"All in all Olivia as solo singer has taken part in 11 Song For Europe festivals, she never missed festival since 1997"

The Spin

Olivia Lewis was born on the 18th October, 1978. At an early age, she started showing interest towards singing and performing and eventually started attending singing lessons. This was followed by a string of successful participations in local song festivals.
Her first participation in the Song for Europe Festival was actually at age 14 as backing vocalist. A year later she was also backing vocalist for William Mangion's winning 'This time'. She just missed participating in the Eurovision Song Contest of that year because of her young age.

In the mean time Olivia started focusing on various musical styles. Her preferred styles are R&B and soul. She likes listening to singers such as Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey and a host of other performers who have made their name in the black music scene. After a few years, Olivia was encouraged to start training for jazz singing. This took most of her time, but results were soon to be forthcoming. In fact Olivia was the first Maltese singer to perform in the renowned Malta Jazz Festival together with the Paul Giordmaina Jazz Quarter.

Olivia has participated as lead singer in the Song for Europe Festival since she was 16 years old. In the process she has collaborated with the best composers on the island such as Paul Abela, Dominic Galea, Paul Giordmaina, Philip Vella and Ray Agius amongst a host of others. Her most memorable performances came in these last two participations. Two years ago she was classified first by the jury and second in the televoting, just missing the top spot by a few points. 'Deja vu', written by the winning duo Philip Vella and Gerard James Borg got 11,369 votes, coming second and missing the top spot by 500 votes. Last year Olivia again came 2nd with "Spare a Moment" by Ray Agius and Godwin Sant. All in all Olivia as solo singer took part in 11 Song For Europe festivals, she never missed festival since 1997.

Olivia has also participated successfully in a host of foreign festivals. She has sung in the UK, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Serbia and Montenegro, Kazakhstan and a host of others. She placed first in the Lithuanian and Bulgarian festivals and second in the Kazakstan festival. 2005 marked the release of Olivia's first cd-single which contains Deja vu and also a remix of this song made by DJ Armani. She is currently working on her first CD-Album due out this year.

Olivia is also a leading singer in the entertainment industry and her schedule is often packed with singing at events, hotels, concerts and other activities. She also participates in a daily television show called 'Kalamita' which attracts the highest viewership in the afternoon broadcasts on the island.

The Singer
 
Peal the bells! Throw open the windows! Let the joy be unbounded! At the eleventh attempt of national pre-selection, Olivia has finally done it. The runner-up more often than a myopic at the World Staring Championships, Olivia Lewis jumped up a place in 2007, and proudly won her ticket to Helsinki. Euro-fans have watched over the years as Olivia has become heavier and more desperate, only to share in her joy now that her chance has come. Talking about desperate Malta themselves have now been waiting 36 years for their first victory, with only Portugal waiting longer (surprise surprise). The weight of expectations are on her sizeable shoulders.

The Past
  
Aah, Malta. If Eurovision countries were toys, then Malta would be a big cuddly teddy bear (Germany would be Garbage Pail Kids, Sweden would be Barbie, Spain would be Ken).
The little jewel of Eurovision, who for over 10 years now have been sending cuddly, quasi-religious little ditties, almost universally to some success. Three times, three women have come in the top three, which for an island with no railways is pleasing for Maltesers. Thousands of people welcomed Ira back home after her second place in 2002, proof if proof were required just how powerful a inconsequential three minutes of sound can be. Nobody could begrudge Malta a win. Aah.

The Song
 
"Vertigo" resolutely refuses to deal in sentences, and instead comes across as a kind of bi-polar ranting of a deluded mind. Still, it's highly enjoyable, and does lay claim to the most cheesy presentation of the year.

Overall

There is no doubt that the combination of Olivia and "Vertigo" is going to be hugely entertaining, even if it's merely as a post-modernist metaphor for ageing fans. Unusually Malta have to qualify from the semi-final, and have the added problem of following the other ageing cheese-mistress of 2007, Norway's gurning skank. The extent to which this will hinder Olivia is unclear, but I fear she'll miss out. Shame.

In a Nutshell
"Will it qualify? She says yes. I say no"

the philosopher says

self-deception Avoidance or outright denial of unpleasant aspects of reality, especially those which might otherwise warrant an unfavorable opinion about ourselves. Thus, for example, the wishful thought, "Olivia Lewis is not really addicted to trying to qualify for Eurovision; she could quit trying at any time." is clearly self-deceptive. Kierkegaard, Heidegger, and Sartre condemned self-deception as bad faith, or an inauthentic response to the anxiety produced by contemplation of human freedom. Although most of us retrospectively acknowledge the role of such a practice in our own lives, it isn't clear what makes it possible for a single person to be both deceived and deceiver. How can I both know the truth and yet keep it from myself at the same time? Unless the deception is entirely unconscious, there must be some degree of willful disregard of the evidence that I suspect would lead to the unpleasant truth I would rather not face.
Oh and watching Olivia's Lewis video only confirms her unwillingness to face the truth...and that's a fact.

Vertigo

You're spinning me round
And you're holding me down
Loving you gives me vertigo
I'm losing my ground
Giving in to your heart
Kissing you gives me vertigo

And I'm lost…
Then I'm found…
And I run…
Then I hide…
And I turn…
You're not there…
I say yes…
You say no…
Loving you gives me vertigo
And I give…
But you take…
I made one…
Big mistake…
Gave you all…
A to Z…
Then you came…
Now you go…
Loving you gives me vertigo

You're lifting me high
Then you're taking me low
It's feeling like I'm getting vertigo
You colour me blue
Turn my passion to red
It's feeling like I've become indigo

(Chorus)

Am I crazy? Could it be maybe?
Solo is the way to go

(Chorus)

Prediction Semi Final 11th
Final -