By Viktar Korbut
Litesound, who conquered the public with their bulky car racer costumes, are now to go to Baku. They seem to have an intuitive sense of what will prove popular, even though their song may appear commonplace. Foreign journalists have proclaimed: ‘There is no other choice: Litesound was the only contestant with a good song!’
“Of course, we’re pleased. We’ve been moving towards this all our life. This is a new era for us. We’re happy and, naturally, will do everything possible to worthily represent our country in Baku,” promise Dmitry and Vladimir Karyakiny, from Litesound.
Dmitry’s social network page has seen fans requesting that the musicians leave their We Are the Heroes song unchanged (in line with the contest’s rules, it can be changed until mid-March). Fans proclaim: ‘We’ve won EuroFest with this song and shall do so at Eurovision!’ Nobody doubts that the musicians could compose an even better song but Dmitry Karyakin assures fans that their song has been chosen by Fate, so he has no plans to change it.
The musicians are to perform in Baku alongside Italian Jacopo Massa, who is known to Belarusians via the Festival Internazionale di Maiori in Italy — won by Litesound. In 2009, the popular young singer came to Minsk, recording Solo Per Te with the group; it later became a hit in Belarus and Italy. The move could encourage the Italians to award maximum points to the Belarusian band.
Dmitry Karyakin tells us how he became involved in music and shares his recipe for success at the national contest, alongside plans for the Baku show.
When did you begin studying music?
I loved the humanities: geography, history and literature — wishing to become either a writer or an artist. I was romantic and artistic, always feeling love. I often gave performances, dancing and singing, but eventually chose singing.
What inspired you to name the band Litesound?
I had a dream that the band would be successful under this name; I have no idea what guided me. However, I decided to let the dream come true.
What are your successes to date, besides your win in Italy and at EuroFest?
We wanted to record an album to worthily rival that of western singers. In 2008, our band recorded its debut: ‘Going to Hollywood’. The album was the third bestselling in Belarus within just 25 days. Meanwhile, in 2011, our ‘See You in Vegas’ was given ‘Best Video of the Year’ at the National Music Award.
Litesound was founded in 2004 but only appeared in public in 2006 — during a selective round for Eurovision. Since then, you’ve participated in EuroFest four times. How did you succeed in winning this time?
In 2006, we were inspired by the idea after Belarusian TV announced the conditions of the contest. However, we endured long debate on whether it was a good move for the band. We decided to enter our song at the last minute — an hour before the application closing time. Ever since, we’ve been steadily moving towards victory in the national selective round. We’re not used to losing.
Your victory in this year’s EuroFest was announced some time later. When did you realise that you were placed first?
The Internet vote — held on the eve of ‘EuroFest’ — indicated that we were the winners, so we naturally had high hopes. Five thousand people were present in the audience at the contest and only 40-50 were from our fan-club: just 1 percent of those present. However, the whole audience supported us. Even ‘Eurovision’ winner Alexander Rybak admitted, “I’m a fan of ‘Litesound’.”
What will change if you win Eurovision?
It’s most important that we worthily represent Belarus in Baku. We’ll prove that our music is the equal of that in Western Europe and the USA.
