All entries in the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest are known, but the actual contest is still about a month away. As a warm-up, we introduce one of the entries every day in random order. Part thirty-three is dedicated to the entry from Belarus.
Basic information
Performer: | Petr Elfimov (���� Ял��ма�) |
Song: | Eyes that never lie |
Language: | English |
Music: | Petr Elfimov |
Lyrics: | Valery Prokhozhy |
Draw: | 4th in the first semi final |
The song
Eyes that never lie is a mid-tempo rock song with pop elements.Through the lyrics, the singer sings a beloved person's praise:
You chased sorrow away
You changed night into day
You cured all of my pain
With your eyes that never lie
All my life I waited
Thinking I would never fly
Then you looked and saw my wings
With your eyes that never lie
The singer
Petr Elfimov was born in 1980 to afamily of musicians as his mother is a famous conductor and his father is a singer in a choir. His own stage debut came at the young age of six. In the late 1990s, he founded his first band Egoist and in 2004, he won the first prize in the Popular Song Contest of Vitebsk. He also competed in other music contests all around Europe. Over those years, he attended various music schools and he graduated from the Belarusian State Music Academy in 2005. He has been a pop vocal coach since and currently he is working on his master degree.
In 2004,Petr Elfimovwas a backing singer for Belarus in theEurovisionSong Contest. However, Alexandra & Konstantin did not makeit to the final on the country's debut. In 2009, he entered the Belarusian national selection as a soloist and could win with Eyes that never lie. He is the third malesolo performer representing Belarus ina row and he maintains the country's tradition of singing in English atthe competition.
The national selection
The Belarusian selection was turned upside down this year. Although there was a semi final and a final again, this time the semi final qualifiers were chosen by the jury and the eventual winner was chosen by televoting. Petr Elfimov was the clear winner of the national final with 11,475 votest ahead of Gunesh, who finished second with 7,949 votes.
Belarus in the Eurovision Song Contest
Belarus entered the Eurovision Song Contest in 2004 and was not very successful at the beginning being eliminated in the semi final on its first three attempts. However, it changed in 2007 Koldun qualified for the final and finished sixth overall. In 2008, the country did not make it to the final again.
�� жадаем �ела���i i ����� Ял�iмав� ���го найлеп�ага i доб�ага ��з�л��а�� � �а�кве!
�� желаем �е��� �л�имов� �да�и и �о�о�его �ез�л��а�а в �о�кве!
Videos
Petr Elfimov speaks to esctoday.com:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54pNNU_112w&ap=%2526fmt%3D18&rel=0
National final performance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1Unix2wUN0&ap=%2526fmt%3D18&rel=0
Preview version of the national final performance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFJE9D7Fs9M&ap=%2526fmt%3D18&rel=0
Backing singer for Belarus in 2004 (at 2:08):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvPKwZ4Mz1A&ap=%2526fmt%3D18&rel=0
Other parts of this series
- France
- Portugal
- Romania
- Denmark
- Netherlands
- Cyprus
- Latvia
- Ireland
- Malta
- Armenia
- Germany
- Serbia
- Belgium
- Greece
- Croatia
- Poland
- Czech Republic
- Iceland
- Moldova
- Switzerland
- Slovenia
- Andorra
- Ukraine
- Spain
- Sweden
- Montenegro
- Finland
- Lithuania
- Russia
- Turkey
- Azerbaijan
- Bulgaria
Tomorrow, we will take a look at the Norwegian entry.