Marinella


Kyriaki Papadopoulou, known by her stage name Marinella, is a Greek singer whose career has spanned several decades. She is well regarded due to her impressive vocal range. Since the beginning of her professional singing career in 1956, she has released 66 solo albums, and has also been featured on many albums by other musicians. She represented Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 1974, becoming the first ever Greek entrant in the contest.
From 1956 to 2024, Marinella remained active for 68 years, performing in concerts and weekly shows at nightclubs. On September 25, 2024, at the age of 86, she suffered a severe hemorrhagic stroke while performing at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens, collapsing on stage. After four months of hospitalization, on January 21, 2025, she was discharged from the hospital and returned home.

Early life

Kyriaki Papadopoulou was born in the city of Thessaloniki in northern Greece. Her parents were Greek refugees from Constantinople. She is the fourth and last child of a large family, which despite its poverty, was rich in love and in artistic vein. The whole family gathered around the turntable and sang, while her father tried to teach children the steps of the waltz and the tango. From the age of four years singing on the radio broadcast in "Pediki Ora '" and later did ads for shops such as "Melka" in Thessaloniki, earning her first pocket money. She participated in many performances of children's theatre.
At age 15, she gave up her budding career to finish school, but by seventeen, her passion for the theatre returned and she joined the artistic group of Mary Laurent, a "mpoulouki" and plays small roles. One day, the lead singer fell sick and sought Marinella as a replacement, who was willing to take the singer's place. Marinella then became the lead singer of the troupe. Additionally, she later joined the Military Theatre because the remuneration was better. At the same time she started her career as a singer at the "Panorama" centre of Thessaloniki, where Greek actor and singer Tolis Harmas coined the name "Marinella" for her, inspired by his song.
She released her first song in 1957, "Nitsa, Elenitsa '". Her early career was marked by her collaboration with singer Stelios Kazantzidis. Together they managed to become the greatest duet of Greece, unsurpassed even today. Starting at the night club "Luxembourg" in Thessaloniki where they enjoyed great success, they later moved to Athens, where they became widely known. They sang the songs of Mikis Theodorakis, Manos Hadjidakis, Vassilis Tsitsanis, Giorgos Mitsakis, Giorgos Zambetas, Apostolos Kaldaras, Theodoros Derveniotis, Stavros Xarchakos, Christos Leontis, whom are considered the best composers of the era.
Marinella married Stelios Kazantzidis on 7 May 1964 and they toured together in Germany and the United States. They divorced in September 1966. Marinella then began a solo career and eventually married singer Tolis Voskopoulos in 1974. This marriage also ended in divorce in 1981.

Early career

In October 1970, Marinella participated in the V Festival Internacional da Cançao Popular – Parte Internacion in Rio de Janeiro, representing Greece with the song "Kyra Giorgena ", finishing 4th among 38 countries. On October 24, 1970, the Billboard wrote "Marinella from Greece, knows audiences in Athens clubs, carries enchantment in her songs and the warmth of the sun in her voice".
Marinella was the first Greek singer to participate in the International MIDEM Festival of 1973 in Cannes with three new songs composed by Stavros Xarchakos. She also participated in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974, placing eleventh with the song "Krasi, thalassa kai t' agori mou". Initially Greek rock band Nostradamos had won the first Eurovision participation contest run by the state broadcaster ERT to represent Greece at Eurovision. However the band was not allowed to compete at Eurovision due to a scandal, and Marinella was sent instead.
She also performed in several Greek musicals, both as singer and actress. Her popularity rose in the late 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, with a string of successful albums and live shows. She developed a new standard for shows in the Greek night clubs, introducing costumes, dancing, and special lighting effects.

Later career

On 27 April 1998, Marinella performed in the Athens Concert Hall, performing her older hits to great acclaim. Her concert at the small Olympic Stadium of Athens on 1 October 1999 was a great success with more than 25,000 people.
In November 2002, she collaborated with George Dalaras. They performed concerts in Athens and Thessaloniki as well as abroad. The tour was titled "Mazi '" and the released live album from these performances reached platinum status in 2003.On 10 April 2003, The New York Times critic wrote about Marinella, "Her voice was earthy and strong, and she had the presence of an actress as she danced a few teasing steps or brought dignity to longing".
In March 2004, she released a brand new album with new songs by Nikos Antypas and Lina Nikolakopoulou, entitled "Ammos Itane '". In the same year, on 29 August, she performed at the closing ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics, along with Dimitra Galani, Haris Alexiou, Yiannis Parios and George Dalaras.
In December 2005, she released a new album titled "Tipota Den Ginete Tihea '", composed by Giorgos Theofanous. The album reached gold status and includes duets with famous Greek singers, such as Antonis Remos and Glykeria.
In 2006, two new compilations of Marinella were officially released, the first titled "Sti Skini '" and containing older live recordings and the second one titled "Ta Logia Ine Peritta – 50 Chronia Tragoudi ", which is a complete eight CDs boxset with Marinella's greatest hits from the beginning of her career until her collaboration with Kostas Hatzis at "Recital". She returned to nightlife, by performing live with Antonis Remos at the Athens Arena in 2006–07 and 2007–08, with Giannis Parios at the Diogenis Studio in the winter season 2008–09, and with Natassa Theodoridou at the Votanikos in 2011–12, in Athens.

Health

On September 25, 2024, Marinella was set to perform at the iconic Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens. During the performance, audience members noticed that the 86-year-old singer appeared unwell, and she ultimately collapsed while singing her third song of the night. She was rushed to a private hospital, where she was diagnosed with a severe and widespread hemorrhagic stroke and spent 21 days in intensive care. After four months of hospitalization, on January 21, 2025, she was discharged from the hospital and returned home.

Discography

Albums

Film

Marinella's first appearance in the cinema was with Stelios Kazantzidis - the most popular artistic couple of the time - in the 1960 film "I kyria dimarhos" . In the film they sing two of their big hits of that time, "Ziguala" and "Gia mas pote min ximerosei". In the film Marinella sings alone, the song "Allaxane ta pragmata" which was written especially for the film and relates to women's empowerment which is one of the themes of this comedy.
In 1962 she appears again with Kazantzidis in the melodramatic film "Klapse ftohi mou kardia" singing their hit "Fevgo me pikra sta ksena". In 1965 the couple will sing in the film "Oi adistaktoi" , the song of Yannis Markopoulos "Pios dromos ine anichtos" in which the leading actor of the film, Nikos Kourkoulos, participates.
Kazantzidis and Marinella will appear together for the last time on screen in 1966, in Andreas Katsimitsoulias' film "Angeloi tis amartias" with the song "Na fygo, na fygo".
Her big personal successes, however, would come in 1968 and 1969. In 1968 she would appear in two films with two songs that marked her career: in the comedy "O pio kalos o mathitis" she sang Giorgos Zampetas's "Stalia-stalia" - which gave the title to her first solo album, and in the musical "Gorgones kai magkes" when she sang "Anixe Petra", with music by Mimis Plessas and lyrics by Lefteris Papadopoulos. Her performance especially in this song launched her career and is still associated with her name to this day.
In 1969 she will also sing in two films three songs that will also become big hits: "Pios in' aftos" in the film "O Blofatzis" and "Dos' mou t' athanato nero" and "Zografismena sto charti" in "I Pariziana"
In total, she has appeared as a singer in 24 films.