Last updated: February 14, 2020
Musician Tom Neuwirth , better known as Conchita Wurst , said he was going to put an end to the image of the bearded singer once and for all. In an interview with the German newspaper Die Welt, Neuwirth admitted that he wants to get rid of the annoying shocking image.
According to him, his true ego rebelled against the woman who brought him victory at Eurovision in 2014 in Copenhagen.
“With this woman, with whom I won Eurovision, I achieved everything. I don't need anything more from her. I'm thinking about creating a new persona, so I have to kill Conchita. I'm looking for something that I'll be really good at. That’s why Tom rebelled against her,” Neuwirth told reporters.
Conchita Wurst is an extravagant transvestite musical performer. He has been performing for several years in the image of a bearded woman, which did not prevent the outrageous singer from getting married several years ago.
Conchita Wurst. Photo: www.globallookpress.com
Biography
Conchita Wurst (German: Conchita Wurst*) is a pseudonym, the singer's real name is Tom Neuwirth .
Tom was born on November 6, 1988 in the city of Gmunden, and spent his childhood in Styria, in southeastern Austria. Graduated from the Fashion School in Graz in 2001.
In 2006, Tom Neuwirth took part in the third season of the Austrian casting show for aspiring pop singers Starmania. The singer took second place in this competition. In 2007, he founded the pop-rock boy band Jetzt anders!, which lasted for several months.
[edit] Opinions
I really like the message of this woman with a beard that it’s good to be yourself. This woman sang a beautiful song and I am very glad that she won.[3]
Conchita is a wonderful woman with a good voice. I'm glad she won. I admit, her song was not the strongest, but the fact that she was not afraid to show herself is a huge feat of hers. Of course, in Russia they immediately started talking about the depraved West, but it simply showed that transsexuals are people just like any other, they also have talents and charisma. It was a worthy victory! Now she's the prom queen <333
Sapphoo[4]
Let's respect the winner - regardless of his image, sexual orientation, nationality
Philip Kirkorov[5]
Opponents of Conchita Wurst composed a poem about her, “Europe Was Born in the Night.”
Why does Tom Neuwirth appear as a bearded woman?
Neuwirth gained wide popularity in the stage role of Conchita Wurst. The idea of a bearded woman came to him due to the fact that he faced discrimination and bullying as a teenager. According to him, the image of Conchita Wurst became a statement in defense of tolerance and acceptance.
Tom Neuwirth in 2007 / Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org / Franz Gstättner
“Only and exclusively the person is important,” Tom believes, “everyone should have the right to live as he sees fit, if it does not harm anyone.”
The official website of the performer emphasizes the division between the artist Conchita Wurst and the private citizen Tom Neuwirth: the web page says that these are two independent people with their own destinies, but “working in a well-coordinated team” and “standing together for tolerance and against discrimination.”
Conchita Wurst has her own biography. According to her, Wurst was born in the mountains of Colombia, near Bogota, and spent her childhood in Germany. In a 2011 interview, Conchita Wurst stated that she was named after her grandmother, and also revealed her father's name as Alfred Knack von Wurst. That same year, Conchita and burlesque dancer Jacques Patriac gave an interview to the same publication in which they announced that they had been married for four years.
Creating a bright image
If you carefully study the photos of Conchita Wurst before and after the operation, you can easily notice characteristic differences. The famous ORF TV channel organized the “Big Chance” project. It was here that viewers were able to see for the first time Thomas’s unusual “woman with a beard” image. He sang an excellent composition by the world-famous Celine Dion called “My Heart Will Go On.” But according to estimates, he took only sixth place. But this situation did not upset the singer, since he perfectly understood that the image he had invented had created a real sensation.
The image of a “bearded woman” does not belong to the category of accidents , since Thomas perfectly remembers those times when his peers simply hated him and even discriminated against him for his choice. His main idea was to convey to everyone around him the following idea: a person should be judged by his actions, and not by his appearance. It doesn’t matter at all what country he grew up in and what his orientation is. Society must respect the choice of a particular individual, since only in this case will it be possible to reduce the number of unhappy people.
Thomas did a great job not only on the image of his fictional Conchita, but also on all the subtleties of the biography. According to legend, Wurst was born in the amazing and multifaceted Colombia. Soon the whole family moved to Germany, where she spent all her childhood and teenage years. The girl was named in honor of her grandmother. An interesting thing is that “Wurst” is translated from German as sausage.
In a conversation with reporters, Tom said that he and his fictional character are two completely different heroes. Conchita just allows him to earn good fees and defend his personal interests. When Thomas is in character, he asks everyone around him to address him as “Frau” or “she”. At this time, the talented singer even visits women's restrooms.
After work, Thomas behaves like an ordinary man. He has grown a beard and regularly touches it up with eye shadow to enhance the final effect.
Lush breasts are created thanks to push-up bras. It is worth noting that it takes Thomas from 3 to 5 hours to create the image and apply makeup.
Performance at Eurovision 2014
The public debut in the image of Conchita Wurst took place in 2011, when Neuwirth took part in the casting show of the ORF television company Die große Chance. In 2012, he took second place in the national selection for Eurovision 2012.
On 10 September 2013, it was announced that Conchita Wurst would represent Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Copenhagen. The decision by Austrian national broadcaster ORF caused controversy in the country. Four days after ORF's decision was announced, more than 31,000 people had voted against it on the Anti-Wurst Facebook page.
Tom himself stated that he was prepared for a negative reaction to his victory, but noted that many people who had prejudices against it later abandoned them. According to Neuwurth, a bearded woman surprises and outrages people, but it also provides an opportunity to discuss the issue and think about the nature of xenophobia. Later, some Russian conservative organizations made similar statements against the artist.
Let us remind you that Conchita Wurst is not the first shocking performer at Eurovision: in 1998, Dana International , and in 2007, Verka Serduchka took second place.
8 most extravagant Eurovision participants
Conchita Wurst attracted attention even before her performance, although initially she was not considered one of the serious favorites. However, the Austrian contestant won, ahead of the surprise winners Holland and the Swedish favorite Sanna Nielsen. www.globallookpress.com
In recent years, one of the most memorable performances has been the Irish twin brother duo Jedward. As a result, brothers John and Edward Grimes took only 19th place. www.globallookpress.com
In 2010, the Latvian band InCulto performed at Eurovision. The extravagant number of the artists was more reminiscent of a KVN number than a choreographic performance, and at the end the men completely tore off their trousers, remaining on stage in only silver shorts. RIA News
A year earlier, the Czech Republic amazed the public with an extravagant performance - rappers Gipsy.cz, MTV protégés, who had previously performed at the Glastonbury festival, appeared in Moscow in comical outfits, with the lead singer dressed in a superhero costume. Gipsy.cz did not score a single point and did not qualify for the finals. www.globallookpress.com
In 2008, the Latvian pop group Pirates of the Sea amazed Eurovision with no less extravagant outfits - the trio members took to the stage in pirate costumes. They successfully made it to the finals, where they took 12th place, scoring the same number of points as Diana Gurtskaya. Flickr.com/Daniel Aragay
At Eurovision 2007, Ukraine was represented by Verka Serduchka. Unexpectedly for many, Andrei Danilko in his costume took second place, losing only to the Serbian pop singer Marija Šerifović. Footage from the Eurovision Song Contest broadcast
Verka Serduchka's performance took place the following year after the unexpected triumph of the Finnish hard rock band Lordi. The main theme of Lordi's work is horror and ancient myths, and in order to emphasize the comical nature of the theme, the musicians pay special attention to their costumes. Commons.wikimedia.org/Indrek Galetin
In 2005, another Scandinavian country, Norway, also performed at Eurovision with a rock song. The song “In My Dreams” was performed by the band Wig Wam, who performed in silver suits inspired by the glam rock of the 70s. Norway finished sixth in the final. Footage from the Eurovision Song Contest broadcast
Path to glory
In 2011, Thomas Neuwirth made his stage debut in the image of the bright and extravagant Conchita. He took part in the television project Die grosse Chance, which allowed the aspiring singer to acquire his first fans.
Next, Conchita Wurst performed in the show “The Hardest Job in Austria,” in which participants were forced to work in a fish factory. This was followed by his enchanting appearance in the television project “Wild Girls,” in which Thomas had to fight for life in the deserts of Namibia.
