"Aijā" (Latvian pronunciation: [ˈaijaː]; lit. 'Hushaby' or 'Shush') is a song by Latvian indie rock band Sudden Lights, released on 27 January 2023.[1] The song represented Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 after winning Supernova 2023, Latvia's national selection for that year's Eurovision Song Contest.[2][3]
| "Aijā" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Sudden Lights | ||||
| Language | English, Latvian | |||
| Released | 27 January 2023 | |||
| Length | 3:00 | |||
| Label | Self-released | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Sudden Lights singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Aijā" on YouTube | ||||
| Eurovision Song Contest 2023 entry | ||||
| Country | ||||
| Artist(s) | ||||
| Languages | ||||
| Composer(s) |
| |||
| Lyricist(s) | Andrejs Reinis Zitmanis | |||
| Finals performance | ||||
| Semi-final result | 11th | |||
| Semi-final points | 34 | |||
| Entry chronology | ||||
| ◄ "Eat Your Salad" (2022) | ||||
| "Hollow" (2024) ► | ||||
| Official performance video | ||||
| "Aijā" (First Semi-Final) on YouTube | ||||
Background
editIn interviews, the band stated that "Aijā" was made with the purpose of being a lullaby, in the sense that it would make people sleep easier. During an interview with Eurovision fan-site That Eurovision Site, they stated that due to "bad things" happening around the world, they wanted to create a song that would distract listeners from those issues.[4] In another interview with Eurovision fan-site Eurovision Fun, the band stated that they wanted viewers to feel as if they were on a "rock concert on stage".[1]
Eurovision Song Contest
editSupernova 2023
editSupernova 2023 was the Latvian national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. The format of the competition would consist of two shows: a semi-final and a final. The semi-final, which was held on 4 February 2023, featured 14 competing entries from which the top ten entries advanced to the final. The final was held on 11 February 2023, which selected the Latvian entry for Liverpool from the remaining entries. Results during the semi-final and final shows were determined by the 50/50 combination of votes from a jury panel and a public vote, with both the jury and public vote assigning points from 1–8, 10 and 12 based on the number of competing songs in the respective show.[5]
"Aijā" performed 14th during the semi-final and came within the top ten, thus advancing to the semi-final.[6] In the final, "Aijā" performed seventh. At the end of the voting, it was revealed that the song had managed to win the competition, and thus earn the Latvian spot for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023.[2] It became the second Eurovision entry to feature lyrics in Latvian, after 2004.
At Eurovision
editAccording to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 31 January 2023, an allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Latvia was placed into the first semi-final, scheduled to perform in the first half.[7]
“Aijā” performed 4th during the first semi-final on 9 May 2023, but did not qualify to the grand final.[8]
Weekly charts
edit| Chart (2023) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Latvia (LAIPA)[9] | 3 |
| Latvia Domestic Airplay (LAIPA)[10] | 3 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Latvia (LaIPA)[11] | Platinum | 4,000,000[11] |
References
edit- ^ a b Matamis, Apostolis (27 January 2023). "Sudden Lights: "We want the audience to have the feeling of a rock concert"". Eurovision Fun. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- ^ a b Veen, Renske ten (11 February 2023). "Sudden Lights win Supernova final and will represent Latvia at Eurovision 2023 with "Aija"". Wiwibloggs. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- ^ "Latvia: 'Supernova' victory for Sudden Lights with 'Aijā'". Eurovision Song Contest. 11 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- ^ Dibben, Jazzi (26 January 2023). "🇱🇻 Sudden Lights: "It's the lullaby that we sing to ourselves and all the people listening to our song!". That Eurovision Site. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- ^ "Izvēlēti Latvijas Televīzijas dziesmu konkursa "Supernova" pusfinālisti". ltv.tv (in Latvian). Latvijas Televīzija. 5 January 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
- ^ Adams, Oliver (4 February 2023). "Latvia's Supernova 2023 semi-final results". Wiwibloggs. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- ^ Groot, Evert (31 January 2023). "Eurovision 2023: Allocation Draw results". Retrieved 31 January 2022.
- ^ Adams, William Lee (9 May 2023). "Eurovision 2023: Semi-Final 1 results and qualifiers". wiwibloggs. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
- ^ "Mūzikas Patēriņa Tops/ 07. nedēļa" (in English and Latvian). LAIPA. 19 February 2023. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
- ^ "Latvijas radio stacijās spēlētākās dziesmas Top 13. nedēļa" (in Latvian). LAIPA. 27 March 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ a b "Platīna sertifikāts tiek piešķirts mūzikas ierakstiem par 4'000'000 straumju sasniegšanu". Latvian Music Producers Association (in Latvian). Retrieved 26 April 2024.