Tatu, whose catchy pop songs and schoolgirl lesbian image have led to No. 1 hits all over the world, are promising to go further than ever before with an "outrageous" act that includes an onstage kiss. That would be a shock to a contest that is more accustomed to folk singers and lyrics such as "Boom Bang-a-Bang" than pseudo-lesbian chic.
"We wanted to do this because we are Russians, body and soul. We want to blast away everything that's been done before with our sexy act," Tatu's Lena Katina, 18, told the German magazine Bild.
Organizers said that they are satisfied Tatu would not bring scandal to the Riga stage.
"We've worked with every one of our participants so that nothing brings Eurovision into disrepute," said Aline Ingwersen, spokeswoman for the show's organizer, the European Broadcasting Union. "It's family entertainment. There are certain things that are not allowed."
Whether Tatu can be trusted is another matter. When Katina and Yulia Volkova, 18, appeared on Jay Leno's show in March, they were told not to talk about the war, so they instead wrote the words "F*** the War" in Russian on their T-shirts. Despite being warned not to, the girls kissed while performing a song. The camera was instantly switched to one of the backing musicians.
Eurovision organizers said they would switch to a prepared video if the girls become sexually explicit.
"They will get all the attention, but the song is not particularly good," BBC television presenter Lorraine Kelly said. "I hope they don't do anything silly, like pull silly stunts. It's on the cards, but you just think, 'Oh behave.'"
A win would give the girls' career a welcome boost. They cancelled several concerts in Britain last month due to poor ticket sales -- even after they won widespread publicity when British television said their act was for dirty old men.
But Tatu may have lost some votes Thursday when they described Riga as awful at a news conference. Attendees booed. Just hours before, the girls were nearly thrown out of Eurovision for refusing to complete a rehearsal
The closest Russia has come to winning at Eurovision was when Alsou took second place in 2000.
The Eurovision contest will be shown live Saturday at 10:50 p.m. on Channel One and 11 p.m. on BBC Prime.
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