote for each entry.[8]

Artists and songwriters were able to submit their applications and entries separately to the broadcaster between 17 August 2016 and 28 October 2016.[5] 168 songs were submitted and 89 performers applied for the competition at the conclusion of the submission period.[8] Local and international jury panels were appointed by LTV for the selection process. The international jury panel evaluated the submitted songs between 28 October and 10 November 2016 and only provided consultation on which entries should be selected; the local jury made the ultimate decisions.[5] The international jury panel consisted of The international jury panel consisted of Petri Mannonen (Commercial Director at Universal Music Group Finland and the Baltics), Matthias Mueller (CEO of Crazy Planet Records), Fruzsina Szép (festival director of Lollapalooza Berlin) and Joy Deb (songwriter, co-wrote the 2015 Swedish Eurovision winning song "Heroes").[4] The performer auditions took place on 15 and 22 November 2016 at LTV Studio 6 and featured the shortlisted performers from the initial 89 that had applied. The twenty selected performers and songs were determined on 12 December 2016 and all relevant parties were informed. The twenty competing artists and songs were announced during a press conference on 13 January 2017.[9]

The first heat took place on 5 February 2017. Four entries qualified to the semi-final. The eleven competing entries first faced a public vote where the top two songs advanced: "Magic Years" performed by Lauris Valters and "Who's In Charge" performed by Linda Leen. An additional two qualifiers were selected from the remaining nine entries by the jury: "Up" performed by Franco Franco and "Spiritual Priest" performed by Miks Dukurs. The jury panel that voted in the first heat consisted of Kaspars Roga (drummer for Brainstorm and director of music videos), Guntars Račs (musician, songwriter, producer and music publisher), Rūdolfs Budze–DJ Rudd (DJ and producer) and Dons (singer-songwriter).

The second heat took place on 12 February 2017. Four entries qualified to the semi-final. The eleven competing entries first faced a public vote where the top two songs advanced: "Line" performed by Triana Park and "All I Know" performed by My Radiant You. An additional two qualifiers were selected from the remaining nine entries by the jury: "Your Breath" performed by Santa Daņeļeviča and "I'm In Love With You" performed by The Ludvig. The jury panel that voted in the second heat consisted of Kaspars Roga (drummer for Brainstorm and director of music videos), Guntars Račs (musician, songwriter, producer and music publisher), Rūdolfs Budze–DJ Rudd (DJ and producer) and Intars Busulis (singer, trombonist, radio host and 2009 Latvian Eurovision entrant).

The semi-final took place on 19 February 2017. The eight competing entries first faced a public vote where the top two songs advanced: "All I know" performed by My Radiant You and "Line" performed by Triana Park. An additional two qualifiers were selected from the remaining four entries by the jury: "I'm In Love With You" performed by The Ludvig and "Your Breath" performed by Santa Daņeļeviča. The jury panel that voted in the semi-final consisted of Kaspars Roga (drummer for Brainstorm and director of music videos), Guntars Račs (musician, songwriter, producer and music publisher), Rūdolfs Budze–DJ Rudd (DJ and producer) and Petri Mannonen (Commercial Director of Universal Music Group Finland and the Baltics).

The final took place on 26 February 2017. The four entries that qualified from the semi-final competed. The song with the highest number of votes from the public, "Line" performed by Triana Park, was declared the winner. The jury panel for the final consisted of Kaspars Roga (drummer for Brainstorm and director of music videos), Guntars Račs (musician, songwriter, producer and music publisher), Intars Busulis (singer, trombonist, radio host and 2009 Latvian Eurovision entrant) and Marija Naumova (singer and Eurovision Song Contest 2002 winner).

Triana Park took part in technical rehearsals on 1 May and 5 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 8 and 9 May.[15] This included the jury show on 8 May where the professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries.

At the end of the show, Latvia was not announced among the top 10 entries in the first semi-final and therefore failed to qualify to compete in the final. It was later revealed that Latvia placed last in the semi-final, receiving a total of 21 points: 20 points from the televoting and 1 point from the juries.