Lithuania has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest (known in Lithuania as ''Eurovizijos dainų konkursas'') 22 times since its debut in

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...

, where Ovidijus Vyšniauskas finished last, receiving "nul points". Lithuania withdrew from the contest, not returning until

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

LT United LT United were a Lithuanian music group created in 2006 for the sole purpose of representing Lithuania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. The group entered the Lithuanian pre-selection event with the song "We Are the Winners", winning with almost ...

's sixth place in with the song "

We Are the Winners "We Are the Winners" was the entry into the Eurovision Song Contest 2006, sung by Lithuanian all-star group LT United, consisting of Andrius Mamontovas, Marijonas Mikutavičius, Viktoras Diawara, Saulius Urbonavičius, Arnoldas Lukošius and Eim ...

" is Lithuania's best result in the contest. The country reached the top ten for a second time in , when

Donny Montell Donatas Montvydas (born 22 October 1987), better known by his stage name Donny Montell, is a Lithuanian singer-songwriter who represented Lithuania at the Eurovision Song Contest 2012, held in Baku, Azerbaijan. He did so for a second time in 201 ...

finished ninth with " I've Been Waiting for This Night", and for the third time in

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

, finishing eighth with

The Roop The Roop (stylised as THE ROOP) are a Lithuanian pop rock band from Vilnius. Formed in 2014, the group consists of lead vocalist Vaidotas Valiukevičius, percussionist Robertas Baranauskas and guitarist Mantas Banišauskas. The group has releas ...

and " Discoteque". As of 2022, Lithuania remains the only Baltic country that is yet to win the contest after wins for

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

in 2001 and Latvia in 2002. However, since the introduction of the semi-final round in 2004, Lithuania has more final appearances than the other Baltic nations, with eleven, compared to eight for Estonia and six for Latvia.

History

2000s

Having been relegated from the 2000 contest the country returned in 2001 with Skamp and " You Got Style", the first Lithuanian song to include English. They received 35 points, placing 13th. However the following year,

Aivaras Aivaras is a Lithuanian masculine given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person f ...

could only manage to come second last with 12 points. Since the semi-finals were introduced Lithuania again came last with Laura and the Lovers and " Little by Little". The following year the Lithuanian broadcaster Lietuvos Nacionalinis Radijas ir Televizija (LRT) sent

to the 2006 contest with the

football chant A football chant or terrace chant is form of vocalisation performed by supporters of association football, typically during football matches. Football chanting is an expression of collective identity, most often used by fans to express their ...

-like song "

". They took Lithuania to the final for the first time since 2002, coming sixth in the final with 162 points, Lithuania's best placing as of 2022. The following year Lithuania automatically qualified for the final, however

4Fun 4Fun (sometimes also ''Julia & 4Fun'') is a Lithuanian music band. They play a wide range of music styles, including rock, pop rock, and country. The band was created in 2001 and participated in several national and international festivals, incl ...

could not replicate LT United's success, coming 21st with only 28 points, 12 of which came from

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. In 2008

Jeronimas Milius Jeronimas Milius (born 11 October 1984 in Vilnius, Lithuania) is a Lithuanian singer. Since 2003, he has been the leader of the heavy/power metal band '' Soul Stealer'' (formerly ''Soul Brothers''). Career Milius was elected to represent his co ...

failed to reach the final, coming 16th of 19 competing nations in the second semi-final. Lithuania threatened to boycott the 2009 contest "if Russia continues to showcase power and ignores international law". The statement was made in reaction to the Russia's actions in the

2008 South Ossetia war The 2008 Russo-Georgian WarThe war is known by a variety of other names, including Five-Day War, August War and Russian invasion of Georgia. was a war between Georgia, on one side, and Russia and the Russian-backed self-proclaimed republics of Sou ...

. Culture Minister Jonas Jučas stated that it was too early to discuss the boycott since "spontaneous decisions might aggravate the efforts of diplomats" and thus make the situation worse. At the

Eurovision Song Contest 2009 The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 was the 54th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Moscow, Russia, following the country's victory at the with the song "Believe" by Dima Bilan. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (E ...

, Lithuania qualified from the semi finals and at the end of the voting in the final had received 23 points, placing them 23rd.

2010s

LRT announced in December 2009 that, due to a lack of necessary funds, Lithuania would formally withdraw from the 2010 Contest. However, in the event that the necessary funds of 300,000 litas (

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists ...

90,000) would be found the broadcaster announced that they would attempt to continue the country's participation. Ultimately, private company TEO LT provided the necessary funding and Lithuania participated in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population ...

. In 2011, Lithuania participated in the first semi-final on the 10 May 2011 and after coming fifth, qualified for the Final. In the final, Lithuania received 63 points, to finish 19th. In 2012, Lithuania qualified for the final with

and his song " Love Is Blind", placing 3rd with 104 points. They eventually finished 14th in the Grand Final. In 2013, Lithuania qualified to the final with "

Something Something may refer to: Philosophy and language *Something (concept) *Something, an English indefinite pronoun Music Albums * ''Something'' (Chairlift album), 2012 * ''Something'' (Shirley Bassey album), 1970 * ''Something'' (Shirley Scott ...

" by Andrius Pojavis, placing 9th in the first semi-final, with 53 points, qualifying Lithuania to the final for the 3rd time in row. In the final, he ended on 22nd place with 17 points. In 2014, Vilija didn't qualify to final finishing 11th of 15 entrants in the second semi-final, scoring 36 points. In 2016, Donny Montell returned to the contest in 2016 and achieved Lithuania's best result of the decade, finishing ninth with " I've Been Waiting for This Night". In 2018,

Ieva Zasimauskaitė Ieva Zasimauskaitė (born 2 July 1993) is a Lithuanian singer who represented Lithuania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with her song " When We're Old". She had previously participated in the Lithuanian national selection for the Eurovision ...

achieved Lithuania's fifth top 15 result, finishing 12th with " When We're Old".

2020s

In 2021, Lithuania qualified to the final with the song " Discoteque" by

, placing 4th in the first semi-final with 203 points. In the final, The Roop reached 8th place with 220 points, thereby achieving Lithuania's second best result to date. The Roop was previously chosen to represent the country in the later-cancelled 2020 edition with " On Fire". In 2022, Monika Liu performed her song " Sentimentai" in Lithuanian, which marked the second appearance of the language in the contest, and the first one since 1994, the song qualified from the semifinal. (except partial usage in 2001)

Participation overview

Awards

Winner by OGAE members

Barbara Dex Award

Related involvement

Heads of delegation

Jury members

A five-member jury panel consisting of music industry professionals is made up for every participating country for the semi-finals and Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest, ranking all entries except for their own country's contribution. The juries' votes constitute 50% of the overall result alongside televoting.

Commentators and spokespersons

Other shows

Stage directors

Photogallery

File:Linas and Simona - Lithuania 2004.jpg, Linas and Simona in Istanbul ( 2004) File:4fun Eurovision 2007.jpg,

in Helsinki ( 2007) File:ImageESC 2008 - Lithuania - Jeronimas Milius, 2nd semifinal.jpg,

in Belgrade (

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

) File:Esc son.jpg,

Sasha Son Dmitry Shavrov (russian: Дмитрий Шавров, lt, Dmitrij Šavrov; born 18 September 1983), better known by his stage names Sasha Song or Sasha Son, is a Lithuanian singer and songwriter. He represented Lithuania in the Eurovision Song C ...

in Moscow ( 2009) File:Inculto band.jpg, InCulto in Oslo ( 2010) File:ESC2013 - Lithuania 02.jpg, Andrius Pojavis in Malmö (

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

) File:ESC2014 - Lithuania 01.jpg, Vilija in Copenhagen (

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

) File:20150516 ESC 2015 Monika Linkytė & Vaidas Baumila 7568.jpg, Monika Linkytė and Vaidas Baumila in Vienna ( 2015) File:ESC2016 - Lithuania 07.jpg,

in Stockholm (

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

) File:Eurovision Song Contest 2017, Semi Final 2 Rehearsals. Photo 264.jpg, Fusedmarc in Kyiv (

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

) File:Ieva Zasimauskaitė (Lithuania 2018).jpg,

in Lisbon (

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...

) File:ESC2019-Lithuania.jpg,

Jurij Veklenko Jurijus Veklenko (born 6 July 1990 in Klaipėda), also known as Jurij Veklenko or simply Jurijus, is a Lithuanian singer. Eurovision Song Contest Veklenko previously performed at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 as one of the backing singers for ...

in Tel Aviv (

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

) File:ESC 2021 Rotterdam 1st Semi Jury Show Lithuania.jpg,

in Rotterdam () File:Eurovision 2022 - Semi-final 1 - Lithuania - Monika Liu.jpg, Monika Liu in Turin ()

Notes

References

{{Eurovision Song Contest Countries in the Eurovision Song Contest