ESCbubble has had the chance to interview the Galician trio Tanxugueiras, who will compete at the Spanish national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022. Aida Tarrío and twins Olaia and Sabela Maneiro will perform the song ‘Terra’ at the First Semi-Final of Benidorm Fest on January 26th.

Hi! First of all, I want to tell you thanks for giving us this time of your busy agenda.

What impelled you to apply for Benidorm Fest? A few months ago, you won Eurovision Spain’s “La Elección Interna”. Did it make you go for it? Had you already thought about going to Eurovision?

Taking part in Benidorm Fest or Eurovision wasn’t among our plans. There isn’t any doubt that the result of the voting on Eurovision Spain, and the affection of the eurofans, was what encouraged us to accept the invitation of RTVE and send our application.

Your song ‘Figa’, which led you to the victory at the voting mentioned before, is, according to some followers of the contest, a bit different to Terra, your song for Benidorm Fest. Why did you decide to choose a less radio-friendly and danceable song?

Both are danceable: ‘Figa’ is rumba and ‘Terra’ is a muiñeira, the Galician dance par excellence. When we agreed to take part in Benidorm Fest, we had clear that we had to be 100% Tanxugueiras and, of course, it had to be a muiñeira.

Can you tell us anything about the staging you are going to prepare for the Benidorm Fest shows? Are you going to be accompanied by your instruments? Would you like to change anything if you were chosen for Eurovision?

We will only perform with a tambourine 😉

What would it mean to you to represent Spain at Eurovision? Why do you think you should be the ones chosen to lead the Spanish entry for Turin?

We will be very grateful if the public and the jury choose us as the winners of Benidorm Fest. For us, it’s already a win to participate in the contest and see all the projections that a muiñeira can have at a national and international level. We are happy to be able to take our culture around the world.

Previously, you have said that, with your song, you want to reflect the union of all cultures and the unity of the people as a whole. Do you think that if you brought it to Eurovision foreigners would broaden the vision of Spanish music?

We live in a moment in which diversity, peripheries and what is different is more visible. In Galicia, we have been enjoying the music of great artists and pandeireteiras  – tambourine players (Mercedes Peón, Leilía) for decades. It’s wonderful that other traditional types of music are finally beginning to have the space they deserve thanks to artists like Rodrigo Cuevas, for example.

If you don’t win the Benidorm Fest this year, would you like to try it again in the future as other national and international artists have already done?

We go step by step and down to earth. At the moment we only have in mind Benidorm Fest and our Midas tour to present the new album.

Who do you think are your strongest competitors at the Benidorm Fest? Do you have any favourite songs?

We really like the songs of Rigoberta Bandini, Rayden and Luna Ki.

Have you ever watched the Eurovision Song Contest? What songs do you like the most from previous editions? Any performances that caught your attention?

Yes, like everyone. We like Salvador Sobral and Måneskin.

How was the group formed? Why have you decided to follow a path that’s more into mainstream music than the traditional one in recent years?

Tanxugueiras comes from tradition and is a traditional music group… What we have done has been to propose a reformulation with sounds that we listen to and with which we live. We have never abandoned tradition and the proof is that all our songs, both in rhythm and lyrics, have their origin in traditional music.

What plans do you have for the upcoming months? Any new projects?

We will release a new album and will have the MIDAS tour to present it. The first concerts will be in A Coruña (March 26) and Vigo (April 1). Tickets for both sold out in less than ten hours! The first big festival we will perform in will be SanSan, but it won’t be the only one. Also, we will continue working on new collaborations that will see the light of day soon.

Music is a universal language, how would you explain this statement to someone who still has doubts?

Na música non hai fronteiras (Music knows no boundaries).

We wish the best of luck to Tanxugueiras for Benidorm Fest next week! Don’t miss the semifinals on Wednesday 26 and Thursday 27, and the Grand Finale on Saturday 29th.

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