Iceland confirmed its presence at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009. It was held in Moscow, Russia. Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV), the Icelandic broadcaster, has decided to continue with a national final format, with members of the public being called to send in songs to RÚV.

The final of the Icelandic national selection, Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009, will be held on 14 February 2009, with four semi-finals being held before-hand, on the 10, 17, 24 and 31 January 2009. Artists and songwriters were told that they had until 13 October 2008 to submit entries to RÚV. However, due to the financial crisis in Iceland, RÚV extended the deadline by one week, to 20 October 2008.

Sixteen songs in total will compete in Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009, selected from the 217 songs submitted to RÚV. Four songs will compete in each semi-final, with eight songs in total competing in the final. The composers of the sixteen songs were revealed on 15 November 2008. Three of the thirteen composers revealed have composed two songs that have been accepted for the contest.

The first semi-final of Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2009 was held on 10 January, featuring four songs in total. Two songs passed to the final, while the remaining two were knocked out of the competition.

The first song of the night was "Dagur nýr" (A new day), performed by Heiða Ólafs, composed by Halldór Guðjónsson and written by Íris Kristinsdóttir. The song is a rock ballad, which Ólafs performs on stage in a black top and trousers. She was backed by a five piece band, featuring two guitarists, a bassist, a drummer and a keyboard player. The second performance of the night was by Ólöf Jara Skagfjörð with the song "Hugur minn fylgir þér" (My mind follows you), which was composed and written by Valgeir Skagfjörð. The song is a rock/pop ballad, which she performs in a red and black dress, backed by an accordion player. Edgar Smári was next on stage, performing "The Kiss We Never Kissed" which was composed by Heimir Sindrason and written by Ari Harðarson. The song is a pop ballad, which Heimir performs in a black shirt and jeans, sitting on a stool in the centre of the stage, backed by five backing singers, four female and one male, all in black. The final song of the first semi-final was "Is It True", composed by Óskar Páll Sveinsson and performed by Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir. The song is another ballad, featuring both pop and rock elements, which Guðrún performs on stage in a black dress, and is accompanied on stage by two female backing singers, a cellist and a guitarist, all in black.

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Wikipedia