Luara Gurgenovna Hayrapetyan ( hy, Լուարա Գուրգենի Հայրապետյան, russian: link=no, Луара Гургеновна Айрапетян; born 29 September 1997 in

Astrakhan Astrakhan ( rus, Астрахань, p=ˈastrəxənʲ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in Southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the ...

, Russia) is an Armenian-Russian singer. She represented Armenia at the

Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2009 The Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2009 was the seventh edition of the annual Junior Eurovision Song Contest and took place in Kyiv, Ukraine. It was scheduled for 21 November 2009. 13 countries were confirmed by the European Broadcasting Union (E ...

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

with her self-composed pop song "Barcelona", finishing in joint second place.

Biography

Hayrapetyan was born in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. She began singing at the age of four, studying at the children's music studio "Vesnushki" of the Astrakhangasprom Cultural Centre, where she was a leading soloist, as well as attending gymnasium. Hayrapetyan's hobbies included ballroom dancing and vocal classes. Having Armenian citizenship, Hayrapetyan also resided in

Kapan Kapan ( hy, Կապան) is a town in southeast Armenia, serving as the administrative center of the urban community of Kapan as well as the provincial capital of Syunik Province. It is located in the valley of the Voghji River and is on the nort ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, where she took further vocal, saxophone and dance classes. She currently lives in Los Angeles, USA.

Career

The first brush with fame was when Luara entered into the Russian national selection for the

Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2006 The Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was the fourth edition of the annual Junior Eurovision Song Contest for young singers aged 8 to 15. On 2 December 2006, the contest was broadcast live from Bucharest, Romania making it the second time the con ...

. At just 9, she came 2nd with her song "Krasnaya Shapochka" (

Little Red Riding Hood "Little Red Riding Hood" is a European fairy tale about a young girl and a sly wolf. Its origins can be traced back to several pre-17th century European folk tales. The two best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Brother ...

). Hayrapetyan competed at the 2008

Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk The International Festival of Arts “Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk” ( be, Міжнародны фестываль мастацтваў «Славянскі базар у Віцебску», uk, Міжнародний фестиваль мист ...

Children's Contest. Representing Russia under the name "Lara", Hayrapetyan was presented with the Grand Prix Award and "Lira" Diploma. Hayrapetyan is perhaps best known for her representation of

at the 2009 Junior Eurovision Song Contest held in

. Hayrapetyan performed the song "Barcelona", tying for second place overall with Russia's Ekaterina Ryabova. Prior to her qualification for the 2009 Contest, Hayrapetyan competed in National Finals for the Junior Eurovision Song Contest twice. In 2006, at Russia's National Final, Hayrapetyan placed 2nd with her song "Krasnaya Shapochka". In 2008, at Armenia's National Final, she placed 3rd with her song, "Im Ergy".

Awards and honours (2004–2010)

* 2004 – I Prize Winner of the International Contest "Malen'kie Zvezdochki" (Tuapse, All-Russian Children Center "Orlenok") * 2005 – I Prize Winner of the International Festival "Childhood Without Borders" (Moscow, Russia) * 2006 – Qualified for the Russian National Final of Junior Eurovision (2nd place) * 2007 – Grand Prix Winner of the All-Russian Contest "Volzhskie Sozvezdiya" (Samara, Russia)
I Prize Winner of the VI All-Russian Contest "Voices of the 21st Century" (Anapa, Russia)
May 2007 Laureate of "Gasprom" OJSC in "Estrada Vocal" nomination (Kazan, Russia) (Vladimir, Russia) * 2008 – January 2008 Diploma Winner of VII City Festival of Young Pianists "Music Rainbow"
Best among pupils of 4th form in knowledge of English
April 2008 I Prize Winner in "Voices of the 21st Century" interregional final
Grand Prix Winner of "

" Junior Edition, winner of the "Lira" Special Prize (Belarus)
Qualified for Armenian National Final of Junior Eurovision (3rd place) * 2009 – Qualified for Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2009.
November 2009 – 2nd place at Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2009 (Kyiv, Ukraine)
Qualified for the International Final of "New Wave Junior" contest (Moscow, Russia). * 2009 – Competed at New Wave Junior 2009.

References

1997 births People from Astrakhan Russian people of Armenian descent Living people Armenian expatriates in the United States 21st-century Armenian women singers Armenian child singers Junior Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Armenia Armenian pop singers 21st-century Russian women singers {{Russia-singer-stub