The Cyprus act for Kyiv isn’t due to be revealed until Friday, but local media have jumped the gun. Hovig, who was a finalist in Cyrpus’ national final in 2015, is being reported as Cyprus’ man for Ukraine.

Hovig Demirjian — a 27-year-old Cypriot of Armenian heritage — was a contestant on The X Factor Greece in 2009, the same year as Ivi Adamou. Over the series, he demonstrated himself as a versatile performer with strong rock vocals, able to deliver upbeat songs as well as emotional ballads, in both English and in Greek. He eventually placed seventh on the show.

He’s since been busy with his music career, and fans recently spotted an Instagram post from Hovig mentioning he’d been at a photo shoot, perhaps preparing for the big announcement.

Hovig has made two previous attempts at representing his country at Eurovision. In 2010, he made it to the national final with his upbeat dance number “Goodbye”, which placed third-equal.

In 2015, Hovig competed in the Cyprus national final The Eurovision Song Project, with his song “Stone in a River”. He eventually placed fourth, but given that runners-up Minus One had their chance at Eurovision the year after, perhaps it’s no surprise that CyBC are drawing on the talent pool of the 2015 national final.

The Wiwi Jury were impressed by “Stone in a River” and ranked it top of the six Eurovision Song Project finalists, with an average score of 8.5. Some jury comments included:

William: “I’d like to write Hovig’s mom a letter and thank her for giving birth to the one man who is making the Cypriot final a bit more bearable. The song is modern and he knows how to sing it. A serious contender for the title of Eurovision’s Next Top Male Model, Hovig has a stone in a river and a major shot to win in Cyprus! Score: 7/10”

Patrick: “Hovig is amazing! His live version is even better than the studio version! “Stone in the river” is a touching song, filled with pure emotions and pain. The lyrics are beautiful and he is loved, really loved by the jury! If he wins, I’ll be really happy, like amazingly happy! GO HOVIG! Score: 10/10”

Rumours have been circulating over who Cyprus would select for Kyiv, with the frontrunners reported to have been Loukas Giorkas (Greece’s Eurovision 2011 act), Charis Savva (who competed at JESC 2008 and Cyprus’ 2015 national final) and Andreas Leontas (Greek X Factor 2016 winner).

However, Cyprus media are reporting that the broadcaster will confirm Hovig on Friday via a press release.

What do you think? Is Hovig a good choice for Cyprus? Share your thoughts below!

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