(Nettavisen/Ringerikes Blad): The 15th season of “Hver gang vi møtes” offers a new twist, announces TV 2 in a press release on Wednesday.
For the first time, one of the participants has been brought in from our neighboring country, Sweden, and it is no ordinary person who will be seen on screen in the new season of the TV program.
Made in Hønefoss is responsible for the casting and music production of the TV program.
– It has been great days at the “casting office” this year. We are really looking forward to the filming starting next week. It’s incredibly fun to have casting and music production again this year. This is going to be really fun, writes Made in Hønefoss on their own Facebook pages.
Previously, Ringerikes Blad reported that Jørn Dahl and Made in Hønefoss have a million-dollar success with the TV program “Hver gang vi møtes”. Earlier this year, Dahl and Made in Hønefoss also won the Gullruten award for best entertainment program.
Carola Häggkvist (57) is likely just as popular in Norway as she is in her home country. The Swedish songbird had her big breakthrough at the age of 16 when she placed fifth with the song “Främling” in the Eurovision Song Contest. Over the years, several songs have followed – which will now be interpreted by other stars.
At Kjerringøy outside Bodø, Häggkvist will be joined by several of Norway’s biggest artists, and here are the new participants:
Ina Wroldsen (40)
In addition to being an artist, Ina Wroldsen is one of Norway’s foremost songwriters. She has written songs for artists such as Shakira, Kylie Minogue, Britney Spears, James Arthur, Tinie Tempah, and Demi Lovato – to name a few.
Ina Wroldsen has also been a mentor on the TV 2 program “The Voice” for the last four seasons.
Kjartan Lauritzen (29)
Kjartan Lauritzen, or Per Áki Sigurdsson Kvikne as he is actually named, debuted in 2014 with the song “Lekeplass”.
The following year came the song “Havanna”, but the big breakthrough came with the song “Fredag” – which has well over 15 million streams on the streaming platform Spotify.
In recent years, the popular 29-year-old from Balestrand has collaborated with among others Datarock, Ylvis, and DJ MØMØ.
In 2023, he participated in the NRK series “6899 til eg dør”.
Astrid Smeplass (27)
Astrid Smeplass, known by her stage name Astrid S, gained fame when she participated in “Idol” in 2013.
Smeplass is very popular in Norway, but she has also achieved great success internationally. She is known for songs such as “Think Before I Talk”, “Does She Know”, and “Hurts So Good” – and has worked with stars like Shawn Mendes.
She has also tried her hand at acting, securing the lead role as Cinderella in “Tre nøtter til Askepott” in 2021.
Stein Torleif Bjella (56)
Songwriter, musician, and lyricist Stein Torleif Bjella debuted as a solo artist in 2009 with the song “Heidersmenn”.
The 56-year-old has received several nominations and awards for his music and writing work, winning a Spellemann in the folk class for the album “Vonde visu (Oh Yeah!)” from 2011.
In 2023, he released the album “Nysetmåne”, and he is currently contributing music to “Heil ved” at the Norwegian Theater.
Thomas Dybdahl (45)
Dybdahl debuted as a solo artist with “That Great October Sound” in 2002, an album that won him a Spellemann.
The subsequent albums were also met with praise, nominations, and awards, and the album “What’s Left Is Forever” from 2013 was additionally nominated for a prestigious Grammy.
In total, Dybdahl has released ten solo albums, the latest being “Teenage Astronauts”. He has also composed film music for several of Arild Østin Ommundsen’s films, including “Rottenetter”.
Jonas Benyoub (30)
Rapper and songwriter Jonas Benyoub first became a familiar face to the Norwegian public when he participated in “X Factor” in 2010.
In 2017, the 30-year-old from Oslo released his very first single, “youm wara youm”, but it was not until five years later, in 2022, that his career took off with the album “ZeroLove”. He won the by: Larm award for breakthrough artist of the year, P3 Gull for breakthrough of the year, and a Spellemann in the category of hip-hop artist of the year.
Benyoub has collaborated with among others Karpe, Marstein, Isah, and Swedish Molly Hammar.