Few acts across the Eurovision universe have been actively seeking the ESC crown across three decades. However, Swedish dansband Arvingarna has done exactly that and are continuing to do so!
Overall, Arvingarna has made five appearances in the Swedish Eurovision final, Melodifestivalen, and are scheduled to make their sixth appearance in 2021 with "Tänker inte alls gå hem (I don’t want to go home)." The group’s last appearance came in 2019 with their hit “I do” which qualified for the final. However, their Eurovision claim to fame though comes from their 1993 Melodifestivalen (“Melfest”) winner “Eloise” which earned 7th place in the 1993 Eurovision Song Contest.
Despite not earning the big win with “Eloise,” the song proved to be a big domestic top 10 hit and a favorite for fans who continue to flock to the band’s tours and schlager festival appearances. Taking only a short break early in the last decade, the dansband lads have continued their families’ legacies (the band’s names translates to “The Heirs,” a reference to their parents’ dansband careers) and have steadily been releasing music and performing. In fact, the group recently released a full album and Christmas EP to tide their fans over between their Melfest appearances.
Thanks to bands like Arvingarna, dansband and schlager music has maintained a strong level of popularity in Sweden. This is likely due to their music being spread along generations much like how they themselves picked up the dansband tradition from their families.