Dilara's voice conquers Lithuania
By Nigar Orujova
Dilara Kazimova, Azerbaijan's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest performed jointly with Lithuanian representative at the contest Vilija Mataciunaite at the TV show "Two stars".
Dilara came to Lithuania as part of her promotional tour in five countries -the Netherlands, Hungary, Russia, Georgia, and Malta.
Next, the singer will represent Azerbaijan in Hungary.
Dilara started her promotional tour in Lithuania with a performance at the local TV version of the show, "Battle of the Choirs", on April 13. Then, she participated at the live show on the TV channel TV3, where she presented her song "Start a Fire".
Dilara plans to devote the rest of her time to communicating with the local media.
During her tour in Russia, Dilara will sing at the official Russian Eurovision pre-party in Moscow. Numerous "star" fans of the contest and the previous years' participants will be present at the party.
During the tour, Dilara will perform at local TV and radio stations and meet the representatives of local media; she will also get acquainted with her fans and light up the stage with popular local musicians.
Dilara's strong and exciting voice will compete in the first semifinal of the ESC in Copenhagen, Denmark, on May 6, while leading bookmakers consider her among the top five contenders.
The gifted singer will add traditional soul to the "Start a Fire" modern ballad.
An established artist who is quite popular in Azerbaijan, Dilara is about to attract a wider European audience. Dilara's operatic training gives her impressive vocal diversity and permits a repertoire that ranges from soul and opera, jazz, and pop.
The singer has already participated twice in the national selection of Eurovision, reaching the final stage in 2008 and 2010. She is also the prizewinner of the "New Wave 2010"contest in Yurmala, Latvia.