🇵🇹 Sneak Peek: Festival da Canção Semi-Final 2 2023

Image: RTP

On Saturday 4th March, Portugal will continue the process of selecting their Eurovision entry for 2023. This weekend sees the second of two Semi-Finals where another 10 acts will take to the stage to try and qualify for the Festival da Canção (FdC) final on March 11th.

Let’s take a look at the running order of the second Semi-Final of Festival da Canção 2023.

1. Edmundo Inácio – ‘A Festa’
2. The Happy Mess – ‘O impossível’
3. Teresinha Landeiro – ‘Enquanto é tempo’
4. Bandua – ‘Bandeiras’
5. Bárbara Tinoco – ‘Goodnight’
6. Inês Apenas – ‘Fim do Mundo’
7. Ivandro – ‘Povo’
8. DAPUNKSPORTIF – ‘World Needs Therapy’
9. Lara Li – ‘Funâmbula’
10. Voodoo Marmalade – ‘Tormento’

Want to find more about the acts taking part? Read on as we give you a sneek peak preview of this year’s Portuguese Eurovision hopefuls!

Edmundo Inácio – ‘A Festa’

Edmundo Inácio is best known for taking part in The Voice Portugal in 2021 where he reached the final which really helped kickstart his career. Edmundo’s popularity has continued to grow as well as his musical style mixing electronic music with fado. His entry for FdC 2023 is exactly that.

The Happy Mess – ‘O impossível’

Indie band The Happy Mess are made up of Afonso Carvalho, Hugo Azevedo, João Pascoal, Miguel Ribeiro and Paulo Mouta Pereira. The band have built up a fanbase across their 10 year career in Portugal and beyond, playing in many music festivals across Europe. In 2021 The Happy Mess released their first fully Portuguese language album ‘Jardim da Parada’. They bring a similar sound and of course language to their FdC 2023 entry.

Teresinha Landeiro – ‘Enquanto é tempo’

Despite being young, Teresinha has already made her mark in the genre of fado. She’s already showcased her talents across some of the most well respected fado institutions in Portugal such as Centro Cultural de Belém, Capitólio (Lisbon) and Casa da Música (Porto). Her haunting fado sound is clear in ‘Enquanto é tempo’ and is true to her artistry and is a great example of how fado continues to evolve in a modern world.

Bandua – ‘Bandeiras’

Bandua was formed in 2018 by Bernardo Addario and Edgar Valente, as Bernardo was inspired by Berlin’s electronic scene and wanted to create something similar with a Portuguese twist. They will be hoping this fusion will impress the jury and voting public on Saturday night, as their track ‘Bandeiras’ incorporates this well mixed with a traditional Portuguese vocal style.

Bárbara Tinoco – ‘Goodnight’

Bárbara Tinoco is a name on the Festival da Canção 2023 list that many Eurovision fans will recognise, Bárbara participated in the 2020 competition finishing a very respectable second. Back this year with a softer contemporary English ballad, she’ll be looking to show a different side to her more traditional 2020 entry ‘Passe-Partout’.

Inês Apenas – ‘Fim do Mundo’

INÊS APENAS is the stage name of Inês Oliveira da Costa. She was born in France but has lived Portugal since she was three years old. A pianist, singer and composer, she mixes pop, electronics music, jazz and soul across her body of work. Her FdC 2023 entry is built around a floaty, dream like piano riff which continues to grow throughout the track.

Ivandro – ‘Povo’

Angolan born Joaquim Ivandro Paulo is better known as Ivandro, who started taking his first steps in music in 2013. This is when he started cocmposing his first original tracks. His first taste of the mainstream was through talent shows such as Ídolos and Portugal’s Got Talent. His strong vocal performance in ‘Povo’ is one that is worth keeping an eye on, it’s gaining traction amongst the Portuguese viewers already and his stripped back guitar ballad could be making further waves on Saturday night.

DAPUNKSPORTIF – ‘World Needs Therapy’

Formed in 2004, DAPUNKSPORTIF is made up of Paulo Franco (voice and guitar), João Guincho (guitar), Fred Ferreira (drums), Vicente Santos (keys) and Filipe Brito (bass). With four albums to date, their aggressive rock sound is shown through their English language entry ‘World Needs Therapy’ – a message to modern society.

Lara Li – ‘Funâmbula’

Lara Pires Amendoeira is better known as Lara Li, a beloved singer with a career spanning across decades. Releasing music since the late 70s, she’s been a permanent fixture amongst the pop/jazz scene in Portugal and is extremely well respected for her craft. Her acoustic led track ‘Funâmbula’ will be a great example of less is more in music on Saturday night.

Voodoo Marmalade – ‘Tormento’

Hailing from Lisbon region, the band Voodoo Marmalade merge ukuleles and percussion instruments to create a hot pot of joy. Adding the final element of sweet vocal harmonies, the band will be a great show closer rapping up the second FdC Semi-Final with their cheerful fun track ‘Tormento’. You can just picture listening to this as a sun sets on a beach day in Portugal!

So that’s this week’s acts in the second Semi-Final of Festival da Canção. Who are you cheering for? You can watch the show on March 4th at 22:00pm CET on RTP Player. Let us know your thoughts on this year’s Festival da Canção in the comments and on our Twitter and Instagram!