The first participants of Eesti Laul 2026 have been revealed.
The first six participants of Eesti Laul 2026 were revealed tonight on Ringvaade on ETV. The first six participants are:
NOËP – “Days like this”
Grete Paia – “Taevas jäi üles”
Marta Pikani – “kell kuus”
Ollie – “Slave”
Uliana Olhyna – “rhythm of nature”
Vanilla Ninja – “too epic to be true”
Vanilla Ninja previously represented Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 in Kyiv with “Cool Vibes” where they placed 8th in the final.
The remaining six participants will be revealed on Ringvaade tomorrow from 18:00 CET.
171 songs were submitted for Eesti Laul 2026. Of the songs submitted, 77 are in Estonian and 94 are in foreign languages. Songs were submitted by songwriters and artists from 20 countries, including Brazil and Australia.
The 12 competing songs were selected by a jury of experts, including music professionals and ordinary people of various ages. In total, at least 25 members evaluated the songs blindly, without knowing the names of the writers or artists. The songs will released by December 4 at the latest.
The Eesti Laul 2026 final will be held on February 14 in the Unibet Arena in Tallinn. As in previous years, the winner will be determined in two rounds. In the first round, three songs will be selected through a combination of jury voting and televote. In the superfinal, the winner will be chosen solely by televote. The jury for the final will consist of at least seven members, including international music experts actively involved in the making, publishing, or teaching of pop music.
Estonia finished 3rd in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, the country’s best result since the 2002 contest in Tallinn. Tommy Cash performed “Espresso Macchiato” and scored 356 points, including 12 points from the public in Armenia, Croatia, Latvia, Malta and Serbia.
Image Source: Vanilla Ninja | Source: ERR
Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest
Estonia debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1994 alongside six other countries. At the contest in Dublin, they were represented by Silvi Vrait, who finished second last, scoring just 2 points. In 2001, Estonia won the Eurovision Song Contest for the only time to date. They were represented by Tanel Padar, Dave Benton & 2XL, who performed the song “Everybody” and took a surprise victory in Copenhagen. After the success of the late-90s and early 00s, Estonia failed to qualify for the final from 2004-2008. In 2009, Estonia launched a new selection show, Eesti Laul, and has since qualified for the final on nine out of fourteen attempts.
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Posted by:Neil Farren
Neil is from Ireland but has lived in several countries around Europe. He has has been an editor for Eurovoix since May 2017. He has been following the Eurovision Song Contest since 2005 and attended every contest as press since 2019. He also follows other Eurovision contests, such as the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, which he has watched since the very first edition in 2003.