Lea Sirk introduces 'Hvala, ne!' to the rehearsal stage
02 May 2018 at 18:00 CESTLea Sirk was born on the 1st of September, 1989, in Slovenia, where she started her musical education at the young age of five. Among many other awards, Lea received the award for the most promising young singer at the International Music Competition Cologne in 2005. As a backing vocalist, Lea has already performed twice at the Eurovision Song Contest; in 2014 in Copenhagen with Tinkara Kovač, and in 2016 in Stockholm with ManuElla. Earlier this year, she won Slovenia’s nation selection Evrovizijska Melodija (EMA) 2018.
Lea is a proud mother of two girls, and has been building her solo career alongside that role.
READ MORE: Lea's profile
Hvala, ne! was written by Lea who also produced the song with Tomy DeClerque.
The first run through of Hvala, ne! did not disappoint. The song opens with powerful dance moves by four dancers, eventually revealing Lea behind them as the lyrics begin. Backed by the dancers dressed in glitter body suits, Lea sings the energetic song with intermittent synchronized choreographed moves. Lea is wearing a similar body suit to her dancers, with the addition of an off-the-shoulder mesh cover-up and the signature pink side braid we've come to expect. Making full use of the outer circle of the stage, Lea will bring the energy right to the crowd.
Lea's act features an unexpected turn, which we gladly keep as a surprise until the second Semi-Final on Thursday, 10th of May.
When Eurovision.tv caught up with Lea after her rehearsal, she told us: "I liked the big stage, but I missed the people inside. I will be very happy when people are in front of me!"
Regarding the meaning behind her song, Lea shared that the song is about "what I say hvala ne, or 'no thanks', to. I prefer to say no to all that is fake, and the masks that we wear on our faces. I am trying to take my mask off and show the real Lea."
Lea will perform Hvala, ne! for Slovenia in the second Semi-Final on the 10th of May.