Re: ???????? - Armenia 2010
Armenia: Maria Kizirian (NF 2010) speaks to ESCDAILY.com
Maria Kizirian (NF 2010) speaks to ESCDAILY.com
Escdaily.com had the wonderful opportunity to speak with Maria Kizirian who will take part in the upcoming Armenian National Final on February the 14th.
Maria Kizirian will sing “Little Red Riding Hood” in the Armenian National Final. The song is described as “a modern story of a girl who falls for the wolf in sheep’s clothing“. She says that “nothing would give me greater pleasure than to raise the Armenian flag in Oslo, and bring the Eurovision finals to Yerevan in 2011!!!!!!”
Check out what she had to say below;
.
ESCDAILY.com: First, congratulations on making the top 10 of Armenia. How does it feel?
Maria: It feels AMAZING! Though a part of me can’t believe it; it still doesn’t feel completely real -- it’s like I’m living in a dream. I don’t think it will feel real until maybe once I arrive in Yerevan in the wee hours of the 10th!
ESCDAILY.com: For those not familiar with you and your music, tell us a bit about yourself, your interests and how you got started in music.
Maria: I was born in Arctic Finland, in a town at the border of Finland and Sweden. My parents moved us to America when I was 3. I grew up in a musical household. My father is a well known musician in Finland, and my whole family is actually quite musical. I started playing violin at age 4. I also started learning piano at 8, and now I play a whole bunch of other instruments and produce my music myself. My parents had high hopes for me as a violinist, as I was very good early on. But my interests shifted to pop and rock music.
I got signed at EMI Music Finland shortly after high school. I married my Armenian-American husband Paul at a very young age, and since I had grown up in the US, it was an easy decision for us to move to America. It is always difficult to leave the Major Label machine to continue as an indie artist in California, but I found ways to make waves with my music.
ESCDAILY.com: What made you decide to send your song to Armenia instead of perhaps your home country Finland?
Maria: It was Paul’s idea. We had been proud of Armenia’s success in the last few years they have been part of Eurovision. What people don’t realize by looking at the surface -- my being Finnish -- is that I actually live a very Armenian lifestyle here in Los Angeles. The family I associate with most is the Armenian side of the family: Paul’s parents and brothers, as well as his cousins. Family is very important to Armenians, they really stick together, often more than even regular American families.
Finland has a very long process for finding out their Eurovision Finals’ winner. Even if they had included me in that process, life’s realities would have actually made it very difficult to travel between Finland and LA for their many shows. We wouldn’t have known if we made it into the finals before buying tickets, for example -- and if we didn’t make it into the finals -- we would be in Finland away from school and work for basically “nothing.” Besides, in my opinion, (I don’t mean to offend here) the risk for a poor choice is higher in Finland when they do this. I think that the best song they had this year -- out of all 40 or so songs made public -- was left out of the finals.
But also in Armenia: my father-in-law is a pastor, and his church does humanitarian work in Armenia. He owns a building in Yerevan, which used to house the Armenian Gospel Mission. Paul’s father’s church trust fund sponsors orphanages, schools, etc. He travels to Armenia all the time, and he is actually heading there right now for the Finals!
Paul is on the board of his dad’s organization. We have always had the desire to come see the work that the family is doing in Armenia first hand. We are raising our own children in a heavily Armenian culture here in LA, and I have often wanted to take them to see Armenia itself; also in the LA area, if your name ends in IAN, you are an Armenian family, no question! I am considered Armenian here
.
ESCDAILY.com: What is the concept behind you National Final entry “Little Red Riding Hood”?
Maria: It is a modernized fable -- using a play on words to describe what most women experience when dating… before they find their knight in shining armor!
ESCDAILY.com: Have you finalized the stage show yet? What can we expect on the night?
Maria: I have been working with an LA dance studio owner Lusine “Luna” Vagarshakian, who has expressed her belief in me and my song. I don’t want to reveal much about the show beforehand, but let’s just say that I will sing my heart out! For the rest, you need to just hang tight and watch the show!
ESCDAILY.com: If you are successful in the National Final, how would it feel to represent Armenia and then perform on Europe’s biggest music stage?
Maria: It will be an amazing honor. I will be SO proud to represent the Armenian people! I actually think that being European I have a unique opportunity to speak about Armenia and tell European people about Armenia’s proud history (and gorgeous people) in a way that I wouldn’t be able to if I were a native Armenian. In my experience, Europeans do not know much about Armenia, but they should!
Performing on such a huge stage will also be a thrill. There are not many occasions where artists are able to perform in front of hundreds of millions of people. It absolutely would be a once in a lifetime kind of experience!
ESCDAILY.com: Do you watch Eurovision? If so, what are your favourite entries?
Maria: Of course I watch Eurovision! For this year, I won’t say my #1 favorite, because this person hasn’t won their national final yet and I think this person will be the most serious contender of all Eurovision this year… but if I also win Armenia, I am prepared to give them a run for their money too, don’t get me wrong! haha
But I do like another Finalist in Iceland, as well as in Norway. Looks like Scandinavia has upped their game these last couple of years! They have current, well crafted and performed songs that don’t sound too “Eurovision.” I think the surprises are always what make Eurovision so exciting and you never know what viewers are feeling like voting for each year. I am interested in finding out who is going to represent Sweden…
ESCDAILY.com: Do you have a message for the escdaily.com readers?
Maria: You guys are the truest of Eurovision fans, and it’s great that you pay attention to everything that goes on in the National Finals and in the down time before the actual Eurovision. You are thought provoking, often mercilessly poignant and critical, but without you, the show wouldn’t be the same. So, I REALLY hope you like my song, and if I win Armenia, you would rally behind me and vote!
Thank you for your support, those of you who already like my song. It means more to me than you know. XOXO
Escdaily.com would like to thank Maria for her time and wish her the best in the Armenian National Final!
http://escdaily.com/news/4299/
1 
