Ukraine’s hope for the Eurovision Song Contest in Dusseldorf rested on a 25-year-old blonde with a baby face who sings the song “Angel.”
After a scandal-tainted vote in February, which seems to be a permanent feature of Eurovision selection rounds in Ukraine, Mika Newton departed for Germany hoping to make it to the May 12 semifinals.
Newton’s real name is Oksana Hrytsai. Born in the little town of Burshtyn in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, she started singing and taking piano lessons from the age of nine.
Her first producer was her father – an amateur guitar player. Her second manager became a seasoned professional, Yuriy Falyosa.
He discovered one of Ukraine’s best voices Ani Lorak, also a Eurovision participant in 2008.
Falyosa spotted Hrytsai in 2002 at the Black Sea Games singing contest and took her under his wing. Since then she died her natural dark hair blonde and took a pseudonym.
Her first name, Mika, is a derivative from Mick Jagger’s first name and Newton stands for a new tone.
On the eve of the contest in Germany, international bookmakers, however, doubted the novelty of the Ukrainian entrant who ranked 27th among 43 contestants. But Newton was adamant about her chances for success.
“We watched other performances and you can tell that everyone was nervous, missing beats at times. But people vote for those who radiate positive emotions,” she said before leaving for Dusseldorf.
Mika Newton (L) rehearses her song ‘Angel’ together with sand artist Kseniya Simonova. (AP)
Apart from bookmakers, some Ukrainians who followed Newton’s thorny path to victory in primary selections also remain skeptical.
Many argue that Jamala – an unusual jazz singer, whose dazzling performances and songs in English made her a celebrity in Ukraine in less than two years – should have represented Ukraine.
When it transpired that many votes in favor of Newton were cast by the same people, Jamala’s fans demanded a re-count, but their hot favorite refused to partake in the brawl.
Scandals are probably what make Eurovision tick for many viewers. Selections are mired in corruption, as was the case with Alyosha last year and Svitlana Loboda the year before.
One contestant, singer Anastasia Prikhodko, went as far as switching sides and singing for Russia in 2008 when Loboda got the lead.
Apart from rows, all Eurovision candidates complain about the great cost of participation, which Ukraine has no budget to cover. Newtone said she’d have to pay nearly half a million dollars for all preparations.
While she wouldn’t reveal the source of her funding, she fondly mentioned her new manager, Tymofiy Nahorny.
The ex-husband of Olympic gymnast Liliya Podkopaeva, Nahorny met Newtone two years ago and helped her win Eurovision rounds with the song “Angel.”
Performing in Dusseldorf on May 12 and then on May 14 if she qualifies, Newton will wear her already famous, angel-like dress, which weighs some 40 kilos.
Ukrainian sand artist Kseniya Simonova will help her drawing a picture on the sand in the background.
Tune in for the live broadcast on May 14 at 10 p.m. on Ukraine’s First National Channel.
Kyiv Post staff writers Kateryna Panova and Nataliya Horban can be reached at [email protected] and [email protected]
