Cleopatra (Samira Efendi song)

Last updated
"Cleopatra"
Samira Efendi - Cleopatra.png
Single by Samira Efendi
Released10 March 2020 (2020-03-10)
Length3:00
Label BMF
Songwriter(s)
  • Luuk van Beers
  • Alan Roy Scott
  • Sarah Lake
Producer(s)
  • Luuk van Beers
  • Tony Cornelissen
Samira Efendi singles chronology
"Yol Ayrıcı"
(2019)
"Cleopatra"
(2020)
"Mata Hari"
(2021)
Eurovision Song Contest 2020 entry
Country
Artist(s)
Languages
Composer(s)
  • Luuk van Beers
  • Alan Roy Scott
  • Sarah Lake
Lyricist(s)
  • Luuk van Beers
  • Alan Roy Scott
  • Sarah Lake
Finals performance
Semi-final result
Contest cancelled
Entry chronology
◄ "Truth" (2019)
"Mata Hari" (2021) ►

"Cleopatra" is a song recorded by Azerbaijani singer Samira Efendi. It would have represented Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 [1] if the 2020 contest was not cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. [2] The song was written by Luuk van Beers, Alan Roy Scott and Sarah Lake, [3] and employs the refrain "Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō", which is a central mantra of Nichiren Buddhism.

Contents

Background

The song was originally written at Las Negras camps in Spain, by Sarah Lake, Alan Roy Scott and Luuk Van Beers, under the guidance and A & R direction of former UK, BBC, Music Consultant, Greig Watts. [4] Once the final demo was complete, Publishers, Greig Watts from Dwb Music and Kevin Lee, from Wii Bii Music, engaged in finding the perfect home for the song. The track was originally submitted to San Marino RTV and a demo was recorded by Senhit, [5] but the composers withdrew the song from the Sammarinese selection.

Once it was agreed that the song would be Azerbaijan's Eurovision entry, Tony Cornellisen and Luuk Van Beers travelled to Baku, to record Efendi, and produce the final version of the track. [6]

The song features three traditional Azerbaijani instruments, an oud, a balaban and a tar. When talking about the song, Efendi said, "Cleopatra is a song about trusting your gut instinct, standing up for yourself and being a “queen” - even when things get tough and especially if someone betrays or hurts you. It is truly a song about freedom." [1]

The song earned widespread praise amongst fans for the lyric "Cleopatra was a queen like me/Straight or Gay or in between", despite LGBT rights being a taboo subject in Azerbaijan. [7]

Eurovision Song Contest

The song was due to represent Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, after Samira Efendi was internally selected by the Azerbaijani broadcaster, İctimai Television (İTV), and was going to be performed in one of the two semi-finals. On 28 January 2020, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, as well as which half of the show they would perform in. Azerbaijan was placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 12 May 2020, and was scheduled to perform in the second half of the show. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Contest was cancelled. [8]

Music video

A music video to accompany the release of "Cleopatra" was first released onto YouTube on 10 March 2020. [9] The music video was filmed in Azerbaijan at the Gobustan National Park. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest</span>

Azerbaijan has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 16 times since making its debut in 2008. The Azerbaijani participant broadcaster in the contest is İctimai Televiziya (İTV). Azerbaijan was the last country in the Caucasus to debut in the contest and the first to win.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Marino in the Eurovision Song Contest</span>

San Marino has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 14 times, debuting in the 2008 contest, followed by participation from 2011 onward. The Sammarinese participant broadcaster in the contest is Radiotelevisione della Repubblica di San Marino (SMRTV). San Marino did not participate in 2009 or 2010, with SMRTV citing financial difficulties as the reason for its withdrawal. Having failed to qualify in their first four attempts, the nation qualified for the contest's final for the first time in 2014. Valentina Monetta represented San Marino in 2012, 2013, and 2014, making her the first entrant to participate in three consecutive contests since the 1960s. In 2019, Serhat managed to qualify to the final, marking the second appearance of the country in a Eurovision final and achieving their best result to date of 19th place. Following the 2020 contest's cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, their 2020 candidate Senhit was again selected to represent San Marino in the following contest. She qualified to the final, making it the first time that San Marino made it to two consecutive finals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armenia–Azerbaijan relations in the Eurovision Song Contest</span> Bilateral relations

Armenia has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest, a pan-European music competition, since 2006, while Azerbaijan has participated since 2008. The conflict between the two countries over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, which is considered to be a de jure part of Azerbaijan by the United Nations, but had been wholly or partially under control of the Armenia-backed de facto Republic of Artsakh between 1993 and 2023, has affected the Eurovision Song Contest on several occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Senhit (singer)</span> Italian singer

Senhit Zadik Zadik, known professionally as simply Senhit, is an Italian pop singer. She represented San Marino in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Düsseldorf with "Stand By", but failed to qualify for the final. She would have represented it again in 2020 with "Freaky!", before the contest was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, she was chosen to represent San Marino at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song "Adrenalina", where she qualified to the final and placed 22nd with 50 points.

Albania participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku, Azerbaijan, with the song "Suus" performed by Rona Nishliu. Its selected entry was chosen through the national selection competition Festivali i Këngës organised by Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) in December 2011. To this point, the nation had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest eight times since its first entry in 2004. Prior to the contest, the song was promoted by a music video and live performances in Cyprus, Hungary, Montenegro, Romania and the Netherlands.

Azerbaijan participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Truth" written by Borislav Milanov, Trey Campbell, Joacim Persson, Pablo Dinero and Hostess. The song was performed by Chingiz, who was internally selected by the Azerbaijani broadcaster İctimai Television (İTV) in March 2019 to represent the nation at the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel. Songwriter Trey Campbell represented Bulgaria in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 as part of the group Equinox with the song "Bones" where they placed fourteenth in the grand final of the competition. The song "Truth" was presented to the public on 8 March 2019.

San Marino planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, which was scheduled to be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Italian singer Senhit was chosen to represent the nation with her song "Freaky!". Sammarinese broadcaster San Marino RTV (SMRTV) internally selected the singer, while her song was selected through a national final entitled Digital Battle. Senhit previously represented San Marino in the 2011 contest, but failed to qualify for the final. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe during 2020, the Eurovision Song Contest was cancelled in mid-March 2020. "Freaky!" was subsequently an entry for several replacement events including Eurovision: Europe Shine a Light, Der kleine Song Contest and Sveriges 12:a. Senhit announced during the former of the three that she would return to represent the nation at the 2021 contest the following year.

Ireland originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Story of My Life", performed by Lesley Roy and written by herself, Catt Gravitt, Robert Marvin, and Tom Shapiro. The song and the singer were internally selected on 5 March 2020 by the Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) to represent the nation at the 2020 contest in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the contest was cancelled.

The United Kingdom originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "My Last Breath" written by James Newman, Ed Drewett, Adam Argyle and Iain James. The song was performed by James Newman, who was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2020 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Newman and "My Last Breath" was announced as the British entry on 27 February 2020.

Azerbaijan originally planned to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Cleopatra" written by Luuk van Beers, Alan Roy Scott and Sarah Lake. The song was performed by Efendi, who was internally selected by the Azerbaijani broadcaster İctimai Television (İTV) to represent the nation at the 2020 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Efendi's selection as the Azerbaijani Eurovision entrant was announced on 28 February 2020, while the song "Cleopatra" was presented to the public on 10 March.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eurovision Song Contest 2021</span> International song competition

The Eurovision Song Contest 2021 was the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, following the country's win at the 2019 contest with the song "Arcade" by Duncan Laurence. The Netherlands was set to host the 2020 contest, before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcasters Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (NPO), Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) and AVROTROS, the contest was held at Rotterdam Ahoy, and consisted of two semi-finals on 18 and 20 May, and a final on 22 May 2021. The three live shows were presented by Dutch television presenters and singers Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit, and Dutch YouTuber and make-up artist Nikkie de Jager.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Dolic</span> Slovenian singer (born 1997)

Benjamin Dolić, known professionally as Ben Dolic, is a Slovenian singer. He gained popularity in Germany after his participation in the eighth season of The Voice of Germany. Dolic would have represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 held in Rotterdam with the song "Violent Thing" before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Samira Azer gizi Efendiyeva, known as Samira Efendi or Efendi, is an Azerbaijani singer. She represented Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song "Mata Hari".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uno (Little Big song)</span> 2020 single by Little Big

"Uno" is a Spanglish language song recorded by Russian rave group Little Big. It was due to represent Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 before its cancellation. The song was released as a digital download and for streaming on 13 March 2020.

San Marino participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The Sammarinese broadcaster San Marino RTV (SMRTV) internally selected Senhit as their representative with the song "Adrenalina" featuring Flo Rida. Senhit was due to compete in the 2020 contest with "Freaky!" before the event's eventual cancellation and had also served as the nation's 2011 entrant. "Adrenalina" was written and composed by Thomas Stengaard, Joy Deb, Linnea Deb, Jimmy Thörnfeldt, Kenny Silverdique, Suzi Pancenkov, Malou Linn Eloise Ruotsalainen and Chanel Tukia, along with Senhit and Flo Rida themselves. While Flo Rida had provided vocals for the track, his participation in the performance of the song on the Eurovision stage was only confirmed on the day of the second semi-final due to COVID-19-related travel restrictions.

Azerbaijan participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song "Mata Hari" written by Amy van der Wel, Josh Earl, Luuk van Beers and Tony Cornelissen. The song was performed by Efendi, who was internally selected by the Azerbaijani broadcaster İctimai Television (İTV) to represent the nation at the 2021 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands, after she was due to compete in the 2020 contest with "Cleopatra" before the 2020 event's cancellation. Efendi's selection as the Azerbaijani Eurovision entrant was announced on 20 March 2020, while the song "Mata Hari" was presented to the public on 15 March 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adrenalina (Senhit song)</span> 2021 song by Senhit

"Adrenalina" is a song by Italian singer Senhit, released on 8 March 2021 through Panini S.p.A. The song represented San Marino in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The song features uncredited vocals from American rapper Flo Rida. A new revamped version featuring credited vocals from Flo Rida was released on 12 March 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mata Hari (Samira Efendi song)</span> 2021 song by Samira Efendi

"Mata Hari" is a song sung by Azerbaijani singer Efendi. The song represented Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Azerbaijan participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, with "Fade to Black" performed by Nadir Rustamli who was internally selected by the Azerbaijani broadcaster İctimai Television (İTV) to represent the nation at the 2022 contest. Nadir Rustamli's selection as the Azerbaijani Eurovision entrant was announced on 16 February 2022, while the song "Fade to Black" was presented to the public on 21 March.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fade to Black (Nadir Rustamli song)</span> 2022 single by Nadir Rustamli

"Fade to Black" is a 2022 single by Azerbaijani singer Nadir Rustamli. The song represented Azerbaijan in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, after being internally selected by İctimai Television (İTV), Azerbaijan's broadcaster for the Eurovision Song Contest.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Azerbaijan releases Efendi's Eurovision 2020 song 'Cleopatra' - Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. 10 March 2020. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  2. "Official EBU statement & FAQ on Eurovision 2020 cancellation". 18 March 2020.
  3. "Efendi - Azerbaijan — Rotterdam 2020 - Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  4. https://www.facebook.com/Las-Negras-Camps-953467711440280/ [ user-generated source ]
  5. Senhit - Cleopatra , retrieved 2021-06-19
  6. "News.Az - Latest news from Azerbaijan". Archived from the original on 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2020-03-17.
  7. Cucera, Joshua (14 May 2020). "Eurovision shines a light into Caucasus identity politics". Eurasianet. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  8. "Official EBU statement & FAQ on Eurovision 2020 cancellation". 18 March 2020.
  9. "Efendi - Cleopatra - Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 - Official Music Video - Eurovision 2020" . Retrieved 10 March 2020 via YouTube.