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The jubilation was great for Erika Norwich (25) when, in the second semi-final round, she ensured a place in the final for the big Melodi Grand Prix final. Pipa, on the other hand, got a different sound, when she took to social media the next day and wrote that she was considering retiring.
The background was the feedback the 25-year-old had received after his appearance on the TV screen.
Read also: Clear message to MGP-Erika and the trolls: – Must withstand criticism
In an update on Snapchat, Norwich addressed the critics and asked them not to tell her that they have read hateful comments about her and that it made her want to resign.
A short time ago, Norwich took the floor again. This time it is NRK that she has a hen to pick with, and among other things criticizes the channel for not following up on the MGP participants.
Open about diagnoses
The 25-year-old has for a long time been open that she has struggled with her own mental health, and that the negative feedback she has received in connection with her participation in the Melodi Grand Prix has, among other things, triggered anxiety.
In the TikTok video, Norwich criticizes NRK for poor follow-up of the participants in MGP, and claims that the channel does not offer psychological help to the participants who want it.
– Something I unfortunately think is negative about MGP is that they do not offer psychological help. I have participated in other music programs before, and there has always been an offer for it, but not at MGP, she claims, among other things, in the video.
– When I was on “Idol”, I got a psychologist, and then I didn’t quite understand the point of it. Whereas now, when I’m here and don’t have that offer, I know that I should have, she continues.
Nettavisen has submitted the criticism from Norwich to NRK. You can read the response to NRK further down in the case. Norwich herself does not wish to comment on the matter beyond what she has stated via her social media platforms.
Reacts to the statements
Since Norwich posted the video on TikTok, it has generated over 70,000 views. One of those who saw the video and reacted is manager Christoffer Gunnestad (33).
Gunnestad has, among other things, been the manager of former MGP winner Ulrikke Brandstorp, and he stands behind what Norwich claims in the video on TikTok.
Gunnestad has made his own video, in which he comes up with a response to Norwich’s original video.
Gunnestad told Nettavisen that he thought it strange if NRK chose to lower the priority of psychological help for its participants, as according to him it could be too much for some to get all the attention that participation brings.
– Melodi Grand Prix is a concept that people love to hate. Then there are also extremely many people who want to have an opinion, and these are not always constructive and nice, says Gunnestad.
Gunnestad also believes that the need for organized psychological help is perhaps greater in competitions such as Melodi Grand Prix, as competitions largely consist of new and up-and-coming artists, who may never have participated in anything similar before.
– Regardless of whether you are already a well-established artist, or completely new to the industry, I think that an offer to get some professionals to talk to along the way and in advance can always be helpful, says Gunnestad.
Not a general offer
According to NRK, not everything that Norwich claims in the video that she has published on TikTok is true.
Project manager Mads Tørklep tells Nettavisen that NRK has offered psychological help to its participants in the past, but that it must come from a desire or an assessment in a given situation.
Tørklep confirms, however, that psychological help is not a general offer NRK offers participants.
– Most of the artists already have a good apparatus around them, both in the form of management and record company. The team is often closest to and can make good judgments about what is necessary when it comes to obtaining external help, if there is a need for it, says Tørklep to Nettavisen.
Tørklep, on the other hand, does not say anything about whether it is something NRK is considering offering participants in the future.
According to Christoffer Gunnestad, he has received several feedbacks that there are several participants who recognize what Gunnestad misses from the channel, and encourages NRK to make more assessments:
– There are many of the artists who participate in MGP who do not have a large apparatus around them, and that is precisely why it is so important that they get the opportunity to talk to someone. And it’s not like it’s new for NRK to have artists who have encountered challenges through their participation in MGP or Eurovision, he says.