Name	Natalia Germanou Ναταλία Γερμανού
Background	non_performing_personnel
Birth name	Natalia Germanou
Born	Athens, Greece
Origin	Greece
Genre	Modern Laika, Pop, Dance
Occupation	Songwriter, radio producer, television hostess, DJ
Years active	1988–present
Url	http://www.natalia.gr

Natalia Germanou (; born in Athens, Greece) is a Greek lyricist, television hostess, radio producer, DJ and journalist.

Germanou has written lyrics for many popular Greek singers such as Anna Vissi, Christos Dantis, Elena Paparizou, Marianta Pieridi, Despina Vandi, and Katy Garbi to name a few. She co-wrote with Dantis the lyrics to Elena Paparizou's My Number One, the winning entry of the Eurovision Song Contest 2005. She has hosted a radio show on Sfera FM for the past couple of years as well as having simultaneously hosted or taken part in numerous reality and talk shows, most recently being with Alpha TV.

Biography

Germanou was born in Athens, Greece to parents Freddie Germanos and Erietta Mavroudi, with origins from Mitilini. Natalia Germanou's father is the late Freddie Germanos, a popular journalist and author, and her mother is Erietta Mavroudi. For 12 years, Germanou attended the "Mina Aidonopoulou" school, where she got good grades and was good in Math. At the age of 16, Germanou announced to her family that she would like to become an actress, to which her Father suggested journalism instead.

A few years later, Germanou finished a professional journalism school in Athens, and was soon accepted to the Orlando University of Florida where she planned to live for the next 5 years, perfecting her study in journalism. About a month and a half before her planned departure to college, Germanou got a job offer to work at the magazine "Ena" owned by Giorgos Koskotas, and managed by Pavlos Bakogiannis. Germanou, with the guidance of her father, accepted, and stayed in Athens, where for the next 4 years, got experience working for the magazines "Ena" and "Kai" and the newspaper "24 Ores".

In October 1988, at age 19, Germanou started hosting a radio show along with Prokopi Douka titled "Club Sandwich" on "SKY 100,4". A year later in 1990, Germanou started working with Ant1 Channel and moved her radio show to their radio stations, and started a spin-off musical show of the same name on the channel. At the same time, in 1990, Germanou branched out to writing lyrics, and has since written lyrics for many big Greek singers, with more than 250 songs, and more than 30 platinum and 45 gold records.

For the next 4 years, Germanou continued hosting, and realized that she had fallen in love with it. "Club Sandwich" later became "Blue Jean", and was broadcast daily on the radio station "Athina 9.84", where she also became a radio producer. At the same time, Germanou started hosting the music show "Mega Star" on Mega Channel, which she continued to host for 10 years. A couple of years later in 1997, Germanou became the programing director and radio producer at the radio station "Sfera 102.2", where she still hosts a radio show today.

In 2002, Germanou hosted the first season of Fame Story, and was later a judge on music related reality shows such as Dream Show 1 and 2, Fame Story 3 and Sound Mix Show. In 2005, Germanou co-wrote the lyrics to the song "My Number One", which won the Eurovision Song Contest 2005". In 2007-2008, she was a judge on the music reality show "TV Stars Parousiaste" on Alpha Channel alongside Ilias Psinakis, while she hosted the show "Randevou sta tifla" every Saturday night on Alpha Channel in the same year.

Currently, besides hosting her radio show on Sfera FM, Germanou hosts the morning show "Mes Tin Kali Hara" on Alpha Channel every weekend, and is also writing her first book.

Personal life

Natalia Germanou married singer Petros Imvrios in October 1998. In 2002 they divorced.

Production discography

The beginning of Germanou's songwriting career is marked by the song "Pos" released in 1990 and sung by Mando. Since then she has written the lyrics to over 250 songs for various artists, with over 30 albums her songs have been included on going Platinum, and over 45 albums going Gold.

Shows

Below are select shows Germanou has been a part of:

Hosting

Radio

1988-1990 - "Club Sandwich" (SKY FM)

1990-1994 - "Club Sandwich" (ANT1 FM)

1994-1997 - "Blue Jean" (Athina 9.84)

1997-Present - "Natalia Germanou" (Sfera FM)

Television

1990-1992 - "Club Sandwich (Ant1 Channel)

1992-2002 - "Mega Star" (Mega Channel)

2003-2004 - "Den To Pistevo (Mega Channel)

2002-2003 - "Fame Story 1 (Ant1 Channel)

2005 - "Figame!" (Ant1 Channel)

2006-2007 - "Sound Mix Show" (Alpha Channel)

2007-2008 - "Rantevou Sta Tifla" (Alpha Channel)

2008-Present - "Mes Stin Kali Hara" (Alpha Channel)

2009-Present - "Chart Show" (Alpha Channel)

Judging

2005-2006 - "Fame Story 3" (Ant1 Channel)

2005 - "Dream Show 1" (Alpha Channel)

2007 - "Dream Show 2" (Alpha Channel)

2007-2008 - "TV Star Parousiaste" (Alpha Channel)

Acting

Germanou has also appeared in several guest star rolls on various TV shows over the years. Germanou appeared on 2 episodes of "Hai-Rok", which her close friend Eleni Mavili was a writer on, as well as on the shows "Oi Stavloi Tis Eriettas Zaimi", and "Kinoumeni Ammos". Germanou also appeared on an episode of Anna Vissi's short lived variety show Me Agapi Anna on Ant1 Channel in the mid 90's, where she sang along with Vissi.

References

External links

http://clubs.pathfinder.gr/germanou_natalia Official Fansite

Category:Living people Category:Greek lyricists Category:Greek television presenters Category:Greek television personalities Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Eurovision Song Contest winners Category:People from Athens

Name	Anna VissiΆννα Βίσση
Background	solo_singer
Alias	Anna Vishy
Born	December 20, 1957Pyla, Larnaca, Cyprus
Origin	Athens, Greece
Instrument	Vocals
Genre	Contemporary laika, laika, folk, pop, dance
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, composer, actress
Voice type	Mezzo-soprano
Years active	1973–present
Label	Minos (1970-1978),Columbia Graphophone Company (1978-1984), CarVi (1982), Sony Music Entertainment Greece (1984-present),Vanilla/Moda (2005)
Associated acts	Epikouri, Nikos Karvelas
Url	www.annavissi.net www.annavissilive.com

Anna Vissi (; born December 20, 1957), known as Anna Vishy in Cypriot Greek, is a Cypriot–Greek singer, songwriter and actress, known mainly in Greece and her native country of Cyprus, with some international success within Europe, the United States and elsewhere. In the 1980s, Vissi began an exclusive collaboration with Nikos Karvelas, resulting in one of the most successful music partnerships in the nation's history.

From 1995 to 2009, Vissi received 30 Platinum certifications in Greece and has become one of the country's best-selling female artists, having sold over 9.5 million records worldwide. Her album Kravgi still remains one of the best-selling albums of the 2000s, and one of the best-selling albums of all time, while two others —Travma and Antidoto— are also among the best-selling. She also had some success in the United States, reaching number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Chart with "Call Me". In 2010, Alpha TV ranked Vissi as the second top-certified female artist in Greece in the phonographic era (since 1960). Forbes listed Vissi as the 15th most powerful and influential celebrity in Greece and third highest ranked singer.

Biography

Childhood and origins

Anna Vissi was born on December 20, 1957, in Larnaca, Cyprus. She has been singing from a very early age, beginning formal musical studies at the age of six at a local conservatory. At the age of twelve she entered a talent competition and won first prize. Two years later, she was the main singer at Ayia Tilliria, which was also her first TV appearance.

In 1973, her family moved to Athens, Greece, where she was able to pursue her studies at the National Conservatory.

1980–1982: Eurovision Song Contest, third and forth album

In 1980, Vissi participated in the 25th Eurovision Song Contest representing Greece with the song Autostop ("Hitch-Hike"), finishing 13th with 30 points. The juridicial conflict between Vissi and the production company appeared to come to an end when the Court of Appeal of Athens led to the final compromise of the two sides to the sum of 400.000 Euros. A sum that the singer would supposed to pay in the company against the initial sum of 2,3 millions of Euros. Ultimately Vissi was vendicated and the decision of Supreme Court ruled that 400.000 Euros was a lot more from the amount that Vissi should actually pay and decided to give the half amount of money. One year later she did a concert in Cyprus, supporting the defenses of the island.

1996–1998: Klima Tropiko, Travma, and Antidoto

In February 1996, Vissi released the triple-platinum album Klima Tropiko. The album featured a new sound for Anna Vissi. It has sold 105 thousand copies as of 2009. After giving more than 40 concerts all over Greece, she started winter appearances at club "Chaos". In February 1997, Vissi won three Greek Music Awards: Best Female Singer, Best Interpretation, and Biggest Airplay Song.

For the winter of 1997-1998, Vissi made appearances at club Gazi. On New Year's Eve, by invitation of the Mayor of Athens, she performed in the Parliament Square in front of more than 20,000 people, an event which was broadcast on TV all over Greece and Cyprus. In March 1998, Vissi broke a record, winning seven Greek Music Awards for her album Travma.

A couple of months later, a new CD single was released with the songs "Crush", "Mavra Gyalia" and "Eleni", as well as a re-release of her multi-platinum album Travma, with a bonus CD containing songs from previous albums, only in Australia.

performing at Asteria in 1998.]] In April 1998, Vissi released her album titled Antidoto, which sold more than 80,000 copies in just a week, breaking all previous records to that point.

On May 13, 2000, she performed as a special guest star in her native Cyprus, at the 49th annual Miss Universe Pageant which took place at the Eleftheria Stadium in Nicosia. She sang for the very first time her song "On a Night Like This", It became triple platinum and finally settled at four-times platinum. It contained twelve songs by Russ Ballard, Mark Taylor, Graham Stack, Steve Torch, Paul Stanley, Tina Shafer, Julian Harris, Danielle Gerber and Nikos Karvelas. Producers of the album were Brian Rawling, Ric Wake and Peter Asher. with little success.

In November 2000, Kravgi was released. It was a double album with 24 new songs and included a duet with Katy Garbi. It reached 3× platinum status in one month, setting a record, and eventually went 7× platinum and having sold 175 thousand copies (350 thousand units) as of 2009, It is the top-certified album of the 2000s and stands as either the best selling or second best selling album of the decade, due to there being no public consensus between 170–200 thousand copies (340–400 thousand units) of Despina Vandi's Gia. while she accepted the invitation of the Mayor of Athens to perform in the Parliament Square, at the celebrations of the 2001 New Year's Eve.

Just before Easter, a second single off her international album was released. It was called "Still in Love with You" and contained remixes (Radio Edit, Soda Club Radio Mix, Soda Club Mix, Soda Club TV Track), with production by Brian Rawling.

On June 6, 2001, she was the main singer in a production in Bucharest (Unirii square, nearby river Dambovitei) along with the No Smoking band and the cinema director and producer Emir Kusturica. The concert (2001, Peace Odyssey) included a multimedia show, opening with a water screen. More than 150,000 people were present. Kusturica along with producer and director Angelos Hadjiandreou undertook the artistic direction of the event, marrying music with the most modern expression of art.

Three months later, on September 5, 2001, she gave a concert in Cyprus (GSP Stadium), singing in front of more than 18,000 viewers, for more than three hours where she was awarded for the seven-times platinum Kravgi.

2002–2004: Mala, X, and Paraksenes Eikones

.]] In early 2002, Vissi starred in the musical Mala - I Mousiki Tou Anemou, based on a true love story that took place during World War II in Auschwitz, between Mala Zimetbaum and Edward Galiñski., reaching gold status in Greece and platinum in Cyprus Shortly after, the album was featured on CNN's Music Room, where they talked about how the album reached number one in Greece. The album quickly reached number one on the IFPI charts, and was certified 2x platinum. In the winter of 2002-2003, she was working at "Fever" club in Athens, performing with Yiannis Parios.

In May 2003, Vissi performed with Nikos Karvelas and Irini Merkouri at "Boom" in Thessaloniki, Greece. On July 15, 2003, Vissi gave a concert at "A Plaz Voulas/Apollonies Aktes", with special guest star Nikos Karvelas.

In September 2003, Vissi gave another concert in Cyprus, at the Tzirion Stadium in Limassol, to celebrate her 30-year old career. At the same year, she was awarded with a prize for her whole contribution from the Cyprus Paralympic Organization, while a square in Larnaca was named after her. She also met and talked with the president of the Republic of Cyprus, in the Presidential Palace, in Nicosia.

Just before 2004, on December 5, 2003, Vissi released the double album Paraksenes Eikones which went 2x platinum in six months. This was Vissi's first album since 1981's Anna Vissi that included songs written by other composers besides Nikos Karvelas. The album produced many hits. To promote the album, she started appearing at "Diogenis Studio" for the winter season 2003-2004, with Konstantinos Christoforou, Nino and girl band Hi-5. with Labis Livieratos (with whom she collaborated in the early '90s), while in July, her album Paraksenes Eikones was re-released with a bonus CD single called Remixes 2004, which went gold.

On August 29, 2004, Vissi performed at the closing ceremony of the XXVIII Olympiad, in Athens. She then gave a concert in Cyprus on September 3, at the GSP Stadium in Nicosia, where she sang for the first time her new English song called "Call Me". , part of her promotional tour for "Call Me".]]

On December 20, 2004, Vissi released a live album and DVD, It sold 40 thousand copies. Vissi then performed at the legendary Copacabana in New York for the KTU PartyGras. During the winter and through to the summer of 2005, she went around to clubs as part of her Mini-U.S.A. Tour to promote "Call Me". Some of the clubs included "Central", "Mirage", "DNA", "The Sound Garden" and "Studio 9".

In July 2005, Vissi returned to Greece and released "Call Me" as a CD single by Sony BMG, along with a new English-language song titled "Lie". The single reached number one on the IFPI singles charts and achieved gold certification. In that same month, Vissi started recording her new Greek album. In August 2005, Anna took to the stage of the "Coca-Cola Sound-Wave", which was held in Mykonos. There she sang her new English song Lie and surprised fans and media by appearing on stage with half her head shaved. The album went platinum within 24 hours of its release and peaked at number one on the IFPI Greek Top 50 albums chart, selling 40 thousand copies. The dual disc version featured special footage from her and Nikos Karvelas in the studio. In the album, there is a song featuring the lead singer of the Greek hip-hop band Goin' Through called Erota I Polemo ("Love or War"). On November 24, 2005, Vissi started performances at "Votanikos" club in Athens, Greece with Goin' Through, Dimitris Korgialas and Despina Olympiou, which lasted until March 2006.

2006–2007: Eurovision Song Contest and World Tour

Greek national broadcaster ERT chose Vissi to represent Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. There were four candidate songs, which she sang during a song selection show on March 14, 2006 at "Votanikos" club. The Greek viewers used televote and SMS messages along with a panel of judges to choose the song Vissi would sing in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. Two of the competing songs, were composed by Nikos Karvelas, namely "Everything" and "Who Cares about Love", with Vissi herself penning the lyrics to "Everything". The third song, "A Beautiful Night", was written by composing group Pigassos, while the last song, "Welcome to the Party", was written by Greek composer Dimitris Kontopoulos. "Everything" was selected as the entry song of Greece, winning 47,79% of the votes. The day after the final, Vissi filmed the song's music video. Her previous record label, Minos EMI, released a CD single of her two prior Eurovision entries "Autostop" and "Mono I Agapi", shortly after.

After the filming of the song's music video was completed, Vissi embarked on a promotional tour across Europe starting on April 12, 2006 with Russia. Euro Edition also contains the three other Greek Eurovision Preselection songs: "Beautiful Night", "Who Cares About Love" and "Welcome to the Party", which has entered the playlist of American satellite radio station "Sirius Beat".

During the contest, Vissi performed in the 16th spot of the night and appeared alone on stage, wearing a Jean-Paul Gaultier outfit. Although she had been one of the favorites during the pre-contest period, she only managed to get 9th place with 128 points (hers was one of the two pre-qualified entries to finish in the top 10, the other being Romania). The other eight songs were all qualified from the semi-final. Finland won the contest with the rock band Lordi and their song Hard Rock Hallelujah. In interviews prior to the contest, she had stated that if there was anyone she would like to lose to, it would be the Finnish entry. Lordi had also expressed their liking of the Greek song in interviews, too.

Following the contest, "Everything" was released in Finland on May 24, 2006, by Sony BMG Finland. It had already been released in Sweden and it peaked at 24. It featured a different cover, than the original single. The dual disc version of Nylon was also re-released with the Eurovision single. Vissi gave a concert at London's Royal Albert Hall on May 27, 2006. The tour was called The Best of Anna Vissi 2006 and was covered by Alpha TV.

In the fall of 2006, she embarked on a Greek mini-tour, performing around Greece in sold-out concerts, as well as Cyprus with Goin' Through.

In the beginning of 2007, Vissi moved to Los Angeles, United States to start work on an English album. In February 2007, she accompanied longtime friend Patricia Field to the Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, California, United States.

in 2007.]]

Vissi also embarked on a world tour in January 2007. She traveled to Australia with Konstantinos Christoforou and had three concerts in Melbourne and Sydney, and from April 10, 2007 through May 1, 2007, she toured North America. Along with Takis Zacharatos, she performed in Chicago, New York City, Atlantic City, Connecticut (Foxwoods), Los Angeles, Montreal, and Toronto. Vissi continued her tour in October 2007 with a European mini-tour. The concerts included Amsterdam and Brussels with her concert in Paris being cancelled without an explanation. During the tour, she stated that she was only half way through her world tour.

In September 2007, Sony BMG released a compilation titled The Essential Anna Vissi in select markets. The album contains seventeen tracks, including some of Vissi's biggest hits. It also includes the previously leaked, but unofficially released English song Is it Safe?.

In November 2007, she held a special charity concert in London for the "Oinoussian Benevolent Fund". It was held at the "Royal Opera House" in Covent Garden with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and she raised £250,000, excluding the entrance tickets costing £200.

2008–2009: Apagorevmeno, re-release and The Fabulous Show

On New Year's Day, Vissi kicked off the new year by holding a big concert in Larnaca, Cyprus. Vissi spent a large portion of 2007 and 2008 recording her new English album. In an interview with fans, Vissi talked about the album, describing it as “a rock album with unbelievably nice songs, that some of the biggest people in the U.S.A. music industry worked on. It is an album that could only be made in the U.S.A., that represents who I am, and I believe that this album will be a big plus in my career so far.” It was revealed that the album will be released in the first half of 2009. In April 2008, MAD TV hosted a competition for its "Greek Week" in which visitors to their website were able to vote for their ten favorite Greek music videos, with the winners being showcased in a special "Greek Top 30 Countdown" on April 20. Vissi was the most nominated artist with thirteen music videos, and managed to secure the number one position with Treno, while Agapi Ipervoliki came in at number four when the top 30 were announced.

On June 28, 2008, Vissi posted the song "Diri Dakta", that had been recorded previously, on her official MySpace profile for her fans; the song did not appear on her new album. Later in the year, on October 4, 2008, Vissi held a charity gala at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

A bonus track from the Greek album was released on October 29, 2008, along with its music video. The song, titled To Parelthon Mou ("My Past"), is the title track to the Greek film Bank Bang, released in December 2008. The music video for the song was filmed on October 22, 2008, at The Mall Athens. It was the first album since 1983 not to include any songs and, generally, any input by Nikos Karvelas. The reason she gave for this in an interview with "Down Town" magazine was that the two had got tired of each other, but clarified that this did not rule out a collaboration in the future. The album was certified gold in the first week of release, and reached number one on its second week on the charts before settling at 2x platinum status. As of April 2009, the album has sold 27 thousand copies. Although this was partially due to hardships faced by the Greek music industry including piracy, the financial crisis, and changing musical tastes, leading to a general decline of the laiko-pop scene and image-based singers.

Vissi had originally planned to start appearances at "Athinon Arena" in February 2009, as part of her comeback and for promotion of the new album, however, she decided to hold a big concert in Athens during the summer, instead, while she did not rule out a summer tour around Greece. The tour began in July 2009 and all appearances were sold-out throughout Greece. The tour ended with a concert at GSP Stadium in Nicosia, Cyprus, on September 25, 2009; overall, the tour was a success for Vissi, who had not performed for the Greek audience in four years.

On November 16, 2009, Apagorevmeno was re-released as Apagorevmeno+ with 3 new songs and two remixes in special ecological packaging. Vissi started appearances at "Athinon Arena" on November 6, 2009 with Greek band Ble, Yiorgos Sambanis, Mario, Vera Boufi, Elissavet Spanou, Michalis Zeis and DJ Dim Trik. The show was named "The Fabulous Show", after her then-latest single, Fabulous, which was included in Apagorevmeno+. The show marked the big comeback of Anna Vissi in the nightlife of Athens after four years of absence and received great reviews. Vissi was on stage for almost 4 hours every Friday and Sunday until closing night on March 20, 2010 in a fully crowded Athinon Arena. After the successful run in Athens the show moved to Thessaloniki on April 3, 2010 with spectacular attendance.

2010–present: English album, Project: Anna Vissi, Agapi Einai Esi and Face2Face Show

Vissi has recorded a new English-language album in Los Angeles, California with a tentative 2010 release date. Some of the songwriters include Dave Stewart, Glen Ballard, Patrick Leonard and Brian Howes. It was scheduled to be released in the second half of 2009., The documentary will air on Alpha TV in Spring 2011 under the title Project: Anna Vissi. But in a turn of events the album finally was entirely composed by Nikos Karvelas. The first single of the upcoming album, titled Agapi Einai Esi was released on October 9, 2010. The music and lyrics are by Nikos Karvelas, the song being their first collaboration in four years. On October 24, 2010, Vissi released a three-track CD single titled Agapi Einai Esi packaged with newspaper "Real News" nationwide. On December 8, Vissi announced during an interview in Love Radio Athens, that her new album will be titled Agapi Einai Esi. The album was released on December 19 with Real News newspaper featuring the three songs from Agapi Einai Esi maxi-single, plus 7 more songs all written by Nikos Karvelas.

Currently, Vissi is appearing with Sakis Rouvas in a concert series at "Athinon Arena" in a show titled "Face2Face" for the winter season 2010-2011. This will be their first appearance and collaboration together since they both appeared together at club "Chaos" in 1996.

Discography

Studio albums

As Kanoume Apopse Mian Arhi (1977)

Kitrino Galazio (1979)

Nai (1980)

Anna Vissi (1981)

Eimai To Simera Kai Eisai To Hthes (1982)

Na 'Hes Kardia (1984)

Kati Simveni (1985)

I Epomeni Kinisi (1986)

Tora (1987)

Empnefsi! (1988)

Fotia (1989)

Eimai (1990)

Emeis (1992)

Lambo (1992)

Re! (1994)

O! Kypros (1995)

Klima Tropiko (1996)

Travma (1998)

Antidoto (1998)

Everything I Am (2000)

Kravgi (2000)

X (2002)

Paraksenes Eikones (2003)

Nylon (2005)

Apagorevmeno (2008)

Agapi Einai Esi (2010)

Live albums

Live! (1993)

Live (2004)

Filmography

{| border="2" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 90%;" ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Television |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes and Awards |- | 1994 | Me Agapi, Anna (With Love, Anna)
| Herself/Host | Variety show |- ! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Theater |- bgcolor="#CCCCCC" align="center" ! Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes and Awards |- | 1991 | Daimones(Demons)
| Queen/Rozanne | First Greek Rock Opera |- | 1993 | Ode To The Gods | Aphrodite | One Act Opera |- | 2002 | Mala - I Mousiki Tou Anemou(Mala - The Music Of The Wind)
| Mala Zimetbaum | |}

Tours

20 Years Live Tour (1993)

Klima Tropiko Tour (1996)

Travma World Tour (1997)

World Tour (1998–1999)

Kravgi Australian Tour (2002)

2004 World Tour (2004)

Best Of Anna Vissi Tour (2006)

2007 World Tour (2007)

Apagorevmeno Summer Tour (2009)

Awards

See also

List of Greeks

List of Cypriots

List of number-one dance hits (United States)

List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart

References

External links

Official Website

Official Website run by Anna Vissi

Sony Music artist profile

Category:1957 births Category:Anna Vissi Category:Arion Music Awards winners Category:Cypriot actors Category:Cypriot composers Category:Cypriot Eurovision Song Contest entrants Category:Cypriot female singers Category:Cypriot pop singers Category:Cypriot songwriters Category:English-language singers Category:Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1980 Category:Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1982 Category:Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2006 Category:Greek Cypriot people Category:Greek dance musicians Category:Greek Eurovision Song Contest entrants Category:Greek Pop Corn Music Awards winners Category:People from Larnaca Category:Living people Category:MAD Video Music Awards winners Category:Modern Greek-language singers Category:Sony Music Greece artists Category:Thessaloniki Song Festival winners

Name	Thanos Kalliris
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Athanasios Kalliris
Born	August 13, 1962 Athens, Greece
Origin	Athens, Greece
Instrument	Vocals
Genre	Contemporary laïka, pop
Occupation	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1980s–present
Label	Sony Music Greece, Eros, V2 Records
Associated acts	Bang, Vasilis Dertilis
Url	www.kalliris.gr

Thanos Kalliris (born 13 August 1962) is a Greek singer who was born in Athens. His father is a famous Greek composer, Titos Kalliris. In the 1980s, he was a part of the pop music band Bang alongside Vassilis Dertilis. In the 1990s he wrote and sung pop songs and ballads, making a successful solo career for himself. He was also involved in the Eurovision Song Contest. His latest album has the title "Gia hari sou boro" (for you i can) in which he has collaborated with several artists, among them with Vassilios Pallis, a super talented composer.

CDs and other works

Thanos Kalliris

Se Katadikazo (1991) (I Condempt you)

Ena psema gia to telos (1993) (A lie for last)

Giortazo (1993) (Maxi) (I Celebrate)

Poios (1994) (Maxi) (Who?)

Kapoio kalokairi (1994) (Some Summer)

Monaha tin psychi sou (1995) (Just your soul)

Fonaxe me (1997) (Call me)

Agapi Ora Miden (1998) (Love, Zero hour Love

Eimai Kala (CD Single) (2000) (I'm OK

Aionia (2001) (Eternally)

Girnao (CD Single) (2003)

Gia hari sou boro (2004) (For you I can...)

Selected hit songs

Giortazo 1992

Poios 1994

To nou sou kyrie odige (La solitudine) 1994

Agapi kalokairini

Oi orkoi tis agapis

Ena hamogelo gia ton Andrea

Gia hari sou mporo

Leo na tin kano ap ti douleia

External links

http://www.kalliris.gr/

Category:1962 births Category:Living people Category:Greek male singers Category:Greek contemporary laïko singers Category:Modern Greek-language singers

Name	Peggy ZinaΠέγκυ Ζήνα
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Kalliopi
Alias	Peggy Zina (stage name)
Born	March 08, 1975Athens, Greece
Origin	Ioannina, Greece
Instrument	Piano
Genre	Contemporary laika, laika, pop
Occupation	Singer, actress
Years active	1995-present
Label	BMG Greece (1995-1999),Nitro Music (2000-2003),Minos EMI (2003-present)
Url	www.peggyzina.com
Notable instruments	Piano

Kalliopi Zina (born March 8, 1975), known professionally as Peggy Zina, is a Greek singer. Peggy Zina made her discographic debut in 1995 with her self-titled album. She has since released ten studio albums and is a high-profile artist in the Greek music industry. On 14 March 2010, Alpha TV ranked Zina the 24th top-certified female artist in the nation's phonographic era (since 1960), totalling nine (five at the time) platinum and two gold records.

Biography

Early life

Peggy Zina was born in Athens on March 8, 1975. She began piano lessons at the age of five and studied dancing, particularly the jazz genre. During her teens, Peggy Zina participated in many artistic school activities, including theater and choir. She graduated from the French academy Jeanne D’ Arc of Athens.

1995–1999: Debut album and early success

Peggy Zina's self-titled debut album was released in 1995 by BMG Greece. The album includes her first hit with the controversial title and lead lyric "An Pas Me Alli Tha Sou Spaso to Kefali" (If you go with another woman I will break your head). She also started working with Lefteris Pantazis at Neraida club in 1995 and then with Notis Sfakianakis at Gazi club in 1996.

Peggy released her second album in 1998 with the title Anevaines (You rose), and recorded a duet with Stelios Rokkos on his single "Eisai O Ilios Mou" (You are my sun). She then worked with Sakis Rouvas at Vios Vios club in 1999. She also performed alongside many famous singers such as Nikos Kourkoulis, Elli Kokkinou, and Dimitris Hrisohoidis at Posidonio club.

2000–2002: Rise in popularity

In 2000 Peggy Zina changed recording companies and signed with Nitro Music and drastically altered her look. On July 4, 2000 she released a four-track CD single titled "Ti Th' Akouso Akoma" (What else will I hear) with the title track being the first single from her third album Ena Hadi (A caress) which was released in 2001. In winter of the same year she worked alongside Christos Dantis and with Notis Sfakianakis once again at COSMOS club after her solo performances at Maskes club in Thessaloniki.

On January 30, 2002, Peggy was suggested by Thanos Kalliris to represent Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest and she accepted his proposal to sing a song written by him. On February 26, 2002, Peggy participated in the Greek National Final with the song "Love Is a Wonderful Thing". Despite a great performance, she took second place to Michalis Rakintzis with his song "S.A.G.A.P.O." (I love you) who went on to finish at a disappointing seventieth place. Nevertheless the single gained a gold certification in just a few weeks.

Peggy Zina released her fourth album Vres Enan Tropo (Find a way) in 2002. For this album she cooperated with many great singers like Giannis Parios who gave her four modern laika songs and he acknowledged Zina as an incredible laika singer. She continued to perform at Maskes in Thessaloniki for a third year and due to its success she mimicked the same music program in Athens.

2003–2004: Minos EMI and Mazi Sou

]] After four years with Nitro Music and due to the company's closure, Peggy Zina signed with Minos EMI, to what had been described as a lucrative record deal. She released her fifth album titled Mazi Sou (With you) in 2003 which became platinum in just a few weeks, selling over 40,000 copies. The album included two massive hits: "Eimai Kala" (I’m fine) and "Dystihos" (Unfortunately). Peggy Zina broke the record for the most performances at Apollon club by surpassing 100 performances. In the winter of the same year Zina worked alongside Nikos Vertis, Thanos Petrelis, Kostas Karafotis and Apostolia Zoi at Pili Aksiou. Her popular performances helped raise the album Mazi Sou to platinum in January 2004.

2004–2005: Matono and Noima

After finishing her performances in Athens, Peggy Zina went to Thessaloniki and worked with the band Fili Gia Panta and many new singers. Working continuously for a year and a half, Peggy Zina released her new album Matono (I’m bleeding) in 2004. Upon return to Athens, she started performing at Apollon for a fourth year, this time alongside Kostas Karafotis and Nino. Peggy Zina received her second platinum certification for Matono and she also won her first Arion Award for the Best Folk Singer of the Year. In Spring 2005, she and Nino performed abroad in Australia and United Kingdom, while in United States and Canada she toured with rising singers Giorgos Lianos and Maro Litra.

In September 2005, Peggy Zina released her seventh album with the title Noima (Meaning) on which she cooperated for the first time with renowned composer Giorgos Theofanous. The album was released with four different covers designed by Konstantinos Rigos. The album became gold from the first day of its release and after a few months it gained platinum certification. Once again she won the Arion Award for Best Folk Singer of the Year.

2006–2007: Ena, Trekse and marriage

On December 8, 2006, Peggy Zina released Ena (One) which was recorded at Diogenis Studio and gained a platinum certification. It contained many hits like "Ena" (One), "Ego Ta Spao" (I break them) and the summer hit "Eimai Edo" (I'm here). She was also selected by Christos Dantis to perform a duet with him of the song rebetiko "To Teleftaio Potiraki" at his MAD Secret Concert.

Peggy Zina married to her longtime music manager Giorgos Liras in June 2007 after a ten-year relationship. The wedding was attended by 800 wedding spectators, friends, family and others who were short-listed. Approximately 200 sheep had been ordered on the menu in the true sense of traditional Greek weddings. This was Giorgos Lira's third marriage and the best man was popular showbusiness personality Elias Psinakis who was accompanied by Kiki Tsolka.

On December 4, 2007, Peggy Zina released the album Trekse (Run). The singles had already been released and gained significant radio airplay as "An Ypirhes Tha Se Horiza" (If you existed I would divorce you) from the hit Mega TV series of the same name and "Trekse" which was presented at the Arion Music Awards. The album achieved gold certification from its first week and made its debut at number 2 on the Greek Albums Chart beaten only by Mihalis Hatzigiannis's live album. Two additional singles off the album were released simulteanously: "Dio Ksenoi" (Two strangers) and "Kai Meta" (And afterwards). The album certified platinum in its sixth week on the chart and Peggy Zina received the certification on January 22, 2008. At the 5th annual MAD Video Music Awards, she performed the song "2 Hearts" and also won the award for "Fashion Icon of the Year" with the her song "Trekse".

2008–2009: Best of + and To Pathos Einai Aformi

On June 24, 2008, Peggy Zina released a two-disc greatest hits compilation titled Best of +. In addition to all the previously released material, the album also includes three new songs penned by Giorgos Moukidis, which have all been released as singles as well. The singles Paradosou (Surrender) and To Kalokairi (The summer) were made into a music videos directed by Konstantinos Rigos, and the album was certified gold, with Peggy Zina receiving the award on December 3, 2008 during a certification party at Vox nightclub.

Peggy Zina appeared at VOX music hall for the winter season alongside Kostas Korafotis and Nino, the three reuniting as they appeared together in 2004.

Peggy Zina went into the studio in September 2008 to record her tenth studio album. Originally, Giorgos Moukidis was commissioned to compose and write the entire album, but instead twp of his tracks made the final release titled To Pathos Einai Aformi (Passion is a reason) released in May 2009. Nine of the twelve tracks are composed by rising singer-songwriter Giorgos Sampanis, with lyrics by either Giannis Doxas, Niki Papatheohari, Manos Eleftheriou or Eleana Vrahali, one track is composed by Dimitris Korgialas with lyrics by Vicky Gerothodorou. The track titled Otan Sopainei Ena Kormi (When the body is silent) features the line to pathos einai aformi. The leading single Anatheorisa (I revised) was released to radio stations a month earlier and a music video directed by Konstantinos Rigos premiered on MAD TV. On July 21, the second single Ela Nihta (Come Night) was released, and then were released the songs An M'Agapas (If you love me), Hanome (I'm lost), and Se Griza Othoni (On gray screen). in the same year, Peggy Zina performed at Iera Odos for the winter season alongside Dimitris Mitropanos. The show was a big success and also travelled to Thessaloniki and Nicosia. The album has been certified 2x platinum.

2010–present: Evaisthiti... I Logiki?

In May 2010, Peggy Zina went into the studio to record her eleventh studio album titled Evaisthiti... I Logiki (Sensitive... or logical), to be released in early October. The album will be entirely written by Giannis Christodolopoulos with lyrics by Eleana Vrahali. The song Stis Zois To Party (In life's party), was released in June 2010 as the album's first single. The second single titled Rotisa (I Asked), was released in early September exclusively on Rythmos FM.

Discography

Studio albums

Peggy Zina (1995)

Anevaines (1998)

Ena Hadi (2001)

Vres Enan Tropo (2002)

Mazi Sou (2003)

Matono (2004)

Noima (2005)

Ena (2006)

Trekse (2007)

To Pathos Einai Aformi (2009)

Evaisthiti... I Logiki (2010)

CD singles

"Ti Th' Akouso Akoma" (2000)

"Love Is a Wonderful Thing" (2002)

"To Mystiko" (2007)

References

External links

Unofficial Website

Official Fansite

German Fan Club

Category:1975 births Category:Living people Category:Arion Music Awards winners Category:Greek contemporary laïko singers Category:Greek female singers Category:Greek laïko singers Category:Greek musicians Category:Greek pop singers Category:MAD Video Music Awards winners Category:Minos EMI artists

Name	Nikos Karvelas
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Nikos Karvelas
Alias	Nick Carr, Nikos Leonardos
Born	October 08, 1951Piraeus, Greece
Origin	Greece
Instrument	Vocals, multiple instruments
Genre	Contemporary laïka, pop, rock, dance
Occupation	Musician, songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, artist manager
Years active	1970s - present
Label	Minos EMI, CarVi, Columbia EMI, Sony Music Greece, Legend
Associated acts	Anna Vissi
Url	http://www.nikoskarvelas.com

Nikos Karvelas (born on September 8, 1951) is a Greek songwriter, producer and singer. He has sold millions of records as a producer and is most recognizable for his three decade long collaboration with Anna Vissi, while some of his other well-known collaborations include Sakis Rouvas. Karvelas has released many personal studio albums that have had mild success.

Early life

He was born in Piraeus. When he was 5 years old, his parents bought him his first piano. He started to play popular songs and composed his first melodies. Nikos Karvelas had started to discover the world of music. During the 1970s, he studied law in the University of Athens. He created his first rock band influenced by famous rock groups like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. He started to become known at the end of the 1970s. In the beginning of the 1980s Nikos meets his muse, Anna Vissi and a few years later, in 1983 they get married. Anna has claimed that the first impression she had when she met Karvelas was a "hairy thing," but she was amazed by his talent and his sex appeal.

Musical career

1985–1991

His career as a singer started in 1985 when he released his first album under Sony Music Greece, "San Diskos Palios" (Like an Old Record) making two big hits, "Despoina" and "Kalokairines Diakopes" (Summer Holidays). The album sold over 50,000 copies and became gold. In 1987, he released his second album "Ola i Tipota" (All or Nothing) and it became platinum. Next year, he released his third album, "Dimosies Scheseis" (Public Relations) and in 1989 he released his fourth album, "Tsouzi." His fifth step came out in 1990 and tended to be his "lucky" album.and marris It was called "Diavolaki" (Little Devil) and became gold. The top hit of the album was "Antistrofi Metrisi" (Final Countdown), a duet with Anna Vissi. This song had a predictive meaning about his marriage with Anna Vissi, as their relationship started to break up.

One year later he released another gold album, titled “O Teleftaios Horos” (The Last Dance). The self-titled duet with Anna Vissi confirmed the rumors about the problems of their marriage. In 1991, Nikos and Anna tried their luck in a different type of music. "Daimones" (Demons) is the first opera composed by Nikos Karvelas and head actress-singer Anna Vissi with many others actors like Nikos Samsiaras, John Modinos, etc. As Anna Vissi has said "Me and Nikos would like so much to do "Daimones" in Athens and we spent all our money to produce it without knowing if it will have success". The rock opera had a great success and for two years the theatre "Attikon" was sold-out.

1992–1999

live at Asteria in 1998.]] Emeis (We) was the next album of Nikos Karvelas, released in 1992 with the top single "Emeis", another duet with Anna Vissi. Two years later, Nikos returns with another gold album, "25 ores" (25 Hours). In this period, he cooperated with many famous Greek singers like Lefteris Pantazis, Antypas, Stathis Aggelopoulos, Katerina Stanisi, and others. All the albums had great success and became gold and platinum. In 1993, Nikos Karvelas released "Best Of" with 2 new songs, "Oikto" (Mercy) and "Thes Den Thes" (Whether You Want or Not). In 1996, he released the album To Aroma tis Amartias (The Aroma of Sin) and it became platinum. Next year, the title of his new, gold album, "O Pio Eftihismenos Anthropos Pano Sti Gi" (The Happiest Man On Earth), expressed ironically Karvelas's mood. This certain period, Nikos Karvelas moved to London permanently, having enough time and great inspiration to prepare his next steps. He released the album "Ena Hrono to Perissotero" (One Year the Most) expressing his feeling about love, happiness and relationships. Anna Vissi sang with Nikos the top single of the album which was the name of the album. Few months later, the famous Greek composer Stamatis Kraounakis declared that this song was one of the best ever songs of Nikos Karvelas.

2000–present

In 2000, Nikos Karvelas from London shared his new hits with his fans in the album "Ola Ine Endaxi" (Everything Is Alright). However, he started to prepare his new musical "Mala", dealing with the story of Mala Zimetbaum, a Jewish girl who tried to escape from Auschwitz in 1944. In January, 2002, Mala’s premiere in "Palace" theatre took place. His muse, Anna Vissi, had the lead role. The show had a great success and it was sold-out every night. Anna Vissi’s performance convinced the audience that she had the qualifications of doing a great career in acting as well. After Mala, Nikos returned with a CD titled, "Party Gia Spasmenes Kardies" (Party For Broken Hearts). "Boom Boom Boom" was the first single of the album, a memorial duet with Anna Vissi. His next album was "Robot" released by Nitro Music. In 2004, Nikos Karvelas released a single dedicated to the Greek football champion team in Euro 2004. The title was "Imaste Nikites"(We Are Winners). Some of the football players participated in the video clip. In 2006 he released the album Thriller and in 2007 the single Pios Fovate ton Passari (Who's Afraid of Passaris). In late 2007 he released the album Trakter. In February 2009, Karvelas released his 19th studio album titled "Adio Heimona". In a radio interview prior to the album's release, good friend Natalia Germanou, described the album as featuring a variety of styles, and classified it as "the return of good old Karvelas." In December 2009, it was announced that Karvelas will become the head judge on the Greek reality show "Greek Idol" to be aired on Alpha TV in 2010.

Personal life

In the beginning of the 1980s Nikos met his muse, Anna Vissi and a few years later, in 1983 they got married. They have a daughter together named Sophia Karvela. The couple later got divorced, but remain good friends to date, while Karvelas also writes most of Vissi's music.

In January 2008, Karvelas and his fiancé Annita Pania had a son named Andreas. In November 2008, Pania and Karvelas were arrested by the police after an alleged police chase, which started off with them running a red light. The incident supposedly started when a car, driven by Karvelas, ran a red light. Police then allegedly followed them and turned their sirens on to pull them over. Karvelas allegedly continued on, running further red lights and driving erratically, while the police continued to chased him. Pania and Karvelas allege that they were listening to a new song Karvelas wrote, with the volume up high, and did no hear any sirens and were not aware of any police. They also deny ever running the red light. Later, the couple claimed that the policemen not only were overzealous, commanding and rude (using the word re), but also threatened them with their weapons. Pania also mentioned later on TV that she does respect the police, but on the other hand the couple would not comply to bullies, "cops" and "baskines" (pejorative words signifying policemen with improper attitude), whose insulting behaviour rather reminded of the Greek Junta. The couple vowed to take the subject up in court. Pania and Karvelas were later charged in court, found guilty and sentenced to 14 and 10 months in jail respectively, though they were allowed to buy out their sentences.

In 2010 Karvelas married Annita Pania in Athens.

Discography

Studio albums

CD Singles

{|class="wikitable"|width=100% |-bgcolor="#CCCCCC" !width="25" rowspan="2"|Year !width="250" rowspan="2"|Title !width="100" rowspan="2"|Notes |- ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! |- |-bgcolor="#F0F8FF" align="center" |align="left"|2003 |align="left"|Party Gia Spasmenes Kardies |align="center"| — |- |2004 |Eimaste Nikites |align="center"| — |-bgcolor="#F0F8FF" align="left" |2007 |Pios Fovate Ton Passari |align="center"| — |- |}

Compilations

{|class="wikitable"|width=100% |-bgcolor="#CCCCCC" !width="25" rowspan="2"|Year !width="250" rowspan="2"|Title !width="100" rowspan="2"|Notes |- ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! |- |-bgcolor="#F0F8FF" align="center" |align="left"|1992 |align="left"| |align="center"| — |- |}

As a songwriter for other artists

1981: Anna Vissi - Anna Vissi (as Nikos Leonardos) - Platinum

1982: Anna Vissi - Eimai To Simera Kai Eisai To Hthes

1984: Anna Vissi - Na 'Hes Kardia - Gold

1985: Anna Vissi - Kati Simveni - Gold

1986: Anna Vissi - I Epomeni Kinisi - Platinum

1986: Rita Sakellariou - Areso - Platinum

1988: Anna Vissi - Tora - Gold

1988: Anna Vissi - Empnefsi! - Gold

1989: Anna Vissi - Fotia - Platinum

1990: Anna Vissi - Eimai

1992: Katerina Stanisi - Anastatonomai - Gold

1992: Anna Vissi - Lambo

1993: Katerina Stanisi - Na Mineis - Gold

1993: Lefteris Pantazis - Ego Den Eimai Ego - Platinum

1993: Anna Vissi - Live!

1994: Sakis Rouvas - Aima, Dakrya & Idrotas - Platinum

1994: Lefteris Pantazis - O Paixtis - Gold

1994: Anna Vissi - Re! - Gold

1995: Lefteris Pantazis - Erhetai - Gold

1996: Sakis Rouvas - Tora Arhizoun Ta Dyskola - Platinum

1996: Lambis Livieratos - Bam Kai Kato - Gold

1996: Anna Vissi - Klima Tropiko - 3x Platinum

1997: Lambis Livieratos - Poios Einai Aftos - Gold

1997: Anna Vissi - Travma - 3x Platinum

1998: Anna Vissi - Antidoto - 3x Platinum

1999: Christina Anagnostopoulou - Ola Ki Ola

1999: Dimitris Kokotas - Gia Mena - Gold

2000: Anna Vissi - Everything I Am - Platinum

2000: Anna Vissi - Kravgi - 7x Platinum

2001: Christina Anagnostopoulou - Ke Hamogelao

2002: Anna Vissi - X - Platinum

2003: Anna Vissi - Paraksenes Eikones - 2x Platinum

2004: Christina Anagnostopoulou - Straight

2004: Anna Vissi - Live - Platinum

2005: Anna Vissi - Nylon - Platinum

2007: Various artists - Je T'Aime

2010: Anna Vissi - Agapi Einai Esi

2011: Paschalis Terzis - New Album

External links

Official Website

uirelieuslhilg

Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:Anna Vissi Category:Arion Music Awards winners Category:Greek composers Category:Greek male singers Category:Greek music managers Category:Greek contemporary laïko singers Category:Greek laïko singers Category:Greek pop singers Category:MAD Video Music Awards winners Category:Modern Greek-language singers Category:People from Attica