Back in March, Manizha released the revamp of her Eurovision 2021 entry “Russian Woman”. Having previously given hints about her costume, she has now teased what we can expect from her staging, which will be different from the national final performance.
Speaking to Tele Programma, Manizha has teased the changes have been made to her staging of “Russian Woman”. While she only had a short window to put the song and performance together for the national final, her Rotterdam staging will be different.
We do not complicate it, but we make it even more mobile, more positive. There will be new elements in my performance that will take my breath away.
However, like her national final staging, she will be joined by a set of backing singers. It was also previously revealed that her costume has been made using fabric scraps from all regions of Russia.
The exact details of her staging will be revealed during her first rehearsal in Rotterdam on Saturday (May 8). She is due to perform 3rd in the first semi-final on May 18.
About Manizha
Manizha was born in 1991 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. She and her family fled the Tajikistani civil war in 1994 to settle in Moscow. She began her career as a child singer, eventually performing in the Ru.Kola project and as part of music groups Assai and Krip De Shin. Following these stints, she went on to study gospel music in both London and New York City.
She began her solo career in 2016 by releasing a string of singles as an independent artist. In addition, she has released two albums, Manuscript and ЯIAM in 2017 and 2018, respectively. In 2019, she released her EP Womanizha.
As reflected in the lyrics of “Russian Woman”, Manizha identifies as a feminist and is a supporter of LGBTQ+ rights. This, her Muslim background and Tajikistani heritage have attracted online abuse via her social media channels, and, ultimately, international press coverage.
In a three-way 100% public voting format, Manizha won with 39.7% of the public vote. You can watch her national final performance below:
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