This evening, Georgia has chosen its representative for Eurovision Junior: Mariam Bigvava. She won the national Ranina selection against ten other young artists in total. She will now travel to Yerevan for the 20th edition of the competition.
Mariam, winner of the Ranina national selection show
Ranina has been the mode of selection of Georgia’s representative for Junior Eurovision since 2018. Niko Kajaia, winner of the previous edition, represented Georgia in Paris, with his song “Let’s Count The Smiles” finishing in a superb fourth place with 163 points.
This year, ten artists took part in Ranina. Only four artists were selected for the final of the selection, which started many weeks ago. In addition to Mariam Bigvava, Nikoloz Kharati, Vache Ghviniashvili and Oto Bazerashvili tried to become their country’s representative in Yerevan.
This evening, Mariam rose to the top of the selection jury ranking. Three jury members all voted for their favorite act and gave a total of 120 points to the young artist. They judged four categories: voice, performance, artistry and collaboration. Up to 10 points could be awarded for each category. In the end, Mariam conquered the heart of the juries as they were clearly captivated by her talent.
The 11-year old will release her song later this year. It will be composed with a team of professional musicians.
Georgia at Junior Eurovision
Georgia is today the country to have won the most victories at Eurovision Junior. They manage to win a grand total of three times in 8 years. Having started in 2007, their first victory dates back to 2008 with the group Bzikebi and the song “Bzz”. The second victory dates back to 2011 and “Candy Music” by the eponymous group. Finally, the last victory was in 2016 with Mariam Mamadashvili who sangs “Mzeo”. With a score of 239 points, she was only eleven years old.
Junior Eurovision 2022
In addition to Georgia, only 10 countries have expressed their interest in participating at Junior Eurovision 2022:
- Armenia (host)
- Bulgaria
- Spain
- France
- Ireland
- Kazakhstan
- North Macedonia
- Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
What do you think about Mariam Bigvava? Could the young star bring Georgia a fourth victory? Be 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 follow us on Spotify and YouTube to see our reactions to the news in the run up to the 2022 national final season!
