Conchita Wurst is the stage character and alter ego of the Austrian singer Thomas (Thom) Neuwirth. Conchita is well known to viewers following the Eurovision Song Contest. She became the winner of the competition in 2014 with the song "Rise Like a Phoenix", dedicating her victory to all who believe in a peaceful and free future.
Conchita Wurst did not disappear from the stage, like many performers who took part in the Eurovision Song Contest. She continues to perform in clubs and concert halls, participates in various festivals and television shows. After winning the Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, many media representatives called Conchita a kind of “icon of tolerance”.
In 2019, Conchita became a guest guest at the Eurovision final in Israel, performing on stage with the participants of the previous years.
Conchita and Thomas are two completely different personalities. Each of them has their own biography and their own destiny. Neuwirth created the image of a "bearded woman" in 2011. He wanted people to start thinking that not everyone around is the same and that one should treat “others” more loyally, without attacks, aggression and accusations.
Five years have passed since the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, but the passions around Conchita still do not subside. For some, it causes hostility, irritation, condemnation and a lack of understanding of how to admire a "bearded woman." And someone wants to get to the concerts that she regularly gives in Europe, considering the singer a worthy representative of modern pop culture.
Facts from the biography of Tom Neuwirth
The boy was born in the small town of Gmunden in the fall of 1988. His family was no different from many other families in Austria, leading a modest and respectable lifestyle.
Since childhood, Tom liked women's outfits, he often changed into his mother's dresses and tried to wear high-heeled shoes. The parents did not pay much attention to this. They did not at all think that such an addiction to women's outfits could turn into not a game, but a boy's way of life.
Already in his school years, Tom did not hide his unconventional interests and tried to look more like a girl. His peers at first did not pay attention to him, then began to be surprised, and later showed real aggression towards Tom. They began to persecute him, mock and mock him, trying in every possible way to offend the boy, and, if the opportunity offered, beat him.
It was during his school years that Neuwirth felt that hatred of a part of society towards people of non-traditional orientation. Not hiding his preferences from others, Tom faced misunderstanding, aggression, humiliation and collective bullying. At school, in order to avoid constant ridicule and bullying, he even went to the toilet only during lessons, fearing to appear at a break surrounded by boys.
His parents also began to be bullied. At first it was very difficult for them to understand the behavior of their son and the fact that he became the object of ridicule and bullying. Only after many years did they accept their son as he is, and still support Tom in all his endeavors. In an interview, they said that they love Conchita just as they loved Tom, and now she has become for them the daughter they once dreamed of, but whom they never had.
When Tom was seventeen years old, he came out, openly declaring his non-traditional orientation.
Musical career
From an early age, Tom developed a passionate love for music. In 2006 he took part in the Starmania casting show in Austria on ORF 1. The competition was for young, emerging pop musicians. Tom took an honorable second place on it. Even then, the host of the show notices that Tom, acting in the guise of "agent 007", apparently would like to portray the Bond girl on stage.
In 2011, Tom first appeared in public in the form of "bearded woman" Conchita Wurst, taking part in the television competition "Big Chance" and causing genuine surprise from the audience and the jury. Conchita sang Celine Dion's famous song "My Heart Will Go On" from the movie "Titanic".
Already at the very beginning of Conchita's performance, the audience stood up and began to greet the singer with thunderous applause. The jury was shocked, many expressed that they could not come to terms with the image of the singer, although her voice really captivates. As a result, they still came to the general opinion that this is "a cool image and a cool beard."
After performing at the competition, Tom, in his new image of Conchita Wurst, went to his hometown to meet with his parents. He was very worried, because his father and mother saw him like this only on the TV screen. All fears were in vain. Parents met their son with great joy and confessed that they were very proud of him and his success.
Supported by Tom and his grandmother. It was she who once bought him his first dress and always believed that he would make an excellent musical career.
Interestingly, while visiting her hometown, Conchita visited a local butcher's shop, where, she was told, they sell Conchita spicy sausages, named after her. The sausages really turned out to be amazingly tasty. In addition, the locals were no longer hostile to Conchita. They were proud that the participant of the national song competition had lived in this small town, and now she is shown on television.
Neuwirth's pseudonym Conchita Wurst was not chosen by chance. In German, the word "wurst" can be translated as "to be indifferent." After all, it does not matter whether you are a guy or a girl, whether you have a beard or not, only the person himself is important and valuable. It was on this meaning that Tom emphasized, choosing the surname Wurst. But in life everything turned out to be different. Conchita has again come under violent attacks on the Internet and the media. And when it was announced that Conchita would represent Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest, there was even more negativity.
But all the attacks from others did not bother Tom, because he found his way and got what he dreamed of. In 2014, the whole world learned about the existence of Conchita Wurst. She became the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest, dedicating her performance to freedom and tolerance.
Biography of Conchita Wurst
Conchita's biography is fundamentally different from Tom's. He came up with a separate story about the singer's birth.
Conchita was born in Colombia, later went to Germany, where she spent all her childhood. The surname Wurst got her from her father - Alfred Knack von Wurst.
Neuwirth argues that his stage image and he are not the same thing. Tom and Conchita have completely different destinies and different attitudes towards life. The only thing that unites them is to defend their views, interests and freedom.
Fees, concert activities, ticket prices
About how much Conchita Wurst earns, today it is not known for certain. According to some unconfirmed facts, she received twenty-five million pounds for winning the Eurovision Song Contest.
The price of tickets for Conchita's performances depends on which country and on which venue she is performing. The touring schedule for 2019 can be seen on her official website.
Tickets for upcoming events start at thirty euros. In November, Conchita will join renowned pianist, composer and arranger Thilo Wulf and his orchestra in Austria. Ticket prices for this event range from 22 to 180 euros.
Also in November 2019, Conchita will perform in Vienna with a concert "Conchita & Wiener Symphoniker: From Vienna With Love". Tickets for this event cost approximately 79 to 100 euros.
