Estonia has officially taken its first step on the road to Eurovision 2026! During the Ringvaade show on ETV, the country’s public broadcaster, the first six artists who have secured their place in the Eesti Laul 2026 Grand Final were revealed. The final will take place on February 14 at the Unibet Arena in Tallinn.
The first finalists
The six artists competing for Estonia’s ticket to Eurovision are (in alphabetical order):
Grete Paia – “Taevas jäi üles”
Songwriters: Grete Paia, Jorma-Jan Erik, Gevin Niglas, Ragnar Sepp
Marta Pikani – “Kell kuus”
Songwriter: Marta Pikani
NOËP – “Days Like This”
Songwriters: Andres Kõpper, Vallo Kikas, Yvonne Dahlbom
Ollie – “Slave”
Songwriter: Oliver Mazurtšak
Uliana Olhyna – “Rhythm of Nature”
Songwriters: Uliana Olhyna, Ariana Arutjunjan
Vanilla Ninja – “Too Epic To Be True”
Songwriter: Sven Lõhmus
Among them stand out the legendary Vanilla Ninja, who represented Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 in Kyiv with “Cool Vibes”, finishing 8th in the Grand Final.
The remaining six finalists will be revealed tomorrow, Friday, also on Ringvaade.
The selection process
A total of 171 songs were submitted for Eesti Laul 2026 — 77 in Estonian and 94 in foreign languages — from songwriters and artists representing 20 countries, including Brazil and Australia.
The 12 finalists were chosen by a 34-member jury, consisting of music professionals, TV hosts and creators of various backgrounds and ages. The evaluation process was carried out “blindly,” meaning jurors did not know the names of the artists or songwriters.
The jury included, among others, Andrei Zevakin, Eda-Ines Etti, Maian Kärmas, Grete Kuld and Robert Kõrvits, under the coordination of ERR, Estonia’s national broadcaster.
The songs will be released for the first time on December 4 through the ETV show Start and the digital platform Jupiter.
New hosting duo
The Eesti Laul 2026 shows will be hosted by Korea and Karl-Erik Taukar, forming a brand-new presenting duo. They will take charge of both the Start show in December and the grand final in February.
Karl-Erik Taukar commented:
I can safely say that viewers will enjoy a stylish and high-quality show with our duo.
The Grand Final
The Eesti Laul 2026 Grand Final will be held on February 14 at the Unibet Arena in Tallinn. As in previous years, the winner will be determined in two rounds:
In the first round, the results will be decided by a combination of jury voting and televote.
In the Superfinal, the public alone will decide the winner.
The final jury will consist of at least seven members, including international music experts active in teaching, producing or promoting pop music.
Estonia’s recent Eurovision success
Estonia comes from an excellent Eurovision year: at the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, the country finished 3rd – its best result since hosting the contest in Tallinn in 2002. Tommy Cash represented Estonia with “Espresso Macchiato”, scoring 356 points, including 12 points from Armenia, Croatia, Latvia, Malta and Serbia.
Source: ERR
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