Latvia: Sudden Lights wins Supernova 2023 with "Aijā"
14 became 10, and then 10 became one – Latvia has chosen its representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023
Sudden Lights, with their lullaby "Aijā," will be the first time since 2014 when Latvian is sung at Eurovision.
The Supernova final on 11 February was the grand finale of the 2023 Latvian selection. A combined vote (50% jury/50% viewers) decided that the ticket to Liverpool would be awarded to Sudden Lights with the song Aijā.
The final, the same as the semi-final, was hosted by Lauris Reiniks (part of Latvia 2003) and Ketija Šēnberga, a TV and radio show host. This year Supernova concerts again took place without spectators, but a livestream was available. The final featured guest performances by Duncan Laurence and Latvian singer Elīza Legzdiņa with the drummer from the band Rudimental.
Supernova 2023 – Final
Sudden Lights
Sudden Lights is a well-known band for those who have been following Supernova for a while - the band got second place in Latvia's selection in 2018 with the song Just Fine. The group consists of four members - Andrejs Reinis Zitmanis (vocal, guitar, keyboard, clarinet), Kārlis Matīss Zitmanis (guitar, harmonica, back vocal), Kārlis Vārtiņš (bass guitar, back vocal), and Mārtiņš Matīss Zemītis (percussion instruments, back vocal). Since its founding, the band has released three albums - Priekšpilsētas (2017) , Vislabāk ir tur, kur manis nav (2019), and Miljards vasaru (2022), and just last summer the band toured around Latvia. Right before the Supernova season in January 2023, Sudden Lights came in second place in the annual Latvian popular song contest "Muzikālā Banka" with their song Laternas.
While Sudden Lights usually sings in Latvian, their Eurovision 2023 song Aijā is in English with the last sentences in Latvian. The group describes the song as a lullaby for the overwhelmed world. The song combines both anxiety, panic and a harmonic lullaby, which is needed to cope with the surrounding stress. The song is simultaneously personal and universal. The musicians reveal that they feel this song was necessary for themselves and for the whole world. "Aijā" itself in Latvian means "lull," trying to make someone fall asleep.
Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest
Latvia debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2000, and since then, the country has participated every year (22 times). Their best result was in 2002, when Latvia won the Eurovision Song Contest with the song "I Wanna" by Marie N.
In the last 13 contests, Latvia finished last in their Semi-finals five times, and has only managed to qualify for the Grand Final two times.
