KREUZLINGEN, SWITZERLAND – Six acts competed in the Swiss national selection, Die Entscheidungsshow, which performed their Eurovision bids and a cover of a popular hit. Jury and tele voting having 50% of voting share each decided the winner. The show took place at the Bodensee Arena in Kreuzlingen. Rykka was the favourite of the betting odds and oikotimes.com poll.
THE ENTSCHEINDUNGSSHOW PARTICIPANTS
COMPETING ROUND
Vincent Gross – Half A Smile
Bella C – Another World
Kaceo – Disque d’or
Theo – Because Of You
Rykka – The Last Of Our Kind
Stanley Miller – Feel The Love
COVER ROUND
Vincent Gross – Astronaut (original by Sido & Andreas Bourani)
Bella C – Empire State Of Mind (Part II) (original by Alicia Keys)
Kaceo – Video Killed The Radio Star (original by The Buggles)
Theo – Photograph (original by Ed Sheeran)
Rykka – Love Me Like You Do (original by Ellie Goulding)
Stanley Miller – Hello (original by Adele)
ARTIST INFORMATION
Tucked away in the vast hills and deep lakes near Zürich, Switzerland, and in the Canadian wilderness surrounding Vancouver, Rykka has been honing her next sound.
Change is a constant for the multitalented songwriter, who started as an acoustic folk artist under her name Christina Maria before reinventing herself as Rykka and emerging with an alternative pop bang. Following her 2013 debut Kodiak — which came out the same year that she won the prestigious Peak Performance Project competition — her restless ambition drove her underground where she wrote feverishly using keyboards and drum machines.
The resulting album is Beatitudes, which marks a thrilling leap in a bold new direction for Rykka. Produced by Warne Livesey at Toronto’s Coalition Music studios, the album’s towering electropop hooks come bolstered by dazzling synths and beats tailor made for dropping sweat on the dance floor.
Beatitudes takes its title from the Latin word for “happiness” and shares its name with eight blessings from the bible, although Rykka’s use of the term is secular. “Beatitudes is about empowering the underdog,” she reflects. “Good and evil lines are blurred, and staying true to ourselves is our only real compass.”
SWISS NATIONAL FINAL 2016 RESULTS
Vincent Gross – Half A Smile
Bella C – Another World
Kaceo – Disque d’or
Theo – Because Of You
Rykka – The Last Of Our Kind
Stanley Miller – Feel The Love
