Russia scoops Eurovision victory
Russian singer Dima Bilan has won this
year’s Eurovision Song Contest.
Bilan is one of Russia’s biggest pop stars and his heartfelt ballad
Believe, produced by US R&B star Timbaland, gave Russia its first ever
Eurovision win.
Ukraine’s Ani Lorak came second, followed by Greece with upbeat pop
song Secret Combination by Kalomira.
But British talent show runner-up Andy Abraham came joint last with his
song Even If, gaining just 14 points, the same as Germany and Poland.
Before the voting, Terry Wogan, who was commentating for the BBC, said
Abraham was "our best entry for years", adding: "He deserves to do
well with that."
But the former X Factor contestant only received points from San
Marino – who were taking part for the first time – and Ireland.
Dimar Bilan won with a stage show that included Olympic figure skating
champion Evgeni Plushenko performing on a small ice circle.
Bilan is a well-known performer throughout Russia and beyond, having
been named best artist at the country’s MTV Awards for the past three
years in a row. He took part in Eurovision in 2006, finishing second
behind Finnish rock monsters Lordi.
He has recorded an album in English with Timbaland, including a duet
with Canadian singer Nelly Furtado, and hopes to use it to break into
the international market later this year.
EUROVISION TOP FIVE
1. Russia : 272 points
2. Ukraine : 230
3. Greece : 218
4. Armenia : 199
5. Norway : 182
This year’s other entrants included Latvian pirates, a Finnish heavy
rock group, a 75-year-old Croatian rapper and French dance musician
Sebastian Tellier, who has worked with Daft Punk and Air.
Swedish singer Charlotte Perrelli, who won the event in 1999, was
another hot tip and was picked as the winner in a Europe-wide BBC poll
before the event.
But she failed to become the first female singer to win the contest
twice. The show was opened in front of 20,000 fans at the Belgrade
Arena by last year’s winner Marija Serifovic.
The 20 countries that came through the semi-finals joined hosts Serbia
plus the UK, France, Germany and Spain – the contest’s four biggest
backers.
Story from BBC NEWS:
ainment/7417527.stm
Published: 2008/05/24 22:39:48 GMT
© BBC MMVIII
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress