Eleni Foureira brings summery, swinging pop to Eurovision stage
It is time for Cyprus to step up their game this year in the Eurovision Song Contest. The country’s last top 5 (and top 10) finish dates from 2004 when Lisa Andreas reached the 5th position with her ballad ‘Stronger Every Minute’. For the past three years their entries managed to qualify for the final, but didn’t even reach top 20 on Saturday night. Broadcaster CyBC opted for an internal selection and chose Greek pop star Eleni Foureira with the song ‘Fuego’. Is she going to bring Cyprus some desperately needed Eurovision success?
Foureira attempted to represent Greece at Eurovision a few times, but now ended up representing Cyprus with a song written and produced by Alex P. Alex has written for Eurovision legends Helena Paparizou and Anna Vissi before and did some songs with Polish pop star Margaret. ‘Fuego’ is sonically similar to Margaret’s ‘Cool Me Down’. It swings, brings the summer vibes out with a tropical touch and is catchy as hell. ‘Fuego’ is right on the money with what radio is playing these days and does definitely sound like a potential hit after the contest. The instrumental breakdown has some local instruments added in to make it into a proper Eurovision smash. Moldova finished in top 3 last year with a contemporary pop song like this, so all Eleni Foureira needs now is a memorable and infectious stage show. She does have the star quality to sell this tune well enough to at least top Cyprus’s results of the past three years. Is it original? No. Have we heard this type of track before? Yes. Is it fun nonetheless? Absolutely. What would Eurovision be without these infectious little bops!?
Review of Semi Final Performance:
Miss Eleni Foureira from Cyprus was not one of the favourites to win Eurovision before everyone arrived in Lisbon, but after the rehearsals started, she rose to the very first place with the bookmakers. After seeing her performance, it is easy to understand why. Miss Eleni Foureira is a star! ‘Fuego’ is a hit worthy mix of pop, dance and a little hint of native instruments in the incredibly catchy chorus and post-chorus drop. Eleni and her dancers perform the hell out of it. She is not the strongest vocalist of the contest (and the song does not require her to be) but carries the tune easily. She sure as hell is one of the strongest perfomers though! The choreography is well thought out and she is serving ‘hairography’ and then some! Of course a song called ‘Fuego’ needs some fireworks to top it all off. Ladies and gents, take notes, this is how one does Eurovision!
Review of Final Performance:
The entry from Cyprus this year has all the ingredients for Eurovision success. A catchy pop tune with hit potential and some native instruments? Check! A performer with star power? You bet! Some slick choreography? Sure thing and don’t forget about the completely on point hairography too! Eleni Foureira’s ‘Fuego’ might not have won in the end, but I think it stands a good chance of becoming the biggest hit in Europe. Can we also take a minute to appreciate how Eleni is such a graceful runner-up, immediately praising the winner and saying how happy she is!? Cyprus will definitely be proud of her for reaching the country’s best result ever!
Read our other Eurovision 2018 reviews: ALBANIA – ARMENIA – AUSTRALIA –AUSTRIA – AZERBAIJAN – BELARUS –BELGIUM – BULGARIA – CROATIA – CZECH REPUBLIC – DENMARK – ESTONIA – FINLAND – FRANCE – FYR MACEDONIA – GEORGIA – GERMANY – GREECE – HUNGARY – ICELAND –IRELAND – ISRAEL –ITALY – LATVIA – LITHUANIA –MALTA – MOLDOVA – MONTENEGRO – THE NETHERLANDS – NORWAY – POLAND – PORTUGAL – ROMANIA – RUSSIA – SAN MARINO – SERBIA – SLOVENIA – SPAIN – SWEDEN – SWITZERLAND – UKRAINE – UNITED KINGDOM