1. Antique disbanded in 2003, and Paparizou signed a solo recording contract with Sony Music.
115 Facts About Helena Paparizou
1. 2.
Helena Paparizou attempted a career beyond Greece with English-language material, charting in a few countries abroad.
3.
Since 2016, Helena Paparizou has been a judge on The Voice of Greece.
4.
Helena Paparizou lived with her fiance and manager Toni Mavridis from 1999 until their separation in 2011.
5.
Helena Paparizou has been awarded three Arion Music Awards, a European Border Breakers Award, 35 MAD Video Music Awards and an MTV Europe Music Award.
6.
Helena 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.
7.
Helena Paparizou was born on 31 January 1982 in Boras, Vastergotland, Sweden and raised in Orgryte, Gothenburg she was the youngest child of Greek parents Georgios Paparizos and Efrosyne "Froso" Helena Paparizou.
8.
In 1985, the family moved back to Greece to live in Volos with relatives because Helena Paparizou had contracted asthma and her lungs could not cope with the cold Scandinavian climate.
9.
Helena Paparizou continues to suffer from breathing problems and often carries an inhaler on-stage.
10.
Helena Paparizou performed for the first time in front of a Greek audience when she was eleven, singing Christos Dantis' "Moro Mou".
11.
Two years later, Helena Paparizou had decided she wanted to be a singer and began to study Greek music.
12.
Helena Paparizou had begged her mother to let her go to the party, but was not allowed to attend.
13.
Helena Paparizou started classes at the Art Performing School where she studied theater, acting, television and directing.
14.
Helena Paparizou said the split was not permanent, but was a mutual decision to try other things, with plans of a reunion in mind.
15.
In late 2003, Helena Paparizou signed a solo recording contract with Sony Music and released her debut single "Anapandites Kliseis", as a double A-side with "Treli Kardia".
16.
From late 2003, Helena 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.
17.
At the award ceremony, Helena Paparizou sang a duet of the song with its writer Christos Dantis.
18.
Helena 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.
19.
Helena Paparizou said at the time that no-one had wanted her to participate in Eurovision.
20.
Helena Paparizou continues to call herself Helena on all non-Greek promotions and releases, although she prefers to be known as "Elena".
21.
Helena Paparizou spent in her campaign to promote Greece through merchandise and advertisements that aired throughout Europe.
22.
On 21 May 2005, Helena Paparizou won the Eurovision Song Contest; the first Greek win in its history.
23.
Helena Paparizou's performance scored 230 points and the maximum 12 points from ten nations.
24.
Helena Paparizou's performance was responsible for the highest viewing ratings in Greek television history.
25.
Helena Paparizou's win provoked mass celebrations on the streets of Athens, and on her return home she was congratulated at a State reception at the Maximos Mansion by the Minister of State Theodoros Roussopoulos, Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis and various government officials.
26.
Helena Paparizou toured Europe, performing in all the countries that gave her 12 points.
27.
Helena 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.
28.
Helena Paparizou 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.
29.
Helena Paparizou won the European Border Breakers Award at the Midem Festival in Cannes for the international editions of her debut album in 2007.
30.
In January 2006,25 artists including Helena Paparizou formed the group Simmeteho Energa, and recorded a charity single "Eho Ti Dinami" in support of the Greek Cancer Society.
31.
In early 2007, Helena Paparizou became the spokesperson for her previous sponsor, Nokia Greece, and released the song "Ola Einai Mousiki" in October 2007 for promotion.
32.
Helena Paparizou 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.
33.
Helena Paparizou 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.
34.
Helena Paparizou released her fourth album, Vrisko To Logo Na Zo on 12 June 2008.
35.
In June, Helena 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.
36.
Helena Paparizou embarked on her first national tour To Party Arhizei Tour from 2 July to 19 September 2009.
37.
The finale concert of the tour, set for Herakleion, Crete three days later, was cancelled because of the weather conditions and instead, Helena Paparizou performed two shows in October 2009 at a club called Anadromes.
38.
Newspaper shipments are not taken into consideration by IFPI, however; in a radio interview in August 2010, Helena Paparizou said that the album had sold enough physical copies to be certified Platinum by IFPI.
39.
On 6 November 2010, Helena Paparizou was awarded platinum certification, with shipments of at least 12,000 units of Giro Apo T' Oneiro by IFPI Greece at the grand opening of the new Metropolis music store at The Mall Athens.
40.
Helena 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.
41.
Helena Paparizou said she had no knowledge of the occurrences and that she had no affiliation, except as a performer, with the production group.
42.
At the first MAD Fanatics concert, a tribute to Michael Jackson, Helena Paparizou performed with seven other artists; she closed the show with covers of Jackson's "Heal the World" and "You Are Not Alone".
43.
Helena Paparizou was featured on Albert Hammond's greatest hits album Legend on the tracks "Enredao" and its English-language version, "Tangled Up in Tears".
44.
Helena Paparizou was nominated for Artist of the Year and received a fourth nomination for Best Pop Video for "Psahno Tin Alitheia".
45.
Helena Paparizou spent the next six months in Sweden with family and friends.
46.
Helena Paparizou said that any future collaborations with Mavridis in the future would be decided by her label.
47.
Helena Paparizou instead appeared on the Swedish version, Let's Dance in early 2012, partnered with David Watson.
48.
The song was remixed by Playmen, who with Helena Paparizou performed it along with Joan Jett and the Blackhearts' "I Hate Myself for Loving You" at the 2012 MADWalk on 2 February 2012.
49.
Helena Paparizou performed a cabaret version of Eric Saade's "Popular" for the final of Melodifestivalen 2012.
50.
Helena Paparizou said in radio interviews that she was searching for a new style for her upcoming Greek album.
51.
Helena Paparizou told MTV Greece that the album have 10 tracks.
52.
Helena Paparizou has released an English song called "Save Me " on Lionheart Records in Sweden following a six-year absence from the Swedish market.
53.
In February 2013, Helena Paparizou performed as a guest at Greece's Eurovision national final, singing "My Number One" with Vegas and "Apres Toi" with Vicky Leandros.
54.
On 27 May, Helena Paparizou performed at "Gabby Awards 2013" in Hollywood and singing some of Melina Merkouri's songs.
55.
On 1 March, Helena Paparizou reached the final of Melodifestivalen 2014 after being voted into the top two of the Second Chance round of the competition.
56.
Helena Paparizou performed at the semi-final of The Voice of Greece her new single "Don't Hold Back On Love" on 2 May 2014.
57.
In February 2015, Helena Paparizou was featured on the house duo's HouseTwins single "Love Till It's Over", and later released her Greek single Otan Aggeli Klene.
58.
On March, Helena 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".
59.
On 23 May 2015 Helena Paparizou was the spokesperson for the points of Greece at Eurovision Song Contest 2015.
60.
Helena Paparizou made her theatrical debut on the musical "Nine" at Pantheon Music Theatre as 'Saraghina'.
61.
On 20 March 2016 Helena Paparizou performed in "Dromos Superstar Voices" at BOX Athens with special host the Greek band "Melisses".
62.
Helena Paparizou performed as a special guest star in the "Euroclub" and in the "Eurovision Village" during the Eurovision Song Contest week.
63.
In Summer 2016, Helena Paparizou toured in Greece along with Mironas Stratis and Isaias Matiaba.
64.
In September 2016 Helena Paparizou joined "My Way" show in Sweden with Claes Malmberg and Jan Malmsjo.
65.
On 2 November 2016, it was officially announced that Helena Paparizou would be one of the coaches at the third season of The Voice of Greece.
66.
In mid 2017, Helena Paparizou toured Greece and Cyprus along with Despina Vandi in 16 cities in total.
67.
Further, Helena Paparizou did 6 appearances alongside the Greek star Antonis Remos.
68.
Helena Paparizou is regarded as being the most awarded Mad VMA artist to date, having a total of 26 awards.
69.
Helena 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.
70.
In late 2019, Helena Paparizou returned as coach at The Voice of Greece Season 6.
71.
In December 2020, Helena Paparizou performed at the MAD Video Music Awards, singing her new duet with Marseaux, "Deja Vu".
72.
For 2022 Helena Paparizou opens a new music era returning to her international hits abroad like "Lightning".
73.
In summer Antique performed at 'We Who Love 90's' Festival in Sweden while Helena Paparizou started her summer tour in Greece.
74.
In November Helena Paparizou did her comeback at Votanikos residency show next to Giorgos Sabanis and Anastasia for first time collaboration on stage until March 11,2023.
75.
Helena Paparizou released a remake version on her 2004 hit song Katse Kala produced by Arcade featuring Marseaux and Joanne.
76.
On November 17, Helena Paparizou performed My Number One along with dancers doing the same choreography bringing back nostalgia from 2005.
77.
Helena Paparizou was the spokesperson for the Greek jury in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024.
78.
Helena Paparizou was part of the interval act of the second semi-final in the same contest.
79.
Helena 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 Helena Paparizou to sing.
80.
Helena Paparizou has stated that she was a big fan of the Eurovision Song Contest for years before she first participated in 2001.
81.
Similar to Antique's work, all of Helena Paparizou's albums have included cover versions and translations.
82.
Helena Paparizou said that anything that she chose to sing would become a hit.
83.
Helena Paparizou used Paparizou to illustrate that big name producers like Giorgos Theofanous and Phoebus are not needed to create hits.
84.
Helena Paparizou said that the album's laiko material contradicted the pop songs and made her overall sound less focused.
85.
Zervas' impression was that while he believed in the material's potential, he thought that if Helena Paparizou continued her current trends and performance style at laiko nightclubs, her ambitions for an international career would come to a disappointment.
86.
For Giro Apo T' Oneiro, Helena Paparizou worked with the same group she had two years before, with small changes.
87.
Helena Paparizou 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.
88.
Helena Paparizou's next English album One Life followed pure pop sound while Ouranio Toxo in 2017 was a total bunch of mix kinds like pop, dance, ballads, folk and more containing in total 21 tracks.
89.
Helena Paparizou has the vocal range of mezzo-soprano; from her Antique years until 2005, she performed in a vocal range of C3 to B5.
90.
Helena Paparizou said that Paparizou's limited range meant she had to repeat a similar set of notes.
91.
Laimou said that particularly after her Eurovision victory, Helena Paparizou sang with a new-found confidence and force.
92.
Kalamaris, who said her 2008 and 2010 albums were very dull and mediocre, wrote that Helena Paparizou was "able to give life to even the most boring tracks with her delivery".
93.
Helena Paparizou was known for wearing revealing clothes, which was a contrast from her "good girl" image.
94.
Helena Paparizou's signature look was hot pants, showcasing her legs as her most prominent physical feature.
95.
Kalamaris said that Helena 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.
96.
Helena Paparizou said that she avoids extremes in her fashion choices.
97.
Helena Paparizou established a public image described as that of the "Greek every-girl" or the "girl next door", making her an icon for teenagers.
98.
Helena Paparizou's songs have become a staple for young people during auditions at reality music shows such as Greek Idol, and she has inspired younger artists such as Idol runner-up Nicole Paparistodimou.
99.
Helena 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.
100.
Helena Paparizou has spoken candidly to reporters about her personal life, plastic surgery, and weight.
101.
Helena Paparizou 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.
102.
Helena 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.
103.
Helena Paparizou 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.
104.
Helena Paparizou performed as the main act at the artistic portion of the Athens Pride 2010 LGBT event.
105.
Helena Paparizou 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.
106.
Helena Paparizou said she had gained 10 kilograms ; however she had already lost 7 kilograms.
107.
Helena Paparizou 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.
108.
Helena Paparizou said that for her appearance in the contest, she had lost too much weight, dropping to 51 kilograms.
109.
Helena 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.
110.
Helena Paparizou is regarded as the most successful female pop singer of the second half of the 2000s.
111.
Helena Paparizou 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.
112.
On 25 December 2008, Helena Paparizou's father died suddenly from a heart attack during the family's Christmas Day celebrations in Backa, Gothenburg.
113.
Helena Paparizou stopped her performances at Iera Odos in Greece to be with family in Sweden before resuming her show.
114.
Helena Paparizou later said she believed that her father would have lived if the ambulance had been prompt, blaming medical incompetency.
115.
In October 2012, Helena Paparizou started dating the civil engineer Andreas Kapsalis.