We all remember the winners of our favourite TV show. But do we also remember those runners-up, those bridesmaid, those ‘first losers’? Some of them maybe should be more renowned than the song that beat them.
We also have our favourite runners-up. The one from 1968 maybe? Anyway, in 2000 we were in a massive globular building in Stockholm, and the runner-up was today’s birthday girl Алсу́ Рали́фовна Абра́мова/Алсу Рәлиф кызы Абрамова/Alsou Ralifovna Abramova, known to you and me as simply Alsou. She gave Russia the first of four runner-up spots to date, and probably signalled that Russia was ready for a win. She got four maxima, and finished immediately ahead of fellow ex-USSRists Brainstorm and Ines. Nine years after this performance, Alsou did her stuff again, this time as a presenter when the circus rolled into Moscow. Does this make her a contender for Russia’s Ms Eurovision? Well, she’d probably have to see off a certain ex-wife of Philipp Kirkorov.
Alsou is 37 today.
С днем рождения, алсу!