104 Facts About Elena Paparizou

1.

Antique disbanded in 2003, and Elena Paparizou signed a solo recording contract with Sony Music, releasing the chart-topping debut single "Anapandites Kliseis" and album Protereotita, with emphasis on laiko, pop, and dance sounds, but at first had modest sales.

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2.

Elena Paparizou attempted a career beyond Greece with English-language material, charting in a few countries abroad.

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3.

Elena Paparizou established herself as a teen idol, particularly among young girls.

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4.

Elena Paparizou's lived with her fiance and manager Toni Mavridis from 1999 until their separation in 2011.

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5.

Elena Paparizou has been awarded three Arion Music Awards, a European Border Breakers Award, 30 MAD Video Music Awards—more than any other Greek artist—and an MTV Europe Music Award.

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6.

Elena Paparizou was the most successful debuting female artist of the 2000s and established herself as one of the top acts of the latter half of the decade.

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7.

Elena Paparizou was born on 31 January 1982 in Boras, Vastergotland, Sweden; she was the youngest child of Greek parents Georgios Paparizos and Efrosyne "Froso" Elena Paparizou.

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8.

In 1985, the family moved back to Greece to live in Volos with relatives because Elena Paparizou had contracted asthma and her lungs could not cope with the cold Scandinavian climate.

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9.

Elena Paparizou continues to suffer from breathing problems and often carries an inhaler on-stage.

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10.

Elena Paparizou performed for the first time in front of a Greek audience when she was eleven, singing Christos Dantis' "Moro Mou".

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11.

Two years later, Elena Paparizou had decided she wanted to be a singer and began to study Greek music.

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12.

Elena Paparizou's had begged her mother to let her go to the party, but was not allowed to attend.

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13.

Elena Paparizou's started classes at the Art Performing School where she studied theater, acting, television and directing.

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14.

Elena Paparizou said the split was not permanent, but was a mutual decision to try other things, with plans of a reunion in mind.

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15.

In late 2003, Elena Paparizou signed a solo recording contract with Sony Music and released her debut single "Anapandites Kliseis", as a double A-side with "Treli Kardia".

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16.

From late 2003, Elena Paparizou was the opening act for various artists across Greece, including Antonis Remos and Giannis Spanos, Apostolia Zoi, Nino, Thanos Petrelis, Sakis Rouvas and Giorgos Mazonakis.

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17.

At the award ceremony, Elena Paparizou sang a duet of the song with its writer Christos Dantis.

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18.

Elena Paparizou moved permanently to Greece in 2004, and after a long selection process led by national broadcaster Hellenic Radio and Television, she was selected to represent Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 held in Kyiv, Ukraine.

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19.

Elena Paparizou's said at the time that no-one had wanted her to participate in Eurovision.

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20.

Elena Paparizou's continues to call herself Helena on all non-Greek promotions and releases, although she prefers to be known as "Elena".

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21.

On 21 May 2005, Elena Paparizou won the Eurovision Song Contest; the first Greek win in its history.

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22.

Elena Paparizou toured Europe, performing in all the countries that gave her 12 points.

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23.

Elena Paparizou stated that if she considered doing anything Eurovision-oriented again it be for her birth country Sweden, since she already had her turn with Greece.

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24.

Elena Paparizou's performed "My Number One" at the MAD VMAs in 2005, and in 2006 won awards for Best Pop Video, Best Video by a Female Artist, and Artist of the Year .

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25.

Elena Paparizou won the European Border Breakers Award at the Midem Festival in Cannes for the international editions of her debut album in 2007.

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26.

In early 2007, Elena Paparizou became the spokesperson for her previous sponsor, Nokia Greece, and released the song "Ola Einai Mousiki" in October 2007 for promotion.

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27.

Elena Paparizou's collaborated with retailer Plaisio and released a limited edition MP4 player called "MP4 Total Helena" by Turbo-X, which contained a special compilation and music videos, which were released as "TH4" MP4 in 2008 along with her new album material and exclusive content.

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28.

Elena Paparizou's released a cover of Blind Melon's "3 Is a Magic Number" in Sweden as part of a television advertisement for a mobile phone company; it peaked at number 18.

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29.

Elena Paparizou released her fourth album, Vrisko To Logo Na Zo on 12 June 2008.

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30.

In June, Elena Paparizou opened the MAD Video Music Awards 2008 with a remix of "Porta Gia Ton Ourano" with Madonna's song "4 Minutes ", and was featured in a performance of hip hop group Stavento.

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31.

Elena Paparizou embarked on her first national tour To Party Arhizei Tour from 2 July to 19 September 2009.

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32.

The finale concert of the tour, set for Herakleion, Crete three days later, was cancelled because of the weather conditions and instead, Elena Paparizou performed two shows in October 2009 at a club called Anadromes.

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33.

Newspaper shipments are not taken into consideration by IFPI, however; in a radio interview in August 2010, Elena Paparizou said that the album had sold enough physical copies to be certified Platinum by IFPI.

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34.

Elena Paparizou won the MTV Europe Award for Best Greek Act, and received a preliminary nomination for the Best European Act but finished sixth, missing the official nominations by one spot.

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35.

Elena Paparizou said she had no knowledge of the occurrences and that she had no affiliation, except as a performer, with the production group.

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36.

At the first MAD Fanatics concert, a tribute to Michael Jackson, Elena Paparizou performed with seven other artists; she closed the show with covers of Jackson's "Heal the World" and "You Are Not Alone".

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37.

Elena Paparizou was featured on Albert Hammond's greatest hits album Legend on the tracks "Enredao" and its English-language version, "Tangled Up in Tears".

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38.

On 2 February 2011, Elena Paparizou was one of eight acts performing at MAD TV's first charity fashion music show MADWalk—Greece's version of the international Fashion Rocks.

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39.

Elena Paparizou was nominated for Artist of the Year and received a fourth nomination for Best Pop Video for "Psahno Tin Alitheia".

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40.

Elena Paparizou spent the next six months in Sweden with family and friends.

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41.

Elena Paparizou wanted to revive her career in Sweden—which had declined since 2006—and to expand her career outside music.

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42.

Elena Paparizou's announced a second English-language album and European tour, along with possible participation in Melodifestivalen—which she had turned down in the past.

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43.

Elena Paparizou's said that any future collaborations with Mavridis in the future would be decided by her label.

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44.

Elena Paparizou's instead appeared on the Swedish version, Let's Dance in early 2012, partnered with David Watson.

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45.

The song was remixed by Playmen, who with Elena Paparizou performed it along with Joan Jett and the Blackhearts' "I Hate Myself for Loving You" at the 2012 MADWalk on 2 February 2012.

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46.

Elena Paparizou performed a cabaret version of Eric Saade's "Popular" for the final of Melodifestivalen 2012.

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47.

At the 2012 MAD Video Music Awards, Elena Paparizou performed a new version of the ballad "Poios" from Vrisko To Logo Na Zo, and was featured in Playmen's "All the Time"—a remix of the Eddie Murphy song—along with Courtney and RiskyKidd.

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48.

Elena Paparizou's said in radio interviews that she was searching for a new style for her upcoming Greek album.

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49.

Elena Paparizou's has released an English song called "Save Me " on Lionheart Records in Sweden following a six-year absence from the Swedish market.

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50.

In February 2013, Elena Paparizou performed as a guest at Greece's Eurovision national final, singing "My Number One" with Vegas and "Apres Toi" with Vicky Leandros.

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51.

On 27 May, Elena Paparizou performed at "Gabby Awards 2013" in Hollywood and singing some of Melina Merkouri's songs.

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52.

On 1 March, Elena Paparizou reached the final of Melodifestivalen 2014 after being voted into the top two of the Second Chance round of the competition.

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53.

Elena Paparizou performed at the semi-final of The Voice of Greece her new single "Don't Hold Back On Love" on 2 May 2014.

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54.

In February 2015, Elena Paparizou was featured on the house duo's HouseTwins single "Love Till It's Over", and later released her Greek single Otan Aggeli Klene.

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55.

On March, Elena Paparizou performed the singles as a guest at the Eurovision Greek Final along with the winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, "Rise Like a Phoenix".

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56.

On 23 May 2015 Elena Paparizou was the spokesperson for the points of Greece at Eurovision Song Contest 2015.

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57.

Elena Paparizou made her theatrical debut on the musical "Nine" at Pantheon Music Theatre as 'Saraghina'.

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58.

On 20 March 2016 Elena Paparizou performed in "Dromos Superstar Voices" at BOX Athens with special host the Greek band "Melisses".

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59.

Elena Paparizou performed as a special guest star in the "Euroclub" and in the "Eurovision Village" during the Eurovision Song Contest week.

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60.

In Summer 2016, Elena Paparizou toured in Greece along with Mironas Stratis and Isaias Matiaba.

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61.

In September 2016 Elena Paparizou joined "My Way" show in Sweden with Claes Malmberg and Jan Malmsjo.

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62.

On 2 November 2016 it was officially announced that Elena Paparizou would be one of the coaches at the third season of The Voice of Greece.

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63.

In mid 2017, Elena Paparizou toured Greece and Cyprus along with Despina Vandi in 16 cities in total.

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64.

Further, Elena Paparizou did 6 appearances alongside the Greek star Antonis Remos.

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65.

Elena Paparizou is regarded as being the most awarded Mad VMA artist to date, having a total of 26 awards.

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66.

Elena Paparizou is the only Greek Artist to have managed to have 3 of her songs in the Top 20 of the Greek Airplay for the year 2018.

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67.

In December 2020, Elena Paparizou performed at the MAD Video Music Awards, singing her new duet with Marseaux, "Deja Vu".

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68.

Elena Paparizou released a remake version on her 2004 hit song Katse Kala produced by Arcade featuring Marseaux and Joanne.

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69.

Elena Paparizou has said that her parents had no musical background and the only person in her family who sang was her paternal grandmother, who inspired Elena Paparizou to sing.

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70.

Elena Paparizou has stated that she was a big fan of the Eurovision Song Contest for years before she first participated in 2001.

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71.

Similar to Antique's work, all of Elena Paparizou's albums have included cover versions and translations.

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72.

Elena Paparizou said that anything that she chose to sing would become a hit.

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73.

Elena Paparizou used Paparizou to illustrate that big name producers like Giorgos Theofanous and Phoebus are not needed to create hits.

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74.

Elena Paparizou said that the album's laiko material contradicted the pop songs and made her overall sound less focused.

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75.

Zervas' impression was that while he believed in the material's potential, he thought that if Elena Paparizou continued her current trends and performance style at laiko nightclubs, her ambitions for an international career would come to a disappointment.

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76.

For Giro Apo T' Oneiro, Elena Paparizou worked with the same group she had two years before, with small changes.

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77.

Elena Paparizou's toned down the image she had created with her previous album; while many of the songs have rock influences and some songs include dance-pop and pop-folk, electronic and lounge music elements, with an overall pop theme.

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78.

Elena Paparizou has the vocal range of mezzo-soprano; from her Antique years until 2005, she performed in a vocal range of C4 to B6.

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79.

Elena Paparizou's said that Paparizou's limited range meant she had to repeat a similar set of notes.

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80.

Kalamaris, who said her 2008 and 2010 albums were very dull and mediocre, wrote that Elena Paparizou was "able to give life to even the most boring tracks with her delivery".

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81.

Elena Paparizou was known for wearing revealing clothes, which was a contrast from her "good girl" image.

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82.

Kalamaris said that Elena Paparizou was probably the only Greek female singer able to imitate the trends of international females without singing in skiladiko clubs and cloning herself into Madonna, which made her stand out against the concurrent mainstream scene.

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83.

Elena Paparizou said that she avoids extremes in her fashion choices.

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84.

Elena Paparizou established a public image described as that of the "Greek every-girl" or the "girl next door", making her an icon for teenagers.

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85.

Elena Paparizou became known for the way she approached the media; she has been known to apologize in her interviews, laugh throughout, and "embodies the good girl and not the femme fatale, she wants to be likeable" and projects an image of "child-woman", staying family-friendly.

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86.

Elena Paparizou has spoken candidly to reporters about her personal life, plastic surgery, and weight.

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87.

Elena Paparizou's has been referred to as an "anti-star"; A biography of Paparizou on Alpha TV's Kafes Me Tin Eleni stated that her appeal was not her voice, her songs or her body, but that she represents the qualities and limitations of the average person.

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88.

Elena Paparizou has said that she likes to present herself in moderation; she ranked her star power in the Greek star system as moderate, the level she finds appropriate for artists.

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89.

Elena Paparizou's said she believed her public image would never be able to overcome that of the girl next door in the eyes of the Greek public.

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90.

Elena Paparizou performed as the main act at the artistic portion of the Athens Pride 2010 LGBT event.

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91.

Elena Paparizou's has had promotional deals with Skechers, Nokia, Organics Hair Care and Ivi, and through record label association has promoted Sony Ericsson in both Greece and Sweden, TIM Hellas, Vivodi, and Coca-Cola.

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92.

Elena Paparizou said she had gained 10 kilograms ; however she had already lost 7 kilograms .

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93.

Elena Paparizou's had previously stated that she gains at least that amount every time she goes on a break and that she could possibly gain up to 15 kilograms .

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94.

Elena Paparizou said that for her appearance in the contest, she had lost too much weight, which had dropped to 51 kilograms .

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95.

Elena Paparizou was the youngest artist on the list, the only one under 30 and the only one to emerge in the 2000s in her solo career.

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96.

Elena Paparizou's is regarded as the most successful female pop singer of the second half of the 2000s .

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97.

Elena Paparizou's was involved in a long term relationship with fellow Swedish-born Greek Toni Mavridis, to whom she was introduced by a friend of her sister at a restaurant when she was 17, while Mavridis is 11 years her senior.

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98.

Elena Paparizou has said that Mavridis has never officially proposed to her and that she would prefer that he does this in the Western tradition of going down on one knee.

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99.

In 2011 Elena Paparizou took a break from the Greek music scene and returned to Sweden alone.

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100.

On 25 December 2008, Elena Paparizou's father died suddenly from a heart attack during the family's Christmas Day celebrations in Backa, Gothenburg.

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101.

Elena Paparizou stopped her performances at Iera Odos in Greece to be with family in Sweden before resuming her show.

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102.

Elena Paparizou's later said she believed that her father would have lived if the ambulance had been prompt, blaming medical incompetency.

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103.

In October 2012, Elena Paparizou started dating the civil engineer Andreas Kapsalis.

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104.

Elena Paparizou has been awarded three Arion Music Awards, a European Border Breakers Award, 30 MAD Video Music Awards—more than any other artist—and an MTV Europe Music Award.

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