Ben da Silva Cristóvão (born 8 June 1987), known professionally as Ben Cristovao or Benny Cristo, is a
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
singer, lyric writer, sportsman, and actor. He was nominated to represent the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
in the
Eurovision Song Contest 2020
The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 was planned to be the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It would have taken place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, following the country's victory at the with the song "Arcade" by Duncan Laurence. The con ...
in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...
after winning the national round with the song
Kemama. After the contest was cancelled because of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
,
Czech Television
Czech Television ( cs, Česká televize, italics=no ; abbreviation: ČT) is a public television broadcaster in the Czech Republic, broadcasting seven channels. Established after the Velvet Revolution in 1992, it is the successor to Czechoslov ...
confirmed on that Cristo would instead represent the Czech Republic in the
2021 contest. Benny Cristo sings in both
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
.
Personal life
Cristo's mother is Czech and his father, Bénis Cristóvão, is from
Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capital = Luanda
, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
, coordina ...
. He has three younger siblings from the same father but with different mothers. The girls' mother is Ana Bela Cristovão, who is now married to Bénis Cristóvão.
Music career
In 2009, Benny Cristo was one of the finalists on the talent show ''
Česko Slovenská SuperStar''. The experiences gained in this show motivated him to focus on his singing career. In 2010, he released his debut album, ''Definitely Different''. A year later, in 2011, his second studio album, called ''Benny Cristo'', came out. The album contains two collaborations with
Monika Bagárová, another contestant from ''Česko Slovenská SuperStar''. Cristo was also a supporting act for the American electro-pop group
Far East Movement
Far East Movement (abbreviated FM) is an American hip hop and electronic music group based in Los Angeles. The group formed in 2003 and as of August 2018 consists of Kev Nish (Kevin Nishimura), Prohgress (James Roh), DJ Virman (Virman Coquia), ...
and the
Cuban-American
Cuban Americans ( es, cubanoestadounidenses or ''cubanoamericanos'') are Americans who trace their cultural heritage to Cuba regardless of phenotype or ethnic origin. The word may refer to someone born in the United States of Cuban descent or ...
rapper
Pitbull
Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...
.
In 2013, Cristo was nominated for the
Český slavík
Český slavík ( en, Czech Nightingale) is a Czech award meant to recognize outstanding achievement and annual popularity in the Czech music industry. It was established in 1996 as the successor to the Zlatý slavík awards, which was establish ...
award in the category "Music Video of the Year" for the song "Bomby".
The same year, he released his third studio album, ''Made in Czechoslovakia''.
Cristo, together with other musicians, including
David Koller,
Dan Bárta
Dan Bárta (born 14 December 1969 in Karlovy Vary
Karlovy Vary (; german: Karlsbad, formerly also spelled ''Carlsbad'' in English) is a spa city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 46,000 inhabitants. It lies on the ...
,
Michael Kocáb
Michael Kocáb (born 28 July 1954) is a Czech composer, singer, and political activist. He is the leader of Pražský výběr, a popular music band suppressed by the Czechoslovak communist regime in the 1980s.
At the spring 1989 Kocab with Mic ...
, and Vojta Dyk, participated in the civic initiative "Nikagda nězabuděm" (Eng.: we will never forget), appealing to people's participation in the 2013 elections and warning of the return of communism and inclination towards Russia.
In 2016, Cristo won the Český slavík award in the category "Most Streamed Czech Song" with the track "ASIO". He did not attend the award ceremony, however. As he later stated to the media, he did not want to be in the same room as the Czech group Ortel, known for their
xenophobic
Xenophobia () is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression of perceived conflict between an in-group and out-group and may manifest in suspicion by the one of the other's activities, a ...
texts.
Also in 2016, Cristo recorded a cover of the David Koller song "Nic není na stálo". This cover was released together with other songs from artists such as
Katarzia, Kato, Mucha, and Vladimír 518, on David Koller's album ''David Koller & Friends''.
In 2017, Cristo issued the EP ''Poslední''. Instead of being released as a standard CD, fans were able to download it through a QR code on a t-shirt specifically designed for the promotion.
In 2018, Benny Cristo performed at the
Anděl Awards
The Anděl Awards ( cs, cena Anděl) is a Czech music award ceremony organized by the Czech Academy of Popular Music. It is a successor to the Annual Czechoslovak Music Award (Czech: ''Výroční československé hudební ceny'') established i ...
ceremony, singing his song "Nohy", with the guest appearance of
Jiří Korn
Jiří Korn (born May 17, 1949 in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech recording artist and actor. Korn is a highly acclaimed musician in his native Czechoslovakia, and remains after his five decade long career one of the most prominent Czech singe ...
. He later collaborated with Mária Čírová on the theme song for the movie ''Backstage'' (directed by
Andrea Sedláčková
Andrea Sedláčková (born 22 February 1967) is a Czech film director, editor and screenwriter. Her 2000 film '' Victims and Murderers'' was entered into the 23rd Moscow International Film Festival.
Selected filmography Director
* '' Victims ...
). The song is called "Padam". Cristo himself appears in the film as a judge in a dance competition. In the same year, he became a judge of the talent competition Česko Slovenská Superstar.
In 2019, Cristo released the six-song EP ''Kontakt''.
To mark 10 years on the music scene, Cristo held a concert at
Prague's O2 Arena.
Cristo was selected to represent his country in the
Eurovision Song Contest 2020
The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 was planned to be the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It would have taken place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, following the country's victory at the with the song "Arcade" by Duncan Laurence. The con ...
after winning the national round. He was to perform in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, with the song "Kemama". However, the event has been cancelled as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. In May 2020, it was confirmed that Cristo would sing for the Czech Republic in
the 2021 event with a new song. His entry for 2021, "
Omaga", was released on 16 February 2021. He sang in the second semifinal of the contest, but did not qualify for the final, finishing 15th with 23 points.
Activism
Benny Cristo is
vegan
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...
and an
animal rights activist
The animal rights (AR) movement, sometimes called the animal liberation, animal personhood, or animal advocacy movement, is a social movement that seeks an end to the rigid moral and legal distinction drawn between human and non-human animals, ...
. He takes part in various projects and campaigns supporting animal rights. In 2018, he worked together with the organisation Obránci zvířat (OBRAZ) and made a voiceover for one of their campaign videos called "Jak to snáší".
[https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1942213465829477 ] This dealt with the issue of caged hens. For a number of years, he was also the face of the project Seznam se bezpečně. By visiting elementary schools, he actively warned students against the different dangers they could face on the internet and advised how to eventually address some of the issues. He is also the ambassador of the initiative zálohujeme.cz, advocating for the idea of plastic bottle deposit schemes.
Sport career
Alongside his musical career, Benny is also an active sportsman. In the last couple of years, he has been doing
Brazilian jiu-jitsu on a competitive level and taking part in competitions all around the world. In September 2016, he participated in the Asian Championship and placed third in the medium heavy (up to 88 kg) white belt category.
In October of the same year, he participated in the prestigious international championship Madrid Open and won the gold medal in the same category.
In 2017, he won the title of European Champion (white belt).
Benny Cristo represents the academy Jungle BJJ. In Prague, the academy is led by the instructor Fernando Nascimento Araujo, holder of a black belt 4th degree.
In the past, Benny also snowboarded professionally, placing first in the Czech Cup series 4x4 in 2006.
Discography
Studio albums
Extended plays
Singles
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cristovao, Ben
1987 births
Living people
English-language singers from the Czech Republic
21st-century Czech male singers
Czech people of Angolan descent
Actors from Plzeň
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2020
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for the Czech Republic
Czech male judoka
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2021
Musicians from Plzeň