Rotterdam 2021🇨🇾 Cyprus

🇨🇾 Katerina Stikoudi and Irini Papadopoulou among the frontrunners to represent Cyprus in 2021?

RIK are due to make a decision on their artist in the coming months

Recently, the search for the Cypriot act for Eurovision 2021 has been one of the hottest topics of the pre-season. CyBC are one of the few broadcasters to be internally-selecting a new artist. As a result, they’ve seen an unprecedented level of interest from big names in the Greek music scene. Now, more details of the ongoing discussions have been revealed on Cypriot TV

As reported by Eurovision Fun, a segment on the Omega show Ela Na Deis, has disclosed an update on RIK’s selection process for Eurovision 2021. According to presenter Alexandros Taramountas, Katerina Stikoudi and Irini Papadopoulou are among the main names in play. Both had been speculated previously over the past few months. Also, both have been rumoured to be on shortlists for both Greece and Cyprus in past years. Although, these are not the only two artists in contention.

Alexandros believes that the broadcaster are looking to select yet another dance entry for the 2021 contest. If that’s the case, the two artists mention make perfect sense!

Importantly, RIK has claimed that neither artist has been approached directly with an offer as yet, nor has any act. However, it is still clear that RIK are keen to get a well-known name for the 2021 contest. Notably, both Katerina and Irini have had big hits in Greece and Cyprus over the past year.

Song before artist?

Although much of the emphasis from the rumour mill has fixated on the artist, it may well be the song that is the most important component. While no artist has been approached directly, the source confirmed that the broadcaster is opting for a song-first approach.

Notably, RIK stated that in its negotiations with labels, they will hear songs in the possession of labels first. They will then match the artist that suits the song best. This was the method used for both “Fuego” (2018) and “Replay” (2019), where the artists was selected based on their suitability to an entry approved by the broadcaster.

Of course, we will take this information with a pinch of salt and continue to keep an eye out for developments over the course of Autumn.

Exploratory discussions’ began last month

As previously mentioned, CyBC are pleased to see the uptake in interest from so many well known artists from the Greek music scene. 

However, they did not begin negotiations with singers and labels until last month. As we’ve seen from Panik Records (Eleni Foureira) and Minos EMI/Universal (Tamta), label backing is an important component for the Cypriot representative at Eurovision

RIK has accepted proposals from both artists and composers and will not take hasty action but will proceed rationally in order to make the best possible choice.

Spokesperson from RIK in July

As of July, it was stated that CyBC were aiming to publicly announce the artist/act in November. Following that, the song, clip and stage concept will be developed.

Cyprus at the Eurovision Song Contest

Cyprus made their Eurovision Song Contest debut 37 years ago, back in 1981. The island nation has participated in every contest since, with the exception of 1988, 2001 and 2014. Prior to 2018, Cyprus’ best results had come in the form of three fifth place finishes. These came courtesy of Anna Vissi’s “Mono i agapi” (1982), Hara & Andreas Constantinou’s “Mana you” (1997) and Lisa Andreas’ “Stronger Every Minute” (2004).

While Cyprus secured seven top 11 finishes in the 1990s, their form dipped during the semi-final era. Cyprus failed to qualify in six out of eight occasions between 2006 and 2013, withdrawing in 2014 for financial reasons.

In 2018, following a string of qualifications, Eleni Foureira brought them to second place for the first time with “Fuego”. The following year, Tamta brought them their fifth consecutive qualification with “Replay”. 

In 2020, CyBC selected ‘Sandro’ to represent Cyprus at the Eurovision Song Contest, with the song “Running”. Sandro was set to perform 13th in semi-final one of the 2020 contest, which was ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Who are you hoping will represent Cyprus next year? Let us knowBe sure to stay updated by following @ESCXTRA on Twitter@escxtra on Instagram and liking our Facebook page for the latest updates! Also, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to see our reactions to the over the coming months.

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