WelcheMusic.com – Sida 3 – At the Heart of Songwriting

Will Anton Hagman Beat Loreen?

The renowned music critic Anders Nunstedt expects Anton Hagman’s ‘Kiss You Goodbye’ to come out as winner on Saturday. His Shawn Mendez-esque track has potential to crossover outside the ordinary Melodifestivalen crowd. Hagman has, however, not reached any heights on Spotify. And it would be a great surprise if he would win the whole competition.

Anton Hagman – Kiss You Goodbye

The Birth of the YouTube Star Anton Hagman

The entry is written by Christian Fast, Tim Schou and Henrik Nordenback. Anton Hagman is an 18-year-old and famous from YouTube. His interest for music started at 4 years. Regularly making appearances on school events, he began to record covers that got traction. In 2014, Hagman was part of the duo JA, whose acoustic covers became popular. As JA split, Anton Hagman became a member of Royal Sunset.

‘Kiss You Goodbye’ qualified in the Växjö leg of Melodifestivalen. He is challenging Loreen’s ‘Statements’ in the Second Chance competition. Should he win, expect a very vocal Loreen fanbase to be disappointed in Sweden’s televotes. I previously reported on Loreen’s unexpected Spotify performance.

Via duels, The Second Chance competition will send a set number of acts to the finale. To date, only one artist The Second Chance has won the whole competition. In 2013, Robin Stjernberg was the winner with ‘You.’

Spotify Streaming Favors Loreen

According to the latest Kworb.net statistics, Anton Hagman drops a position to No.22 with 110,825 streams. That is less than Loreen’s ‘Statements’ at 121,704. These figures are from 28^th February.

On that note, Wiktoria makes progress and climbs to No.4 with ‘As I Lay Me Down.’ Robin Bengtsson advances to No.6 with ‘I Can’t Go On.’

Biggest Spotify Hits in Sweden (28/2)

Kygo featuring Selena Gomez – It Ain’t Me
Ed Sheeran – Shape of You
Joakim Lundell – All I Need
Wiktoria – As I Lay Me Down
The Chainsmokers – Something Just Like This

Make sure to read WelcheMusic.com for more updates.

Wiktoria Has the Biggest Melodifestivalen Hit

For a second day in a row, Wiktoria’s ‘As I Lay Me Down’ remains the biggest Melodifestivalen hit on Spotify in Sweden. To note, she is not the top streaming hit. Robin Bengtsson’s ‘I Can’t Go On’ also adds more plays compared to the day before.

Most tracks see gains, apart from Loreen. ‘Statements’ loses 7,759 spins. Yesterday, I wrote about the streaming response to the former Eurovision winner. The stats are lifted from Kworb.net, which compiles Spotify stats on a daily and weekly basis.

Loreen Struggles

Loreen’s team has high hopes that an audience will build up ahead of Saturday’s second chance competition. And many believe that she will win against Anton Hagman’s ‘Kiss You Goodbye.’ The Shawn Mendez-esque singer climbs closer to the Top 20. He has previously reached No.15 on the daily chart.

As yesterday, Wiktoria, Robin Bengtsson and Benjamin Ingrosso remain the only Melodifestivalen entries in the Top 10. One of my favorites – Marielle’s ‘A Million Years’ is struggling at 108,555 daily spins (No.23). I had great expectations for that track and am sure that it will be highly positioned in the final.

As I previously wrote, Wiktoria is not the top streaming hit. These are the most popular tracks in Sweden as of 28^th February.

Top Spotify Hits

Joakim Lundell – All I Need
Kygo featuring Selena Gomez – It Ain’t Me
Ed Sheeran – Shape of You
The Chainsmokers – Something Just Like This
Wiktoria – As I Lay Me Down

Check out WelcheMusic.com for more updates!

The Loreen Melodifestivalen Entry Barely Makes the Top 20

Loreen’s ‘Statements’ barely makes the Spotify top 20. Sunday’s streaming figures for yesterday was made available today by Kworb.net. Coverage even stretched to the UK. Media keeps a close eye on the former Eurovision Song Contest winner. Instead, Wictoria’s ‘Lay Me Down’ is the biggest Melodifestivalen hit now. The singer made her debut last year with ‘Save Me.’

Robin Bengtsson made it directly to the final with ‘I Can’t Go On.’ It is co-written by David Kreuger, who also written for Céline Dion. He joined Max Martin’s Cheiron Studios already in 1993. Credits include hits for E-Type and Leila K as well Boyzone. One of his biggest hits is Westlife’s ‘If I Let You Go.’ In 2014, he made it to No.3 in the Eurovision Song Contest with ‘Undo’ for Sanna Nielsen.

I recently covered FO&O’s entry, which is another huge hit at the moment. Since its release, the group crossed the 1m streaming barrier. I also mentioned that it was co-written by Robert John “Mutt” Lange.

Robert John “Mutt” Lange’s Ticket to the Eurovision Song Contest

Back to Loreen. ‘Statements’ is currently No.17 on the streaming daily chart. Unfortunately, it didn’t amass enough televotes to qualify for the final. International fans are furious about Sweden’s decision not to send Loreen to the final. A local article even suggests her competing for San Marino?!

Wiktoria is indeed the biggest Melodifestivalen entry on Spotify. Chart-topper Joakim Lundell has 72% more plays. WelcheMusic.com will continously report on the Melodifestivalen success on Spotify.

Total Spotify Plays (Sweden)

De Vet Du	2944195
FO&O	1194095
Wiktoria	208036
Benjamin Ingrosso	192924
Robin Bengtsson	172023
Nano	161872
Loreen	154474
Jon Henrik Fjällgren	137437

Source: Total no. of Spotify plays in Sweden as of 27th February, 2017. Statistics from Kworb.net. The list does not contain tracks not featured in Melodifestivalen.

Robert John “Mutt” Lange’s Ticket to the Eurovision Song Contest

Don’t be surprised if a Robert John “Mutt” Lange track ends up as Sweden’s entry in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. He has written hits such as ‘All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You’ and ‘You’re Still the One.’ Lange co-wrote FO&O’s boyband-esque track ‘Gotta Thing About You’ together with Tony Nilsson.

FO&O didn’t qualify directly for a Melodifestivalen final ticket last week. Instead they will compete in the Second Chance the upcoming Saturday. Felix, Oscar and Omar was previously the act The Fooo Conspiracy. As one of the O’s exited the group, the name had to be changed leading to a new boy band act. Other entries include Loreen’s ‘Statements.’ That song didn’t manage to win a final ticket last night. As WelcheMusic.com previously reported, Loreen was a favorite.

FO&O – Gotta Thing About You

The Career of Robert John “Mutt” Lange

Robert John Mutt Lange has written and/or produced hits that have touched millions of fans. Lange was born in Mufulira, Zambia today. He was raised in South African Durban and currently resides in Switzerland.

Robert John “Mutt” Lange’s debut came in October 1978. ‘Rat Trap’ for The Boomtown Rats reached No.1. It is far from the sound of FO&O’s boy band hit.

One of the songwriter’s greatest legacy is the song Lange co-wrote and produced for Bryan Adams. The soundtrack theme to Kevin Costner’s Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, ‘(Everything I Do) I Do It for You.’ It topped the UK singles chart for 16 consecutive weeks in 1991.

In 1997, Lange produced the hugely successful album Come on Over for Shania Twain – the best-selling country album.

He also won five Grammy awards, including Shania Twain’s ‘You’re Still the One’ (1998 – Best Country Song) and Muse’s Drone (2016 – Best Album).

Tony Nilsson’s Melodifestivalen Entries

Tony Nilsson, on the other hand, has contributed several tracks to Melodifestivalen throughout the years. Among Nilsson’s entries include tracks for Marie Serneholt, Alcazar and Behrang Miri. Today, he Tony Nilsson is an internationally acclaimed songwriter with ‘Hit the Lights’ for Selena Gomez & The Scene in 2011 to his credit.

WelcheMusic.com will continously report on the future success of Lange and his entry.