mars 2011 – Sida 10 – WelcheMusic.com

Lena Is Taken By a Stranger

CHART REFLECTION. While Sweden let 32 artists compete in different heats, Germany chose another path. Last year’s winner Lena sang all the entries, so it didn’t come as a surprise that she will compete in Dusseldorf. “Taken By a Stranger” bows at No.2 on the German singles chart, unable to dethrone Bruno Mars’ “Grenade.” On the other hand, Swedish duo Roxette falls off the No.1 position on the album chart as Lena’s album Good News finally ascends to the top.

Lena’s winning entry in Oslo last year – “Satellite” – became a pan-European hit, even managing to chart in the UK. It was certified 2x platinum in Germany, platinum in Switzerland and gold in Sweden.

The follow-up single “Touch a New Day” was lifted off the debut album My Cassette Player and released after the summer. So far, it has peaked at No.13 in Germany and No.26 in Austria.

RedOne Will Represent Russia with Alexey Vorobyov

CHART REFLECTION. As previously reported, Love Generation unfortunately failed to qualify for the 2011 Melodifestivalen final this Saturday. The debacle and further criticism has led to SVT revealing the actual results and despite an error in the voting procedure this didn’t affect the results.

While Lady Gaga’s producer RedOne failed to represent Sweden in the Eurovision final, he recently won the Russian final. Alexey Vorobyov will participate with “Get You,” signed by RedOne. Vorobyov reigns from Tula and was one of the winners of The Secret of Success, a musical project in 2005. He signed a record deal with Universal Music Russia the year after.

In 2010, Russia ended at No.11 in the Oslo final with Peter Nalitch & Friends’ “Lost and Forgotten.” WelcheMusic recommends Eurovision.TV for further reading and keeps fingers crossed that RedOne will succeed in the German final.

Swedish Viewers Rage Against Eurovision Debacle

CHART ANALYSIS. The Moniker and Sara Varga were the final contestants to qualify for next week’s Melodifestivalen final. RedOne’s entry, Love Generation’s “Dance Alone” did not stand the fierce competition. While many people might anger the actual results, SVT has another problem on its hands.

An error during the voting might have prevented Jenny Silver from qualifying in the duel with Love Generation in the “Second Chance” competition held tonight. The expensive charity telephone number was incorrect – and viewers believed to have voted for Jenny Silver were instead dialing Love Generation’s telephone number.

“Something happened with the graphics,” Madeleine Sinding-Larsen at SVT says to the leading news paper Aftonbladet.

The error seems to have recurred throughout the evening and the telephone numbers to several participants were mixed up. SVT is currently investigating the matter and will comment on this issue later.

The presenter Rickard Olsson concluded that “there were some problems with the voting, but I can guarantee that this has not affected the results in any way.” It seems as if Swedish viewers find that hard to believe.

Britney Spears Track Leaks

CHART SPOTLIGHT. According to Myspace, the opening track of Britney Spears’ upcoming album Femme Fatale has leaked online. “Till the World Ends” is written by Ke$ha and produced by Max Martin and Dr. Luke. Slated for release later this March, Spears’ latest set will include three tracks from the Swedish songwriter/producer Shellback.

“Till the World Ends” was initially meant for debut next week, but it will be made available via iTunes earlier. Not surprisingly, the track sounds very much like Ke$ha.

Britney Spears’ “Hold It Against Me” rebounds 20-15 on the Swedish single tally, falls 11-12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and drops to No.38 on the UK singles chart.

(Update 13/3): This week, Britney Spears officially climbs 55-21 on the UK singles chart with “Till the World Ends.” The track also sold 117,000 copies in its first week in the UK and debuted at No.20 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week.