Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006
Latvia’s entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was the song "I Hear Your Heart" performed by the group Cosmos. The song was written by Molly-Ann Leikin and Guntars Račs, and was composed by Reinis Sējāns and Andris Sējāns.
Cosmos is a group of six young Latvian performers who sing a cappella. They are Jānis Šipkēvics, Andris Sējans, Juris Lisenko, Jānis Ozols, Jānis Strazdiņš and Reinis Sējāns joining in 2004. Their first album sold 12,000 copies and reaching gold status as well as gaining the title of the best pop-album in Latvia of 2003. They were also triumphant in winning the third international song contest "New Wave 2004." In 2005, Cosmos released their second album "Pa un Par", presenting 16 tracks of Latvian and international songs, as wells as original compositions.
Before Eurovision
Eirodziesma 2006
Eirodziesma 2006 was the seventh edition of Eirodziesma, the music competition that selects Latvia's entries for the Eurovision Song Contest. The competition commenced on 4 February 2006 and concluded with a final on 11 March 2006.Format
The format of the competition consisted of three shows: two semi-finals and a final. The semi-finals took place at LTV studios in Riga and the final took place at the Olympic Centre in Ventspils. The three shows were hosted by Uģis Joksts and Kristīne Pekule. The two semi-finals, held on 4 February and 11 February 2006, each featured ten competing entries from which five were selected to advance to the final from each show. The final, held on 11 March 2006, selected the final winner from the ten qualifiers from the semi-finals.Results during the semi-final shows were determined by a jury and votes from the public. In the semi-finals, the songs first faced a public vote where the top three entries qualified. The jury then selected an additional two qualifiers from the remaining entries to proceed in the competition. In the final, a public vote exclusively determined the winner in two rounds: the first round selected the top three songs and the second round selected the winner.
Competing entries
Artists and songwriters were able to submit their entries to the broadcaster between 20 September 2005 and 22 November 2005. A record number of 93 songs were submitted at the conclusion of the submission period, and an international and local jury panel evaluated the submitted entries and selected 20 entries to compete in the national final. The international jury panel consisted of Ruslana, Arsen Shagiev, Igor Volk, Manolo Dias and Ramūnas Zilnys. The local jury consisted of Walters & Kazha, Toms Grēviņš, Uldis Rudaks, Daiga Mazvērsīte and representatives of LTV. The twenty competing artists and songs were announced on 6 December 2005.| Artist | Song | Composer |
| Amberlife & Anna Polanski | "Day or Night" | Edgaras Lubys |
| Beitiku Gimene | "We Are the Best" | Tomass Kleins, Guntars Račs |
| Cosmos | "I Hear Your Heart" | Andris Sējāns, Reinis Sējāns, Guntars Račs, Molly-Ann Leikin |
| Device feat. Davis Kolbergs | "Love Is Everywhere" | Ruslans Kuksenovičs |
| Ella | "Heaven in Your Eyes" | , Stig Nygard, Tade Borgmästars, Gustav Käld |
| Fidji | "Frozen Flower" | Claes Andreasson, Torbjörn Wassenius, Jonas Liberg |
| Gain Fast | "Last Goodbye" | Danne Attlerud, Thomas Thörnholm, Clas Wrigsel |
| H2O | "You Say That Kissin' Is Good" | Ilze Melne, Jānis Strapcāns |
| Jenny May | "I'm Alone" | Andreas Bartels, Mark Klammek, Nick Marriot |
| Kerija & Santa | "Find You" | Kerija Kalēja, Santa Ozoliņa |
| Marts Kristiāns Kalniņš & Melomania | "Say It Is" | Ojārs Kalniņš, Imants Kalniņš |
| May G | "Roll Down" | Inga Gaile, Maija Gaile |
| Nasty Smile | "Don’t" | Ilze Melne, Jānis Strapcāns |
| Nicol | "Player" | Viktorija Zeļinska |
| Prego | "Feelin" | Ivo Grīsniņš-Grīslis |
| Re:public | "Feel the Engine" | Jānis Rībens |
| Sonja Bishop & Amber | "Later" | Tomass Kleins, Vidar Bostard |
| VIA Meitenes | "Get Out of My Way" | Lauris Reiniks |
| Z-Scars | "Every Mother and Every Child" | Andris Kivičs |
| 2 Pieces of Cake | "Bring the Sun" | Ēriks Bubko |
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 4 February 2006. Five entries qualified to the semi-final. The ten competing entries first faced a public televote where the top three entries qualified. A jury then selected an additional two qualifiers from the remaining entries to proceed in the competition.Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 11 February 2006. Five entries qualified to the semi-final. The ten competing entries first faced a public televote where the top three entries qualified. A jury then selected an additional two qualifiers from the remaining entries to proceed in the competition.Final
The final took place on 11 March 2006. The winner was selected over two rounds of public televoting. In the first round, the top three entries were selected to proceed to the second round: "I Hear Your Heart" performed by Cosmos, "Say It Is" performed by Marts Kristiāns Kalniņš & Melomania and "I'm Alone" performed by Jenny May. In the second round, "I Hear Your Heart" performed by Cosmos was declared the winner.At Eurovision
Latvia automatically qualified for the final due to the 2005 performance of Valters and Kazha. Gimmicks employed by the band on the night included a rudimentary automaton who danced with the group and a heart-shaped helium balloon that was released from one of the singers' pockets at the end.Latvia finished 16th with 30 points. As Latvia failed to reach the top 11 in the final, the country was forced to compete in the semi-final of the 2007 Contest.
Points awarded by Latvia
Semi final
Final
| 12 points | 10 points | 8 points | 7 points | 6 points |
| 5 points | 4 points | 3 points | 2 points | 1 point |