The first four finalists have been revealed during the exciting first Semi-Final of A Dal 2018. Will one of them win the Grand Final on February 24th and represent Hungary at Eurovision 2018 in Lisbon?
The songs
During the first Semi-Final, the following songs have been performed once again:
Gergely Dánielfy – Azt mondtad
Roland Gulyás – H Y P N O T I Z E D
Ham Ko Ham – Bármerre Jársz
Gábor Heincz “BIGA” – Good Vibez
Gabi Knoll – Nobody To Die For
Leander Kills – Nem Szól Harang
Maszkura és a Tücsökraj – Nagybetűs Szavak
SativuS – Lusta Lány
Zsolt Süle – Zöld A Május
Many of the performances were identical or the same compared to what we’ve seen during the Heats. Some of the songs had however some major changes. Ham Ko Ham have inserted a few lines in the Lovári language into their authentic gypsy song. The band SativuS added some extra instruments following the jury’s criticism in the previous round. Other artists have made some changes in their staging: BIGA has made minor changes to his LED backdrop, while Gabi Knoll was joined by two dancers on stage this time. The biggest change was made by Leander Kills who played the first minute of their rock ballad acoustically, with an addition of a violin. This move has been heavily criticized by the jury.
The show
Our hosts of the show were once again Krisztina Rátonyi and Gábor Alfréd Fehérvári or, as we all know him, Freddie. Members of the jury panel were rock musician Károly Frenreisz, actress Judit Schell, the lead singer of the band Magna Cum Laude, Misi Mező, and songwriter Miklós Both. The combination of the scores given by them and the viewers at home have determined the first three qualifiers. The fourth and last finalist has been chosen by only the televoters.
During this Semi-Final, Gergely Dánielfy has been revealed as the winner of the Newcomer of the Year Award. Also an interval act has been performed by Péter Novák, lead singer of the band Kimnowak and János Kardos-Horváth.
The results
| Song/Artist | Károly | Judit | Misi | Miklós | Viewers | Total / Rank |
| AZT MONDTAD by Gergely Dánielfy | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 47 / 1st |
| H Y P N O T I Z E D by Roland Gulyás | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 35 / 8th |
| BÁRMERRE JÁRSZ by Ham Ko Ham | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 36 / 7th |
| GOOD VIBEZ by Gábor Heincz “BIGA” | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 42 / 3rd |
| NOBODY TO DIE FOR by Gabi Knoll | 7 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 37 / 5th |
| NEM SZÓL HARANG by Leander Kills | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 41 / 4th |
| NAGYBETŰS SZAVAK by Maszkura és a Tücsökraj | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 37 / 6th |
| LUSTA LÁNY by SativuS | 8 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 33 / 9th |
| ZÖLD A MÁJUS by Zsolt Süle | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 45 / 2nd |
The Top 3 has automatically qualified to the Grand Final, while televoters have saved Leander Kills.
Hungary at the Eurovision Song Contest
Hungary debuted at Eurovision in 1994 in Dublin. Friderika Bayer’s 4th position from that year is still the country’s best ever result at the contest. After a longer period of withdrawals and returns, Hungary has participated at the Eurovision Song Contest every year since 2011.
In 2012, broadcaster MTVA launched the new national selection format; A Dal, which has quickly become popular and also successful. Since their 2011 return, Hungary has qualified to the Grand Final every single time – that means a series of seven qualifications in a row. On three occasions (2013, 2014 and 2017), they even finished in the Top 10 of the Grand Final.
This time let’s take a look back at A Dal 2018 host Freddie’s Eurovision performance from Stockholm! He finished in 19th position with his song Pioneer back in 2016 despite being one of the early fan favourites.
