Russia surprised most by holding what appeared to be a very last minute national selection show to choose their Eurovision representative for 2021. The show was held on 08 March 2021 and involved only 3 acts.
Also surprising was that last year’s entrant, Little Big, performed their song Uno from 2020 at the start of the show and then promptly told the viewing audience that they would not be coming back for Rotterdam 2021.
The three acts who were up for Russian selection were:
* Therr Maitz - “The Future is Bright”
* #2Mashi - “Bitter Words”
* Manizha - “Russian Woman”
After interval performances by the infamous Philipp Kirkorov, the lovely Polina Gagarina and the very lucky Dima Bilan, the following results were announced :
1. Manizha 39.7% (WINNER)
2. #2Mashi 35.7%
3. Therr Maitz 24.6%
Manizha (Sangin) was born in Tajikistan and is 29. She is an independent singer and songwriter who has used her music to address issues about the rights of women and migrants. Manizha is a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR.
With “Russian Woman” we have a frenetic hip-hop number that is in both Russian and English. The song is about the transformation of the Russian woman over time from being farmer types to being the modern woman about Moscow. A nice touch for her to win on International Women’s Day.
So far there’s been lukewarm response from the fandom but perhaps that is more just disappointment that Little Big won’t be returning.