After weeks of rumors, the Cypriot broadcaster CyBC confirmed that Tamta Goduadze (or simply, Tamta) was internally selected to represent Cyprus in Tel Aviv as announced on December 21, 2018. Previously Tamta has expressed her interest to represent the Mediterranean island nation since 2008.
Tamta was born and raised in Tbilisi, Georgia. Following a divorce, she immigrated to Greece where her mother and brother lived and started off as a housekeeper in Athens. In 2004, she auditioned for Super Idol the Greek version of Idol and finished in second place. In 2007, she participated in the Greek National Final for Eurovision with the ballad “With Love” ultimately finishing in third place; however, the song went on to reach Number 2 in the Greek Singles Chart. Tamta then went on to become a mentor for both the X Factor Georgia and the X Factor Greece for two seasons each. Tamta has also done some projects in musical theatre.
Since November, CyBC released cryptic hints about their Eurovision entry for this year. Tamta will represent Cyprus with the song “Replay” written by popular Greek-Swedish songwriter Alex P along with other Swedish songwriters Teddy Skye, Viktor Svensson, Kristoffer “Bonn” Fogelmark, and Albin Nedler. Sacha Jean-Baptiste will also be in involved with directing the visual staging. Both Alex P and Sacha Jean-Baptiste are no strangers to Eurovision. Alex P was behind Sarbel’s “Yassou Maria” (2007 Greece), Aysel & Arash’s “Always (2009 Azerbaijan), Ivi Adamou’s “La La Love” (Cyprus 2012), and last year’s runner-up Eleni Foureira’s “Fuego” (2018 Cyprus). Sacha Jean-Baptiste has been involved in staging for numerous recent entries including Loreen’s “Euphoria” (Sweden 2012), Nina Sublatti’s “Warrior” (Georgia 2015), Donny Montell’s “I’ve Been Waiting for this Night” (Lithuania 2016), Kristian Kostov’s “Beautifull Mess” (Bulgaria 2017), and also Eleni Foureira’s “Fuego”.
On 24 February 2019, a demo was leaked online of the song “Replay,” with an official teaser being released later that day. The official music video was released on 5 March 2019. The song is a mainstream pop song with heavy beats and horns that is instantly catchy. The music video gives off an urban/industrial artsy vibe featuring Tamta and others in various scenes (ex, surrounded by BMX riders, a party with confetti and champagne, in a metal workshop, and a shower.
Already having 221K views on YouTube within 7 hours of being released, many Eurovision fans must already have the song on “Replay!”