Antigoni recently sat down in an interview with Andreas Anastasiou to discuss her emotions and feelings since being announced as Cyprus’ Eurovision 2026 entrant.
In a recent interview with the Cypriot Head of Press – Andreas Anastasiou, Antigoni discussed her feelings, emotions and thoughts ahead of representing Cyprus at the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna. She also mentioned her intentions on how she wants to represent her country at the song contest.
At the beginning of the interview, Antigoni spoke about the moment she found out she would be representing Cyprus at Eurovision and the huge gush of emotions that overcame her. She mentions the fact that she was in Soho at a Greek clothing store & cafe, Aleon Jo, before receiving the phone call from CyBC.
“Antigoni, you’re going to Eurovision.”
She became overjoyed with happiness, crying tears of joy at the news of representing her home country at Eurovision. Soon after the news announcement, she mentions the influx of phone calls from family and friends, after the announcement of the exciting news and how proud they all were of her.
She goes onto mention how she wants to revingorate that feeling of excitement and happiness on the Eurovision stage:
“I want it to be full power. I want there to be so much energy. I want it to be a show — not just a song. We have three minutes to present something big and exciting. I want to show our Cyprus.”
The British-Cypriot Greek singer has been vocal about wanting to represent Cypriot culture when going to Eurovision. Antigoni’s discography includes many songs that incorporate traditional Cypriot-Greek and Middle Eastern instrumentation – hinting at what’s to come for her 2026 entry in the next few months.
“For me, Eurovision is an opportunity for countries and cultures to show what we have in our own culture — what makes us unique. And for me it’s very important to go with something that shows the Cypriot feeling and the culture we have — but of course to also do something that works internationally.”
She hopes and wants to create a powerful impact on stage – “something that will leave a mark at the contest”. Andreas asked her to recall her first moments of watching and wanting to go to Eurovision, where she mentions the moment Helena Paparizou won for Greece at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 – remembering the 12 points she kept on receiving.
Antigoni also recites her childhood of always singing and dancing at home, in Greek and Music schools in London. The singer also revealed she had connections with the Cypriot Broadcaster, CyBC, back then with footage being filmed of her old performances when she was seven for Independence Day being aired on Cypriot TV.
“And there’s another clip from RIK — I think I saw it on Instagram — where I was singing “Anavysi” when I was little, and someone there said, “Okay, Antigoni — Eurovision in ten years.”
Antigoni goes on to mention the artists she collaborates with and opened for likes of Marina Satti (Greece 2024) and Eleni Foureira (Cyprus 2018), as well as the wonderful moments she’s had meeting Eurovision fans – who’ve all inspired her to go to Eurovision. A week prior to the official announcement, Antigoni opened for Eleni Foureira at her London show.
“The moment comes when it’s meant to happen. The important thing is to keep trying if you really want it, and to keep evolving as an artist.”
She goes on to speak about the opportunities in the past that have helped her to evolve and develop as an artist – leading to her current position of her dream of representing Cyprus at Eurovision. Antigoni also mentions she is staying relatively calm and collected, ahead of the contest, trying not to over-stress about it all.
“I don’t want to think about the whole world watching. I’ll just focus on the camera in front of me and the team around me — and we’ll do well.”
You can watch the full interview below, which is in Greek:
Cyprus was the first country to announce their representative for the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest next May, and has followed a trend for the island nation of being one of the first countries to reveal their singers, since 2023.
ANTIGONI, Antigoni Buxton, is a British Greek-Cypriot singer, born and raised in North London. She has made several TV appearances, including most famously her debut on UK Love Island Season 8 in 2022. She has since released many hit singles, including “You Can Have Him”. Her most recent singles include “Sleeping Alone” and “Habibi”. Antigoni quite oftenly embraces her Cypriot heritage by incorporating traditional Cypriot instrumentation through her music, mixing it with more contemporary genres.
Image Source: Image Source: Antigoni/ Notion Magazine | Source: Digital TV
Cyprus debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1981. Their best result was in 2018, when Eleni Foureira and the song “Fuego” finished second with 436 points. Before then, their best results in the contest came in the form of three fifth-place finishes. These fifth-place finishes were Anna Vissi with “Mono i agapi” in 1982, Hara & Andreas Constantinou with “Mana mou” in 1997 and Lisa Andreas with “Stronger Every Minute” in 2004. Cyprus currently holds the record for the most participations in Eurovision without a win.