They’re a fan favourite country at Eurovision. But, Armenia’s stars don’t just give us memorable performances on the Eurovision stage, they also deliver the goods with the music they release following their participation in the contest.

With so much great music coming from Armenia’s Eurovision alumni, here’s a roundup of what Iveta Mukuchyan, Srbuk, Artsvik, Aram MP3, Sevak Khanagyan and Sirusho have been up to over recent months.

Iveta Mukuchyan – “Im Anush Hayastan”

Following on from “United”, the third part of her “The Journey of a Woman” series, Iveta Mukuchyan has released “STVER” with rapper 3.33 and “Hayastan” with Gata Band in the past few months. However, the Armenian star’s latest release is “Im Anush Hayastan” (“My Sweet Armenia”). Iveta celebrates her home country through the track, which is filled with luscious traditional instruments.

The accompanying music video is cinematic to say the least. Shot in high-definition widescreen, the video showcases both Armenia and Iveta’s stunning beauty. The “Lovewave” hitmaker werks a number of couture outfits that match with the singer’s surroundings, including a turquoise dress, a black jacket with fringe sleeves, as well as a traditional patterned outfit and matching boots. Not just a poser though, the instrumental break gives Iveta the chance to let lose and shake her hair a bit whilst dancing near a number of burning fires (hopefully no hair extensions were harmed in the making of the video).

Srbuk – “Na na na” and Armenian Folk

Armenia’s most recent Eurovision participant seems to have taken on the advice of one of her fellow contestants. Serhat asked us all to “Say Na Na Na” earlier this year, and Srbuk is very much obliging in her new song “Na na na”. The song features on the soundtrack of the new comedy/drama film Anhayt Bajanord (Unknown Subscriber), which is the Armenian version of 2016 Italian film Perfetti sconosciuti (Perfect Strangers) – the original now holds the Guinness World Record for being the most remade film in cinema history, with over 18 countries having recreated it (including Spain, Mexico, South Korea, France, Hungary, Greece, China, Russia and Poland).

“Na na na” has an infectious beat running throughout it and allows Srbuk to be a bit more playful compared to her Eurovision entry. The “Walking Out” singer shows off her personality in the accompanying music video, as she dances around a house with a number of backing dancers dressed in morph suits that have colourful patterns generated onto them.

Recently, Srbuk has also released ten other new songs for us. This new project sees the star remaking traditional Armenian folk songs into her own style. Blending traditional with modern, the collection helps show the breadth of Srbuk’s musical ability while still paying homage to the original songs.

You can check out all the songs in the YouTube playlist below.

Artsvik – “Life Goes On” (with Noris) and “Bang Bang”

It’s been a busy week for Artsvik. The Eurovision 2017 contestant has given us not one, but two new singles. The first of these sees Artsvik teaming up with Russian singer Noris on “Life Goes On”. An upbeat track merging electronic sounds with drum and bass, there’s a long 42 second intro before we actually hear any singing from either artist.

Once Artsvik and Noris finally let their voices be heard, the lyrics are a call for us all to keep going and not let life get us down: “Life goes on, we can be free / We can make it, you will see / Know that you can learn to fly / Spread your wings, you can touch the sky / Love, love, love / Love will set us free”.

The “Fly With Me” singer’s latest solo track is “Bang Bang”. Starting off slow in the first verse, a thumping beat soon kicks in to add further dynamism. Lyrically, Artsvik sings about overcoming personal struggles and remembering that there’s always someone there to help us through difficult times: “Don’t you worry no more / Bang bang, now we are stronger … Bang bang, they won’t bring us down”.

Eurovision fans may feel like they recognise the track. Indeed, the song has a similar structure, beat and transition into the chorus as Loreen’s Melodifestivalen 2017 entry “Statements”.

Aram MP3 – “Alabalanica”

Admittedly, Aram MP3’s latest song was released way back in April. However, “Alabalanica” is too good to completely pass over. The Eurovision 2014 star brings us a mid-tempo electro-funk piece with elements of traditional instrumentation sprinkled in for good measure. It’s exactly the sort of thing that Aram MP3 does best, and the eight million YouTube views in six months proves just that.

The music video is shot completely inside, but makes full use of on-screen LED graphics to brighten it up. The “Not Alone” singer gets his groove on with a group of backing dancers and has a party in an abandoned warehouse. From break-dancing to voguing, there’s everything going on. Although, that Donald Duck mask may give us a few nightmares later tonight…

Sevak Khanagyan – “SER” and “Доброе Утро”

Sevak Khanagyan spent the early months of 2019 releasing music videos for a number of tracks from his new album Океан Внутри Тебя (The Ocean Inside You). This includes “Ярко” (“Brightly”) and “Открой глаза” (“Open your eyes”). However, last month he also dropped the music video for the completely new single “SER”. A mid-tempo ballad, this song showcases much of the same emotion and power as his Eurovision 2018 entry.

The music video sees the “Qami” singer’s car breakdown while he’s travelling through the wilderness with his loved one. The couple eventually stumble across an empty diner and motel, where they pretend to drink and have dinner whilst waiting for someone to arrive. Sevak also decides he’ll turn a negative situation into a positive one by offering his partner a special ring.

Srbuk isn’t the only Armenian Eurovision alum who’s been getting into the film industry. Sevak’s latest song is “Доброе Утро” (“Good morning”), which features on the soundtrack for the new Russian film девушки бывают разные (Girls are different). The track is a mid-tempo pop song, which contrasts from Sevak’s recent back catalogue that has been more ballad-heavy.

The music video for the track switches between shots of the Armenian singer performing in front of a graffitied wall and clips from the comedy movie, which sees three male holiday-goers dress up in drag in order to escape from an international crime boss. The final shot even has a passing resemblance to Slovenia’s Eurovision 2002 act.

Sirusho – “Summer Love: Vuy Aman”

The cold nights may be drawing in across Europe, but we’re still thinking back to our summer holidays. Thankfully, Sirusho has the perfect song to tie us over until next summer. The Eurovision 2008 star released “Summer Love: Vuy Aman” at the end of June. It’s a follow-up to her 2017 single “Vuy Aman” (“Oh Alas”), which featured Grammy-nominated artist Sebu.

This new version adds more modern production, but still keeps the traditional aspects in parts of the instrumentation. Meanwhile, the accompanying music video sees Sirusho having fun in the sun both in the city and out in nature.

If you want more from the “Qele Qele” hitmaker, Sirusho also released a short music video for her song “Gozal” last month, which is used to advertise the wedding collection of her Pregomesh jewellery line. The track itself originally comes from her 2016 album Armat. Check it out here.

What do you make of these new releases from Armenia’s Eurovision alumni? Which songs will you be adding to your playlist? Sound off in the comments below!

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A random russian guy
A random russian guy
4 years ago

Love Armenia 🙂

Rasmus
Rasmus
4 years ago

i thought Armenia was a poor country. No offense. But it seems very rich.

Ron
Ron
4 years ago
Reply to  Rasmus

Armenia has a low GDP per capita (due to Azeri and Turkish blockade) but it has a high GDI which measures the overall living standards of its population.

Also, Armenia was one of the most advanced countries in the Soviet Union in production which has evidently carried on as these music videos are comparable to something you would expect from the West.

Veta
Veta
4 years ago
Reply to  Ron

I think Rasmus just metaforically made a compliment meaning Armenia is rich with talent and great artists instead of money, but maybe I got it wrong.

Loin dici
4 years ago

Is it just me or are Armenians such one proud nation?

Ron
Ron
4 years ago
Reply to  Loin dici

What makes you say that?