Eleni Foureira (; born Entela Fureraj on 7 March 1987) is a naturalised-Greek Albanian singer and dancer. She began her music career in 2007 as a member of the Greek girl group Mystique, pursuing a solo career after the group disbanded in 2009. She released five studio albums since.
Foureira signed a solo contract with Universal Music Greece and released her self-titled debut album in 2010. She later signed with Minos EMI, and went on to release her second and third studio albums Ti Poniro Mou Zitas and Anemos Agapis in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Both albums were well-received in Greece and Cyprus. Foureira left Minos EMI in 2015, and signed with Panik Records. Her fourth studio album Vasilissa was released in December 2017.
After being rejected several times in her efforts to represent Greece, Foureira represented Cyprus in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 with the song "Fuego". She was one of three ethnically Albanian competitors. On 8 May 2018, she qualified from the first semi-final to the grand final, where she finished second with 436 points, thereby achieving Cyprus' best Eurovision result to date.
In 2019, Foureira released the EP Gypsy Woman, followed in 2020 by the release of singles "Yayo", "Temperatura" and "Light It Up". In 2021, she hosted the Greek talent show House of Fame - La Academia at Skai TV. Afterwards, she collaborated with Greek rapper MadClip on the song "Mporei", which became one of the biggest hits of the year in Greece. The song "Aeraki (To Thiliko)" followed with similar success. On June 3, 2022, Eleni released her fifth studio album called “Poli_Ploki”.
Early life
Foureira was born as Entela Fureraj on 7 March 1987 in Fier, Albania. Her mother is a seamstress, while her father works in construction. She has three siblings: Ioanna, Margarita, and Giorgos. Foureira grew up in the Eastern Orthodox faith, and has a grandfather who was from Greece. When she was four years old, the family moved to the city of Vlorë, and later moved to Greece due to the Albanian Civil War in 1997. While living in Albania, the family had electricity for only two hours a day, and left for Greece after their home was hit with bullets. Upon arriving in Greece, Foureira and her family settled in Athens.
Foureira began pursuing music at a young age, learning how to play guitar and later working in a theatre for three years.
Career
2007–2009: Early career and Mystique
Foureira began her music career as a member of the girl group Mystique. She was discovered by Andreas Giatrakos, and the group also consisted of Alkmini Chatzigianni and Maria Makri. They released their debut single "Se alli selida" in 2007, and later achieved success with the single "Min kaneis pos de thymasai" featuring Greek hip hop group NEVMA the following year. They broke up in 2009.
2010–2018: Pursuit of a solo career
After Mystique broke up, Foureira signed a solo contract with Universal Music Greece, the same label as Mystique. She appeared on the charity program Just the Two of Us, hosted by Mega Channel. She tied for first place along with singer Panagiotis Petrakis. Foureira released her self-titled debut studio album in December 2010. Afterwards, she signed with Minos EMI. Her second album Ti Poniro Mou Zitas was released in 2012, while her third Anemos agapis was released in 2014. From 2015 to 2016, she starred as Sofia in the musical Barbarella: the 80's Musical in Athens, alongside other Greek pop stars such as Ivi Adamou and Katy Garbi. Following the release of Anemos agapis, she left Minos EMI and signed with Panik Records. She was a judge on season three of the Greek version of So You Think You Can Dance. Her fourth studio album Vasilissa was released in 2017.
Eurovision Song Contest 2018
Foureira has made several attempts to represent Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest. In 2010, she took part in the Greek national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with Manos Pyrovolakis, performing the song "Kivotos tou Noe". They placed second behind Giorgos Alkaios. In 2013, she performed "Wild Dances" with Ruslana at Eurosong 2013 – a MAD show. She later considered taking part in Eurosong 2015 - NERIT & MAD show, but ultimately did not. She once again attempted to represent Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Come Tiki Tam", but was rejected by Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT). In 2017, she was rejected by the broadcaster for the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 once again.