Over the past few months, 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, another well-known Greek singer has expressed her interest.
Melina Makri, best known as the former front woman of the popular Greek band Vegas, who had a number of hits such as “Πιο Ψηλα”, “Όσα είχα” and “Φιλί”. After years of success with the band, she decided to go solo in 2016, releasing a number of singles under her own name. She is also hugely successful as a songwriter and has written for a number of other artists.
In an interview with Eurovision Fun, she revealed that she is a long-term fan of the contest.
I have been watching the contest since I was little…! It does not take long for me to see it and listen to all the songs that participate! Quite often my predictions are the viewers’ favourite entries! They are usually the songs that catch the pulse of the time or touch people beyond nationalities and borders with their melodies!
Melina Makri to Eurovision Fun
In addition, she revealed that she would love to compete, and has some ‘Eurovision-ready’ songs up her sleeve already. However, should she be invited to participate, she would write a some custom for the contest.
There are songs ready in my ‘drawer’, but I think that in order to get to the point of proposing it, I have to believe 100% in its meaning, in its appropriateness and in its melody. A song intended for Eurovision has special requirements. For me it is not just a recipe you follow. So I would not just take a song from my drawer for this purpose, but I would write something from scratch
Melina Makri to Eurovision Fun
‘Exploratory discussions’ began last month
However, they did not begin negotiations with singers and labels until last month. As we’ve seen from Panik Records with Eleni Foureira and Minos EMI/Universal with Tamta, record 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” in 1982, Hara & Andreas Constantinou’s “Mana mou” in 1997 and Lisa Andreas’ “Stronger Every Minute” in 2004.
While Cyprus secured seven top 11 finishes in the 1990s, the nation’s form dipped as the contest entered its 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 three qualifications, Eleni Foureira brought them to second place for the first time with the iconic “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 the first semi-final of the 2020 contest, which was ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Would you like to see Melina represent Cyprus? Who else do you hope CyBC is considering? Let us know! 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 subscribe to our YouTube channel to see our reactions to the over the coming months.
