Cornelia Jakobs

Cornelia Jakobs swept to victory in Sweden's Melodifestivalen song contest on Saturday night with her mid-tempo break-up song Hold me Closer.

She also is writing the song for the state of Oklahoma in the inaugural American Song Contest which begins later this month My Opinion: My first listen to this song was arresting, and I was struck off-kilter by the switch from the light orchestral introduction to the electronic beat that kicks in during the second verse. I love the pulse of this but I think it is just too slick for its own good – the kind of number that everybody likes but struggles to get votes from people in a 25 song show across Europe in May. One could argue that Cornelia Jakobs is a relative newcomer to the Swedish music scene with just a handful of singles out and a debut album yet to be released. Sadly, in this field of pop stars and huge names, Faith’s story and message is going to play second fiddle to the others taking part with songs with more impact and voices that cut deeper. In Melodifestivalen terms he has already tried twice to represent the nation, with a 6th and 3rd place finish to his name. I haven’t heard a song do it better in a long time and am delighted that it has got to the Melodifestivalen final. I suspect the final part of this trilogy is going to return her to a tenth-place finish. This is a classical romantic piano ballad that succeeds in letting John’s incredible crystal-clear voice be the star of the show. This is a prime example of a genre I describe as ‘cookie-cutter Melfest’ – three minutes of predictable pop music with the obligatory hand clap section, slick dance routine, and a title phrase that will penetrate and corrode your brain for weeks to come. While Theoz probably isn’t well known to the average The Local reader, for the average teen in Sweden, he is arguably one of the most well-known people in the country. What I will say, in the nicest possible way, is that I don’t think the three minutes on stage come together well enough for it ultimately to be a Eurovision contender.