Nina Kraljic caused a stir last Friday when she revealed her metallic peacock dress. It’s not cute — and, as she revealed in a candid interview with wiwibloggs, she knows it. In fact, she even thinks she is in the race to win the infamous Barbara Dex Award for Worst Dressed.
Nina Kraljic interview in Stockholm
Nina also dishes on her staging.
The Croatian singer wanted to tell a story in her performance, but her broadcaster’s financial shortcomings left her with a tight budget. Hence the rather simple stage show, which features a series of changing lights and little else.
She has an international team behind her and that’s how she likes it. Austrian songwriters and German production — that dynamic led to her catchy and radio-friendly song, which doesn’t feel too Balkan. She’s #ComingTogether y’all!
Our first interview with Nina
When we interviewed her on May 2, she told us that she was having problems with her voice — apparently because of Swedish air conditioners. She’s not used to having the air conditioner on all day and it’s been drying her out.
Nina’s press conference
Our girl also told us about her hair. She wants it to be more silver and more shiny, but we think it looks fantastic even in platinum blonde.
What do you think about Nina’s performance? And what about her dress? Let us know below!
She might win it for positive reasons.
I love how she takes things with homour, good for her! I love her!
I also unironically love her outfits and the staging. Though I agree it could’ve been a lot better, telling a story, something simple like Serbia for example.
Since I know she doesn’t have the slightest chances of winning, for me the fact she qualified for the final is like victory 😛 Regardless of the result I think it was a good comeback from Croatia.
Don’t worry Nina. Finland’s camel toe and Albania’s travesty of a good looking woman both should win over you.
We love her, whatever the result! Go Nina and good luck!
For us it’s even a big thing we managed finally to come back at Eurovision. With making final, she showed so many composers that there’s nothing wrong with choosing international composers cause European fans in the previous years just didn’t like what we’ve offered them. I really like her song. Feel a little bit sorry for her because our team is old fashioned and I’m sure she had to do some many compromises with them. I don’t like the dress, but to be in the 2nd part of the final before Russia and all favorites maybe the voice isn’t just… Read more »
she seems like a nice person and has an awesome voice (perhaps the best one this year) but the song is a total bore and the poor staging makes matters even worse.
It’s a shame she did not get enough financial support. But couldn’t they still pick a better outfit than this? It doesn’t even look cheap, it’s just a wrong choice for this song.
Can EBU somehow regulate the budget of the entries, how much money they can spend on staging, outfits, etc? Of course they won’t, the more money involved, the bigger the show is.
She has a great sense of humour and is very like likeable.
And I can’t be the only one who actually likes her costume. This is not a dress, it’s a costume and I think it fits her great. And goes well with the song. Nina looks like the Queen of Light. 🙂
And the song and her voice…oh… Beautiful by any means. Pure brilliance. She my be the dark horse of the competition. Potentially Top 10. Fingers crossed! 🙂
She will win Barbara Dex for sure… but it’s ok, it’s not gonna ruin our love to her, it’s just a stupid award created to make people have fun looking at some crazy costumes. Don’t take it too seriously
It’s too bad that croatian national TV didn’t give more money for Nina’s performance, because she really deserves a great performance – it not necesarry to have some expensive staging like Russia, but more lights and a little bit more effects would be enough. I understand reason of her designet why did he dress like this, but It’s a little bit too much for my taste, but that dress gives attention to Nina and makes her more interesting something like Lady Gaga. And c’mon guys we are talking about ESC where it must be extravagantly – she wouldn’t be notable… Read more »
I think Rykka might be in the running for the Barbara Dex award with her smoking armpits, but let us not forget the Ironman mermaid dress and weird leather uniform of B&H topped with hypothermia blankets.
Croatia has the most beautiful and contemporary song of all!. That songs transmits a feeling. The rest of the songs transmit nothing except for France.
Good luck Croatia, you have the best track, the best scenario (love the dark sea), one of the best female voices and above all, you have our respect.
Get there and show the world why a good track should win!. Show Russia what a real song should be like.
I think Polis random patch lite brite outfits giving Nina a run for the Dex. I understand croatias limited budget, but still think they could have done it better. I was expecting to get goosebumps, and it never happened
I’m thinking Rykka might take home the Dex Award. I have 2 other candidates, and fortunately Nina is not one of them.
Her dress is quite ideal in a designers point of view though. But her voice kills all bad things about that dress. She’s got a beautiful voice and a magnificent vocal range. I really want her to win. But i doubt it given that the current favourite is russia.
@Eli
She will do well….she is already in top15 (at least) from yesterday jury voting….
For barbara Dex award I vote B&H!!!
I love her. It’s a great song, very much to my taste, and the fact that she’s received so little support from her own country only makes me love her even more as a person and makes her performance all the more compelling, because there’s nothing artificial about it. This is all her and her love for her song and her love for this competition, persevering against adversity.
I’ll be so happy if this song makes the top ten!
I love her and her song. I hope she does well tonight.