Azernews.Az

The Eurovision song contest due in Baku in late May is a lifetime experience that should be capitalized upon in full, Eleftheria Eleftheriou, the singer who will represent Greece at the prestigious European song contest, told the Baku-based Trend news agency.

``I can`t wait to perform on stage and feel the vibe of the audience and people in the Baku Crystal Hall,`` she said.

Eleftheriou, 22, said she doesn`t know exactly what was it about her that people liked, but she really did her best in the Greek final, having worked hard to make an appearance that would be fascinating and different.

``I was rewarded with the people`s votes that gave me the strength and the energy to go on with the `big project`, which is, of course, the performance at the semifinals in Baku,`` Eleftheriou said.

She said the jury of the contest consists of the European people and an artist should be able to interact and communicate with them and not primarily his fellow citizens.

``The important things are the song and the show on the day of the contest, so, no matter how famous you are in your country, nobody will give you credit [and his vote] on that alone. That`s why in Greece they decided to give this chance to new artists like me,`` Eleftheriou said.

Eleftheriou said she has never been to Azerbaijan, but has recently read about its abundant traditions and culture and will try to visit many sights while she is there for the Eurovision contest.

``I`m very excited and can`t wait to meet people and make new friends in Azerbaijan,`` she said.

Eleftheriou didn`t speak in detail about her performance as she wished to keep it as a surprise.

``Together with the creative director and choreographer Konstantinos Rigos and his team, we are working very hard on the choreography and we will try to show the `sunshine` side of Greece, something - let`s say - simple but at the same time impressive. I will be waiting for your reviews after performing in Baku.``

Eleftheriou said the Greek team does a lot of rehearsals every day.

``I wouldn`t trade this experience for anything in the world! I feel very excited that I am part of the Eurovision contest this year,`` the singer said.

Eleftheriou said she was looking to give a great performance and make people excited and happy if only for three minutes.

``I am not afraid of responsibility as I feel it is a great honor for me that I will represent Greece. I have already undertaken the responsibility and I will do my best. I prefer to say that this is not just a competition - this is more like a European music festival and the purpose of it all is music to bring us all together,`` Eleftheriou stressed.

The title of the Greek singer`s song - Aphrodisiac - comes from the word Aphrodite, who was the goddess of love and beauty in the ancient Greek mythology.

``When you fall in love, you feel great, you want to dance and get into the music. This is your elixir for life and happiness. I think it`s a very powerful uptempo dance song with Greek elements in the melody,`` she said.

The Eurovision 2012 semi-finals will be held on May 22 and May 24 and the final on May 26.

The logo for this year`s song contest is ``Fire Flower``, while the motto is ``Light Your Fire``.

Azerbaijan won the right to host the song contest after the victory of Eldar Gasimov and Nigar Jamal (Ell/Nikki) at Eurovision 2011 in Dusseldorf, Germany.