My hard is yours. That's the grand message from Norway this year. But how hard is it really? Follow us as we check up on some of the hottest men of Eurovision and give you our hard verdict.
The toughest guy in Eurovision is without a doubt Giorgos Alkaios from Greece. After our rather eh... bleak review of the Greek entry in this years competition, it takes a real man to face the challenge when we put him on the spot and asked him to share his thoughts about Eurovision, music and all the other important things in life.
We have a confession to make. Set aside ringing mobile phones and the over the top exaggarted display of male potency, it's impossible not to get hung up on Giorgos' raw, powerful and explosive performance. Sure, it gives us a bit of a laugh, but in a good way! It just seems to have something madly contagious about it, and whatever it is we think we're already infected. That's why we had to investigate what's behind this kick ass hard surface, and to tell you the truth we became quite surprised by our findings.
It's all about the music
"I am not a competitive person at all. I like music and music has no 'battles'", Giorgos reveals, and there goes our first presumption down the drain. One should think that this man could hardly wait to crush all his competitors like small bugs under his stomping feet.
"The best thing about the Eurovision Song Contest is the great opportunity given to meet with other musicians and producers from all over the world and make new friends who share the one and only passion- music! This is why I love this year's motto 'Share the moment'. It is a unique moment and we are very lucky to live and share it”, Giorgos continues.
Well hello there, making new friends, we like the sound of that, and through music is indeed a great way to connect. GEE will be the first to admit that his song sounded all Greek to us in the beginning, but we totally get the point when Giorgos explains the message he wishes to communicate. It's about motivating people to surpass problems, forget about the past and have a positive outlook for the future. A message which probably spoke right to the heart and soul of the nowadays troubled Greeks who gave him the chance to represent his country in Oslo this year. And when the going gets tough, the tough gets going, like the Greeks rose to the occasion when Athens hosted ESC in 2006, one of the most successful organizations ever, according to Giorgos.
And there certainly is a chance that our Opa man will bring the ESC games back to Greece, which should be interesting. We're thinking candle lit stage with unplugged performances of all the entries in an open air square beneath the Acropolis. Giorgos is the man behind the hit "Opa, Opa" (why aren't we surprised by this?) which kick started the duo Antique's career. Antique did later move on to reach third place for Greece in ESC back in 2001, and half of this duo is Helena Paparizou whom we all know very well by now. Safe to say, this year's Greek contestant sure knows how to lure the crowd on to the dance floor.
Get ready to OPA!
There's no doubt that this man lives and breaths for music, and he tells us that inspiration can be drawn from every situation in life. "Inspiration might come even when I am stuck in traffic jam, inspiration has no time, no place or no borders", he says. To us, someone who is as passionate about his work is truly inspirational. And the staying true to his roots gives us the oh so beloved ethnic fix which we badly miss from many of Greece's ESC competitors this year.
It seems like music takes up so much of his time that he just hasn't gotten around to quite settle down yet. He tells us that he's still searching for the ideal partner and destiny will decide when that happens. So don't let it be all work and no play in Oslo, we'd say!
And Giorgos goal in ESC is quite simple, he wish everybody to say "OPA!". No worries there, darling, you had us at O. And if you think you've seen all of him already, think again. Along with his four sizzling hot dancers and the exceptional lyre player Lazos Ioannidis (note to self, presumed baseball bat appears to be the musical instrument lyre), he's planning to conquer Europe from the stage in Telenor Arena with a great surprise. Woha, we can hardly wait!
Our hard verdict:
Yup, we're infected with the Opa bug, and there ain't no cure for real passion. Plus since we certainly have a soft spot for men feeling so passionate about what they do, that's hard stuff in our book. And nothing is more intriguing than a man of many layers and different shades. We love the shady side, being all tough and dangerous on stage, as well as the shiny, bright side spreading joy and making friends trough the common language of music.
Minus for having rather dull hobbies besides music, like playing soccer and going to the beach, but that's probably just us being jealous thinking about Giorgos lounging by the pool in sunny Greece while we are stuck in a freakin blizzard in the cold north. And not many points to score for having Celine Dion and Johnny Logan as ESC favorites. Say no more...
Giorgos sure is a worthy contender in our little Mr Eurovision pageant 2010, and he almost won us completely over by his finishing remark. "I need you to know that My Heart is Yours!!" That's a hard one to resist, we'll see you at the parties in Oslo, honey!
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