Welcome to the second of four interviews this week with artists from Heat 3 of Melodi Grand Prix 2024! Today is all about MIIA, an artist from Kragerø who we had the pleasure of speaking to recently, despite the best efforts of her naughty cat!

MIIA is the stage name of Mia Virik Kristensen, an artist known more outside of Norway than in her own country. With the release of her latest EP in 2023, and her new song Green Lights for MGP, she’s trying to change that.

Her song Dynasty was released almost 10 years ago, and it was a huge hit worldwide.

During our chat with MIIA, we asked her what Dynasty still means to her, why she’s entered MGP, and her reaction when she first heard her MGP song Green Lights:

“The song was given to me, so I was asked to sing it. At first when I heard it, it was very different from what it is now. In my ears, it was even more Disney and a pop feeling, which is not really my style. But I still liked the melody, and I felt something that maybe I could make it mine, so I said if I say yes, I’m going to have to go into the studio and really work on the song and figure out my way to do the song.”

– MIIA

When it comes to MIIA’s Eurovision favourites, unsurprisingly Loreen came to mind right away, but so did another very different Eurovision winner:

“Salvador Sobral! Portuguese is the most beautiful language to sing in. So that’s a great example I think because anyone would be moved at some level by that performance, even if you don’t understand what he’s saying!”

– MIIA

We wish her the best of luck on Saturday and look forward to the light show she hinted at on stage! Be sure to check out the full interview on your favourite podcast streaming platform!

Image: Press kit photo