After two semifinals whittled down the competition from 24 entrants to 12, Latvia will host the Final of Dziesma 2014 this Saturday live from the Juras Varti Theatre in Ventspils.  Latvia has had a run of hard luck, failing to make it out of the Eurovision Semifinals every year since “Wolves of the Sea” in 2008, and coming in last place in their semifinal three out of the past five years.  That being said, this year’s National Final actually contains a number of talented and interesting contenders, many of whom have the potential to bring the country their first Top Ten placement since Walters and Kazha in 2005.

Let’s take a look at the roster, shall we?

1. Ralfs Eilands and Valters Pūce – “Revelation“
2. Markus Riva – “Lights On“
3. Katrīna Bindere – “Moment and Tomorrow“
4. Dons – “Pēdējā vēstule“
5. Samanta Tīna – “Stay“
6. Niko – “Here I Am Again“
7. MyRadiantU – “Going All the Way“
8. Olga and Līgo – “Saule riet“
9. Aminata Savadogo – “I Can Breathe“
10. Aarzemnieki – “Cake to Bake“
11. Eirošmits – “If I Could (Get Away)“
12. Katrine Lukins – “You Are the Reason“

There are a few familiar faces in the line-up on Saturday.  First, we have Ralfs Eilands, lead singer of PeR, who represented the country last year with “Here We Go“.  Dons came in second place in the 2010 Dziesma with “My Religion is Freedom“, just missing out to Aisha’s “What For?“.  In 2012 and 2013, the Dziesma silver medal went to Samanta Tīna for “I Want You Back” and “I Need a Hero“, respectively.  Finally, Olga Rajecka of Olga & Līgo is a very well-known artist in her home country, having released music consistently since the mid-1980s.  Chances are, this is going to be a well-fought Final.

After the first round of performances, a 50/50 jury-televote split will determine three superfinalists, who will be put to the mercy of the jury and public once more.  Whoever makes it to the top of the heap on Saturday night gets the ticket to Copenhagen.