Birthe Kjær (born 1 September 1948) is a Danish singer. She finished second at the
Dansk Melodi Grand Prix
Dansk Melodi Grand Prix (), also known as Melodi Grand Prix or simply DMGP, is an annual music competition organised by the Danish public broadcaster DR since 1957, which determines for the Eurovision Song Contest. The festival has produced ...
in 1980, 1986 and 1987, before winning in 1989, and went on to finish third at the
1989 Eurovision Song Contest in Lausanne. She also finished third at the Dansk Melodi Grand Prix in 1991.
Career
Born in
Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...
,
Kjær began her career in the late 1960s.
She had made previous bids to represent Denmark in the
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...
, finishing second in 1980, 1986 and 1987, before being chosen in 1989 with the cabaret-style song "
Vi maler byen rød" (We paint the town red).
Her performance in
Lausanne
Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...
earned the song a third-place finish.
She hosted the Danish national contest in 1990, before attempting to represent Denmark again in 1991, finishing third at that years Dansk Melodi Grand Prix with "Din musik, min musik".
In June 2004, her single with
Safri Duo
Safri Duo is a Danish electronic percussion duo composed of Uffe Savery (born 5 April 1966) and Morten Friis (born 21 August 1968). Initially classically oriented, they later made a track mixing both tribal sound and modern electronica. Releas ...
"Hvor' vi fra?" (the
Denmark national football team
The Denmark national football team ( or ''herrelandsholdet'') represents Denmark and Greenland in men's international Association football, football competitions. It is controlled by the Danish Football Association (DBU), the governing body for ...
's anthem for the
2004 UEFA European Football Championship) achieved a gold record with 4,900 copies sold.
In Autumn 2005, she took part in the second season of the Danish ''
Dancing with the Stars
''Strictly Come Dancing (widely known as Dancing with the Stars)'' is an international television franchise based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing,'' itself a successor to the show ''Come Dancing'' (1950–1998) ...
'' (''"Vild med dans"''), but she withdrew following a heart attack.
On 31 January 2009, Kjær hosted the Danish final to pick the 2009 Danish entry for the Eurovision Song Contest.
Discography
Albums
Filmography
*1973: ''Revykøbing kalder''
*1988: ''Jydekompagniet''
*2000: ''Max''
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kjaer, Birthe
1948 births
Living people
20th-century Danish women singers
Dansk Melodi Grand Prix winners
Singers from Aarhus
21st-century Danish women singers
Eurovision Song Contest entrants