#39 Ani Lorak, "Shady Lady"

I wanna light you up and leave you alone
I am a brand new star that you’ve never known

This Ukrainian diva won me over from the first time I heard her string-featuring disco anthem "Shady Lady," and the quality of the song alone is what wins it its place on the list, but the imagery she chose to go along with it in the months leading up to and including its performance at Eurovision definitely helped sell me on it. I think we can pick out three key moments in the evolution of "Shady Lady"'s visual accompaniment:

1.) Ani begins her pre-Eurovision promo tour with a performance in Russia. This performance was vital because it 1.) featured an ARMY OF DANCERS (it may start out with four, but don't let that fool you), and 2.) introduced the head flick.



2.) The official music video. All the people looking upwards at the disco ball as if waiting for the most important event in the world to happen during the middle 8 as the disco strings reach their most dramatic point is almost too much for me to bear.



3.) The Eurovision performance. Oh my gosh, the head flick, guys in light up boxes, all the shiny things, Ani voguing in front of the light up boxes...this song and its performance is everything modern Eurovision should be (well, maybe the backing vocal mikes are turned up a bit too loud for my taste, but given that Ani can't be singing multiple parts, it's understandable).



Ani Lorak, you're my Eurovision hero. Now, if only you could have beaten "Believe"...

Find it on: Eurovision 2008