The Cypriot broadcaster CyBC announced the female artist and song a few weeks ago, ending weeks of speculation.
Tamta will sing ‘Replay‘, a pop-dance, up-tempo number. Her entry is penned by Greek-Swedish hitmaker Alex Papaconstantiou, aka ‘Alex P‘, the man behind Eleni Fouriera’s ‘Fuego’ – the impressive runners-up from last year, along with Sweden-based songwriters Teddy Skye, Viktor Svensson, Kristoffer “Bonn” Fogelmark and Albin Nedler.
Tamta, 38, was born and raised in Georgia, where she started singing at the age of five and moved to Greece at the age of 20. After singing on a TV reality talent contest, she was signed by a major record label in Greece and has a back catalog of several hits.
The sure-fire Eurovision track is believed to be exactly moulded for Tamta’s signature pop-style credentials.
CyBC chiefs felt that Tamta was right for this year’s contest as she is perceived earnestly to have the “complete package” that comprises of a strong ‘live’ singer and entertaining act.
The Cypriot tune will be officially released in February or March, further maximising Eurovision fans excitement.
Cyprus also returns with Eurovision artistic stage director Sacha Jean-Baptise, the woman behind ‘Fuego’. She will be tasked with elevating Tamta’s stage routine ensuring that it will translate into points on the scoreboard.
The Head of the Cypriot delegation, Evi Papamichael explained that a big named artist would be a necessary solution to answer the Eurovision’s competitiveness, amidst so many countries, which numbers 42 this year. She said that Tamta was the broadcaster’s preference this year.
Tamta has had a long-time quest to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest and almost came close to achieving it on previous occasions. In 2007 Tamta was pipped to the post by Cypriot singer Sarbel, in Greece’s Eurovision heat stages, with the ballad ‘With Love’. In 2016, she missed the deadline for the Greek selection process by a few hours with the subsequently-released track ‘Unloved’.
Tamta felt it an incredible honour to be representing Cyprus, a nation which has always strongly supported her music endeavours and undertaking this bold task, was a way of her giving something back to her Cypriot fan-base.
Having released four studio albums (including a Best Of) and multiple hit singles, Tamta is frequently heard on the LGR airwaves.
For all of your Eurovision news on Cyprus, make sure you regularly check back to lgr.co.uk and tune in to hear “Replay” on LGR in the coming weeks.
London Greek Radio wish Tamta and the Cypriot delegation the very best of luck in the competition.
