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Gina Dirawi | |
|---|---|
 Dirawi after winning aKristallen award in 2013 | |
| Born | Gina Dirawi (1990-12-11)11 December 1990 (age 34) Sundsvall, Sweden |
| Occupation(s) | Television host, singer, comedian, actress |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Known for | HostingMelodifestivalen in2012,2013 and2016 |
Gina Dirawi (Arabic:غنى ديراوي; born 11 December 1990) is a Swedish television presenter, singer-songwriter, author, comedian, radio personality, and actress. While she is best known as the only woman ever to hostMelodifestivalen on three occasions, she has also hosted Swedish awards ceremonies in Sweden likeKristallen,Grammis, andGuldbagge Awards. She has also had several of her own TV programmes and also released music, a book, and has acted in film and theatre. In 2016, she played the lead role in the playDonna Juanita at theStockholm City Theatre.[1]
Dirawi was born on 11 December 1990 inSundsvall.[2] She has three siblings.[3] Her parents arePalestinian but had grown up inLebanese refugee camps.[4] She was the second of four children. Her father had first moved to Sundsvall to study, convinced by his parents, and had eventually returned to Lebanon to marry Dirawi's mother. Her parents ultimately settled in Sundsvall, followed by her paternal grandparents a couple of years later.[5] Her grandfather was animam in Sundsvall until his death in March 2011.[6]
She studied political science and rhetoric atMid Sweden University.[7]
Dirawi began her career in March 2009, with her blog Ana Gina (which means "I am Gina" in Arabic),[8] and by August of the same year beganvlogging.[9]
Dirawi is considered Sweden's first trueYouTuber. In 2009, she reached the final auditions for Idol on TV4.
Her vlog included satirical depictions of recurring characters from Swedish and Palestinian culture. She continued to gain popularity by sharing videos on YouTube, where her videos have over 18 million views as of May 2016.[10]
Dirawi's characters included:
Sister Khadidje – a Muslim womanSvennemorsan Bettan – a Swedish momDiscoturken Dario – a young immigrant manFjortisen Fippan – a stereotypical teenage girlThrough these characters, she aimed to challenge prejudices and stereotypes using humor as a tool. Her goal was to provoke feelings and opinions through humor and provocation, which she achieved as her clips and characters gained widespread attention. However, during this period, Dirawi also faced serious death threats.
Dirawi is best known as the first woman ever to hostMelodifestivalen on three occasions: in2012 alongsideHelena Bergström andSarah Dawn Finer,[11] in2013 alongsideDanny Saucedo and in2016 with guest co-hosts in each show.[12][13]
She won the award for best female TV host at theKristallen in 2012 and 2013.
Dirawi also hosted theSwedish Grammy Awards in 2014 and 2015, as well asMusikhjälpen in 2011, 2012 and 2015, the same year she hostedSVT's traditional Christmas Eve programme.[14]
It was announced on 20 April 2016 that Dirawi will be the Swedish spokesperson at the annualEurovision Song Contest, announcing the results of the Swedish jury vote fromEurovision: The Party in theTele2 Arena in Stockholm. She also hostedStudio Eurovision, a series of three one-hour shows broadcast before the two semi-finals and the final, covering news and events from the contest.[15]
From February to August 2010, Dirawi worked as a mobile reporter for the radio channel P4 Västernorrland and had previously studied atMid Sweden University.
Ahead of the 2010 general elections,Swedish Television (SVT) took notice of Dirawi, and she began blogging about the election on SVT's website. She subsequently hosted a web talk show, The Ana Gina Show, onSVT Play. The show aired 32 episodes with guests such as Carolina Gynning, Alex Schulman, Kristian Luuk, September, and Blondinbella. The program also featured her characters in various sketches.
In the fall of 2011, her second show,The Fabulous Life of Ana Gina, premiered on SVT Play, featuring guests like Wiz Khalifa, James Blunt, and Filip Hammar.
On 18 August 2011, Dirawi debuted as a summer host onSommar i P1. Her program focused on the difficulties of being a young Muslim girl with an immigrant background in Swedish society. She also discussed her experiences witnessing the Stockholm bombings.
From 12–18 December 2011, she co-hosted Musikhjälpen 2011 on SVT and P3, alongsideTimbuktu andKodjo Akolor.[16]
On 31 October 2011, it was announced that Dirawi, along with Sarah Dawn Finer and Helena Bergström, would host Melodifestivalen 2012. She was the first host of Melodifestivalen born in the 1990s and was praised for her performance. She later participated in SVT's Inför Eurovision Song Contest and co-commentated Eurovision 2012 broadcasts with scriptwriter Edward af Sillén.
In spring 2012, after Melodifestivalen, the second season of her series The Fabulous Life of Ana Gina began, this time filmed in Hollywood.
In summer 2012, starting 8 July, Dirawi hosted the radio program Hallå i P3 on Sveriges Radio, featuring well-known guests who answered listener questions. At the same time, she wrote as a columnist for Aftonbladet.
Dirawi returned as a co-host of Musikhjälpen in 2012, alongside Kodjo Akolor and Jason Diakité.[17]
In Melodifestivalen 2013, Dirawi returned as host, this time with Danny Saucedo. She also hosted Studio Eurovision, a show that aired an hour before the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in Malmö, where she interviewed personalities like Jean Paul Gaultier, Carl Bildt, and Eurovision participants.
On 1 June 2013, Dirawi hosted SVT's nationwide Hungerhjälpen campaign. She also returned to host Hallå i P3 in summer 2013 and co-hosted Kristallen 2013 with André Pops.
In 2014, Dirawi hosted the Grammisgalan with British co-host Ray Cokes. She returned to host the awards in 2015, this time alone.
On 27 August 2014, Dirawi released her first single, "Love," which she wrote herself, coinciding with the premiere of her new seriesGinas värld on SVT Flow, later shown on SVT1. Guests included Felicia Pearson from The Wire, Vietnamese Buddhist leader Thich Nhat Hanh, and Princess Märtha Louise of Norway.
On 10 March 2015, she released her second single, "Mad Woman."[18]
On 21 March 2015, the seriesGinas show premiered on SVT. The second season ofGinas värld premiered on 27 August 2015, featuring interviews with individuals such as young Israeli female soldiers, Rwandan victims and convicted murderers, and spiritual communities in Italy.
On 15 October 2015, the interview programEdit: Dirawi premiered on SVT2.
In November 2015, SVT announced that Dirawi would host the 2015 Christmas Eve broadcast, making her the youngest-ever host of the program. She was also one of three hosts for Musikhjälpen 2015.
In spring 2016, Dirawi was the main host of Melodifestivalen 2016. She also hosted the pre-show Studio ESC for Eurovision Song Contest 2016 and announced Sweden's votes during the competition.
In August 2016, Dirawi co-hosted Årets retro on SVT with Henrik Schyffert. That fall, she played the title role in the playDonna Juanita – En musikal fritt efter Hasse & Tage atStockholm City Theatre, opposite Claire Wikholm, among others.
On 9 December 2016, Dirawi released the single "Hurt You So Bad," which she wrote herself.[19]
In fall 2017 and 2018, Dirawi co-hosted 11 Friday finals of Idol with Per Lernström.
In December 2019, the documentaryWhat Happened to Gina Dirawi? by Jane Magnusson aired on SVT, exploring her life under threats and with security guards.
On 4 March 2020, Dirawi published her debut novelParadiset ligger under mammas fötter (Paradise lies beneath mum's feet"), about the friendship between two Swedish-Palestinian girls.[20]
On 18 February 2022, Dirawi released her debut album,Meet Me in Jannah. Her songs "Sunday" and "Live and Die" appeared in the Netflix seriesYoung Royals.[21]
In January 2022 Gina hosted theGuldbagge Awards.[22]
In May 2022, SVT premiered Dirawi's documentary seriesGina Dirawi lever och dör, about trauma and existential anxiety.[23]
Dirawi also served on the Kristallen jury in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
In 2023, the albumMeet Me in Jannah was nominated for Pop Album of the Year at the Manifest Gala.
Ahead of the Grammis Gala 2023 (Swedish Grammys), Dirawi was nominated in the category “Music Video of the Year” for the song "Meet Me in Jannah". The video was also nominated in the category “Best Cinematography” at the Berlin Music Video Awards in 2022 and at The International Festival of the Art of Cinematography Energa CAMERIMAGE in Poland in 2022.
In 2022, Dirawi released the Arabic version of the soundtrackUrban City for the hit seriesThin Blue Line.[24]
In 2023, Dirawi played the lead role of Farah in the short filmDissonans opposite Viktor Norén. The film was screened at the Göteborg Film Festival.
In the spring of 2024, Dirawi launched the Gina Dirawi Foundation. On 6 June, the first two Gina Dirawi Scholarships were awarded to promote young creative and artistic voices. The scholarships were given to Yaniel Wallsten and Zoe Fantis from Sundsvall.
| Title | Released | Record label | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Meet Me In Jannah" | 18 February 2022 | Swimgood | [25] |
| Title | Released | Record label | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| "LOVE" | 27 August 2014 | Gina Dirawi | [26] |
| "Mad Woman" | 10 March 2015 | Universal Music | [27] |
Förra året samlade "Musikhjälpen" in 23,3 miljoner kronor till kampen för att barn i slumområden ska få tillgång till rent vatten. Insamlingen leddes av Jason Diakité, Gina Dirawi och Kodjo Akolor.
Årets Guldbaggegala gala leddes av Gina Dirawi som gjorde comeback i tv-rutan efter några års paus.
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