100 best things Conchita has done from 2014-2017 (#60-51)
We are almost half way through the ‘100 best things Conchita has done since winning Eurovision’ list, and there are still so many amazing things left it’s hard to choose.
60 — Conchita on the cover of Austria’s ‘News‘ magazine
Conchita has done hundreds of photo shoots for magazines in the three years since her Eurovision success, but one she appeared in last month is one of my favorites.
Shot by Austrian photographer Inge Prader, the black and white series for ‘News‘ magazine is much more ‘Tom’ than Conchita, but a Tom that Prader has captured in a much more intimate way than other photographers have done.
And it is a harsher and more stripped back look at Conchita than we normally get, grittier even, but so beautifully done, I would love to have some of these photos framed.
And then, of course, there’s this one. Conchita, doubled over laughing at some private joke, and with the joy that emanates from that photo we are reminded again just why we love her so much.
59 — Conchita’s performance at Brucknerhaus with the Bruckner Orchestra Linz
Last year, Conchita performed with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra at the Sydney Opera House in Australia, and obviously loved it so much since then she has made a concentrated effort to sing with as many orchestras as she possibly can.
I was privileged to be able to see her perform with one of them when she sang with the Bruckner Orchestra at the Brucknerhaus in Linz in March this year, and it was one of the richest performances she has given.
What was even lovelier about it was she also sang two self-written new songs for the first time — ‘Waters Run Deep‘ and ‘The Truth‘.
One of the nicest parts of the whole evening, though, was after Conchita finished singing ‘Waters Run Deep‘, and the cute look that shot across her face was a dead giveaway at how nervous she must have been singing that self-written song for the first time. Watch in the video above.
58 — Conchita, well Tom, appears on ‘André Heller’s Menschenkinder‘
With, at one point, several TV interviews a week, it is difficult to sort through all of the ones Conchita has done and pick out the best.
One of the standouts for me, though, was when Conchita was interviewed for the Austrian TV show ‘André Heller’s Menschenkinder‘, because not only was it one of the most honest interviews she had done up to that point, but it was really the first time just about every answer was coming from Tom Neuwirth and not Conchita.
And she/he talked and talked and talked and talked, which gave me so much information to analyze about Conchita and Tom. You can read about some of it in the articles below.
Along with this comment she made, which I think is one of the sweetest things:
“And – I don’t know – maybe my parents raised me with rose-tinted glasses. But I was – and I say this from the bottom of the heart – all my life I’ve never been in despair; I’ve never experienced the sensation of total helplessness and fear or worry. Never. Maybe it’s just this, what makes me hobble through the world today in this slightly naïve and ignorant way.”
Conchita’s ‘Menschenkinder‘ interview — channeling Tom Neuwirth part 1
Conchita’s ‘Menschenkinder‘ interview — and then she flies part 2
57 — Conchita’s interview with Polish site ‘Eurowizja‘
Conchita gives so many interviews to not only major magazines but also to journalists from smaller sites, including one she gave in 2015 to the Polish Eurovision site ‘Eurowizja‘ during a trip to Poland .
And what I particularly loved about this interview was how low-key the interviewer was, which seemed to make Conchita even more comfortable than normal. And when she is comfortable, she is more honest and often talks about things she wouldn’t talk about otherwise.
In this particular instance, though, it was not only how she talked about what it felt like to be Conchita, but also how obviously deliriously happy she was with how her life had turned out. And that, it just made me love her more.
Watch her and find out more at Conchita talks to ‘Eurowizja’
56 — Conchita’s ‘It Takes 2‘ vlogs
Now Conchita rarely ventures into the vlogging world, as I get the feeling she likes to have a lot of privacy when she is backstage, in her hotel room or en route to a show and away from the camera’s eye.
But, during her appearance as a judge for the German TV show ‘It Takes 2‘, she allowed her social media manager, Andre Karsai, to follow her around and then upload the resulting vlogs to her YouTube channel.
And they are just the loveliest things, because it’s Conchita in her hotel room wearing an adorable so-ugly-its-cute outfit, Conchita in her dressing room talking about what the set of the show looks like, and Conchita on set in rehearsals.
They are also an interesting look at someone who, from an initial glance seems to be ultra-confident but, if you look a little closer there are moments where you can see the camera on her all the time as she moves around still makes her just a little bit uncomfortable.
Especially as she has to keep talking, and she is not always sure what to say.
The girl is shy, which you only realize when you take the time to look below the surface.
55 — Conchita on the cover of ‘Rolling Stone‘
Being on the cover of the German edition of ‘Rolling Stone‘ magazine is one of the coolest things Conchita has ever done, for two reasons.
First, there is that gorgeous photograph — a photo of Conchita topless except for two strategically placed pieces of duct tape — and a photo that is incredibly sexy.
But, for me, there is another more important reason as to why this is so cool.
Because it’s every artist’s dream to end up on the cover of ‘Rolling Stone‘, the world’s foremost music magazine and, in June, 2015, there she was.
And man, did she rock it.
54 –Conchita wears Jean Paul Gaultier at La Fête de la Musique
One of the things I love about Conchita is she will do just about anything for her art, even if that anything means she is uncomfortable or, in some cases, even in pain. Because being as perfect as she can be really is that important to her.
But when Conchita wore a stunningly beautiful Jean Paul Gaultier dress when she performed at La Fête de la Musique in Montpellier, Paris in 2014, this was one of my favorite moments.
Because, first, how gorgeous was she with that teeny tiny waist and perfect legs as she elegantly walked onto the stage in that phenomenal dress and looked more ‘all woman’ than most of the women out there in that massive audience.
Besides, as I said at the time, she actually wore that Jean Paul Gaultier dress instead of letting the dress wear her, which not many people can do as his designs tend to be so all-consuming.
But what we didn’t know at the time, and found out later in Conchita’s autobiography, the dress was so tight and she so zipped into it that, when they pulled down the zips at the end of the night, she was actually bleeding into it.
Now that is someone who believes in sacrifice for the sake of her art.
Oh, and her onstage performance was lovely too.
53 — Conchita performs at Allsång på Skansen in Stockholm
In the months after Conchita won Eurovision, she was being invited all over Europe to perform her winning song ‘Rise Like a Phoenix‘.
One of my favorite performances was one she gave in Stockholm on the TV show Allsång på Skansen, as it was everything about the night that made it so special.
The stunning location overlooking Stockholm itself. Her gorgeous dress, that slit and the view of her amazing legs, how she was in her elegant ‘all girl’ phase at that time and, of course, her performance which was beautiful.
52 — Conchita is photographed by Karl Lagerfeld
One of the earliest photoshoots Conchita was involved in after Eurovision was when she was photographed by Karl Lagerfeld in a shoot for CR Fashion Book.
And the shoot was unusual in that, when you look closely, it really is not Conchita that is being photographed here but Tom Neuwirth.
At the time Conchita said, even though she loved the shoot and was honored to be photographed by Mr. Lagerfeld, she did feel a little uncomfortable as she was not used to appearing in public with so little make up on.
In retrospect, though, Lagerfeld’s shoot of Conchita was definitely a precursor of things to come, as Conchita herself looks more like this more masculine version of herself nowadays than she does of the ultra feminine version of Conchita she used to be.
51 — Conchita refuses to do the Ice Bucket Challenge
When the Ice Bucket Challenge was all the rage back in 2014, Conchita was challenged to do it by tennis star Novak Djokovic.
She being a drag queen, fully kitted out in make-up and a wig, I must admit when I watched it I was nervous for her as those wigs are expensive. Besides, she was oh so lovely and glamorous, few people wanted to see her spoil that.
As it turns out, however, Conchita did the Ice Bucket Challenge in her own adorable way. Just like she does everything else.
Watch her above to find out how.
That completes the first half of the ‘100 best things Conchita has done‘. I’ll be back tomorrow with 10 more.
Meanwhile, here are the first 40 if you missed them.
100 best things Conchita has done #100-91
100 best things Conchita has done 90-81