Armed with hairspray and flanked by leather-clad back-up dancers, Maryam Karimova booked a spot in the semi-finals of Azerbaijan’s national selection contest on Friday.
Her performance of “Wild Dances”—supposedly sung in English—borrowed heavily from Ruslana’s winning routine at Eurovision 2004. In doing so, it captured the same “Xena Warrior Princess does aerobics” vibe that made Ruslana a star.
Which performance do you prefer? Can Maryam win in Baku?
Maryam’s cover of “Wild Dances”:
And the original:
