JADAR

★★★★★

Marina Satti is one of the most memorable artists to have competed in Eurovision this year. From her friendship with fellow queer artists (including winner Nemo) to her instantly iconic yawn at one of the press conferences, Marina became a Eurovision icon, even though she scandalously finished outside of the top 10. Hot off the success of her European breakthrough with her ambitious EP P.O.P., Marina has embarked on a huge European tour, which included two UK stops in London and Manchester.

Born in Greece to a Greek mother and Sudanese father, Marina has chosen fellow Greek artists as her UK opening acts: Theanò, a Greek-Georgian living in the UK, supported Marina in London, whilst Kara Marni, a Briton of Greek-Cypriot descent, supported her in Manchester. I previously saw Kara open for Sugababes on their long-awaited comeback tour; it was great to see music legends paired with an up-and-coming starlet. I’d instantly recognised her song ‘Move’ as a song I’d had on Spotify for ages.

This time, she opened her set with that groovy bop, which instantly warmed the audience up. She then wisely covered a much-loved classic – Chaka Khan’s ‘Ain’t Nobody’ – to win everyone over. Other covers included ‘Crazy’ by Gnarls Barkley’s and even a Greek song: ‘Ela’ by Greek singer Andromache (which represented Cyprus ay Eurovision in 2022). Her original songs included ‘Opposite’ and ‘Wasteman’ (her cathartic latest single), and she ended her set with She ended her set with ‘Trippin’ (which samples Amerie’s ‘1 Thing’).

Whilst a support slot is an amazing opportunity, it’s pretty daunting: you’re performing in front of a bunch of people who possibly have no idea who you are. But Kara put her all into her performance, and the audience gave it right back to her. She was the perfect opening act for Marina.

Usually, artists perform their signature song and/or latest hit towards the end of their sets (at the end of the main set or in the encore). Very occasionally, they open with it. But Marina did something very different: she opened and closed with ‘ZARI’, her Eurovision song.

It felt very poetic. It rendered the concert a celebration of her career since Eurovision; of what Eurovision has done for her career. It also just allowed the concert to both open and close with a bang. It also works well logistically because there are always a few people who arrive late and a few people who have to leave early – this way, everybody got to hear ‘ZARI’ at least once!

Marina then took it back to 2017 ‘Mantissa;, her first Greek chart hit, which reached number one. She has been releasing music since 2008 but it took almost a decade for her to be noticed.

Marina later told us that in around 2016, she wanted to throw in the towel and do something else. She had her breakthrough in 2017but then took some time away from music. She bounced back in 2021 with ‘Pali’, which reached number 18. But it was not until P.O.P. that she truly blew up. Lead single ‘TUCTUM’ only reached number 21 but the next two singles reached number one and the fourth reached number sixteen.

Marina, who is almost 38 (she looks a good decade younger), embodies perseverance. It took a lot of hard work but now she’s one of the biggest artists in the Balkans – and when you see her live, you can see why. Her energy is abundant and infectious. She briefly left the stage once early on. I only recall seeing her drink once (after coughing a little).

She served vocals and danced like her life depended on it for like 1 hour 45 minutes. She’d perform a dance-heavy number (and still sound amazing) and then go straight into a ballad (without sounding at all out of breath). This is testament to her well-earned stamina.

Her live performance of ‘MIXTAPE’, a genre-defying, groundbreaking track on P.O.P. that lasts 10 minutes and 32 seconds, was absolutely electrifying. My writer, Katie, could not believe that it was one song; she thought it was made up of several, all mashed together.

That brings me on to my next point: the transitions between songs were always on point. In particular, the transition between ‘SPIRTO KAI VENZINI’ and ‘STIN IYIA MAS’ was so smooth, even though the sounds are incredibly different and sound like they should not be performed consecutively. Praise must go to Marina’s fantastic band – and, in particular, whoever did the musical direction.

Marina’s was supported vocally by Erasmia Markidi and Elena Leoni, who enhanced her vocals and also got their own moments to shine. Marina told us that the three of them are members of an an all-female a cappella group (Fonés – which also includes Virginia Fragkoulatzi and Eleni Papli). Founded in 2016, this group helped her realise that music was her passion and helped her get to where she is today.

Different gigs have had different dancers and even a different number of dancers: London, the night prior, had two, whilst some other cities have had more. Manchester only got the one but he’s all we needed – Hüso Çetintaş, one of Marina’s Eurovision dancers, is transfixing. His mix of masculine and feminine movements was divine.

Alongside her own music, Marina performed quite a few covers, including some traditional Greek songs alongside a couple of Arabic covers (‘Jeeb El Mejwez’ by Lebanese singer Farah and ‘Habib Galbi’ by Israeli band A-WA, who sing in Yemenite Arabic, the language of their paternal family). Marina has always embraced her Sudanese heritage and incorporated Arabic music and sounds into her material but it was great to see her perform in Arabic.

After ‘Habib Galbi’, she performed the four singles off P.O.P.: lead single ‘TUCUTUM’, third single ‘LALALALA’ (mine and everybody else’s favourite Marina song!), fourth (and most recent) single ‘AH THALASSA’, and then a repeat of second single ‘ZARI’. It was a P.O.P.-tastic end to a gig that combined an eclectic array of genres, from Middle-Eastern to Rock.