Eleni Dimou (real name Eleni Gkikodimou / Ελένη Γκικοδήμου) was born in Ath… Read Full Bio ↴Eleni Dimou (real name Eleni Gkikodimou / Ελένη Γκικοδήμου) was born in Athens. She graduated from the National Conservatory and started her singing career at the age of 16. In 1980 she performed during a radio session to promote the work of new composers, where she sang songs from Dimitris Lekkas. That same year, she participated in the Thessaloniki Music Festival, ending third. The following year she returned with the song ’Mia Agapi stan ki anti’ (‘A love like this’), written by Sasha Manetas and won the first price. In 1981 she also appeared participated in Manos Loizou’s international concert tour.

Her first album ‘Mila mou apla’ (‘ Just speak to me’) was a collaboration with new singers Manolis Lidakis and Melina Tanagri, based on songs composed by Taki Bougas with lyrics from Antonis Andrikaki. With every following album, Dimou’s popularity increased, thanks to her modern, natural and flexible interpretations, combining the more traditional Greek roots with western pop style.

In 1986 she collaborated with Lakis Papadopoulos on her album ‘Kata bathos alepou’ (‘Basically fox’). With her by that time already highly acclaimed husky, sultry voice she sang both ballads and pop-rock songs. In this periode of time, she collaborated with famous artists like Georgios Dalaras and Mikis Theodorakis.

Her 1988 album ‘Prosopika’ (‘Personal’), recorded with G. Spanos, was both artistically as commercially a great success. In the next decade Dimou keeps releasing new albums regularly, always combining Greek folk music with western arrangements and world music influences. In 1990 she released the album ‘Pathis’ (‘Passions’), on which she chanted byzantine hymns on a requiem by D. Papostolou.

In the second half of the nineties, popularity and album sales decreased. A new generation of Greek pop singers seemed to have taken her place. Dimou seemed to be stuck between Greek folk and modern pop, unable to rejuvenate herself. Around the start of the new millennium, inspiration and creativity seemed to have returned, resulting in more frequent album releases and collaborations with international artists like Alpha Blondy, Salif Keita, The Christians, Gipsy Kings and Linton Kwesi Johnson.

In her almost thirty year spanning career, Eleni Dimou recorded more than 20 albums, nine went gold and three platinum in Greece. She is married to producer and engineer Akis Golfidis and the couple have a son named Anthony.

Hamogela
Eleni Dimou Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Χαμογέλασε μωρό μου είσαι μάγοσ τρυφερόσ
Έχεισ μπει στον αίσωπό μου ασ αρχίσει ο χορόσ
Γάλαξίεσ κι αστεράκια σκούπεσ μαγικά ραβδάκια
Σ' ένα ρετιρέ κομήτη σε τραβάω από τη μύτη

Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα
Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα

Χαμογέλασε λιγάκι δώσε μου κι ένα φιλί
Σκάσανε σαράντα δράκοι κόκκινη χρυσή κλωστή
Ξετυλίγεται να τρέξει να μασ δέσει να μασ μπλέξει
Σε μοντέρνο παραμύθι με ηλεκτρικό ρεβύθι

Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα
Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα

Μια φορά κι έναν καιρό είχεσ δράκο φοβερό
Τη μαμά σου
Μα τησ κλέβω με θυμούσ και με τρεισ αστερισμούσ
Την καρδιά σου

Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα
Χαμογέλα μωρό μου μωρό μου χαμογέλα

Χαμογέλα μωρό μου μωρό μου χαμογέλα
Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα

Overall Meaning

In Eleni Dimou's song "Hamogela," the lyrics express a playful and tender message to a loved one. The singer urges the person to smile, referring to them as a "magos tryferos" (tender magician). The person's presence has entered the singer's soul, and they compare it to the beginning of a dance. The lyrics then mention galaxies, little stars, and magical wands, painting a whimsical image of wiping away negativity and pulling the loved one into a comet's retreat using their nose.

The chorus repeats the plea to smile, emphasizing the importance of this simple act. In the second verse, the singer asks for a kiss and describes the sudden appearance of forty red dragons and a golden thread. They mention the unraveling of this thread, wanting to run, tie, and tangle together in a modern fairytale with an electric rhythm.

The final verse speaks of a once-upon-a-time when there was a fearsome dragon, which can be interpreted as a metaphor for the loved one's strong and powerful aura. The singer steals the dragon's heart, fueled by anger and three constellations, which symbolizes their deep connection and infatuation. The chorus is repeated, reaffirming the plea for the loved one to smile.

Line by Line Meaning

Χαμογέλασε μωρό μου είσαι μάγοσ τρυφερόσ
Smile, my baby, you are a tender magician

Έχεισ μπει στον αίσωπό μου ασ αρχίσει ο χορόσ
You have entered my heart, let the dance begin

Γάλαξίεσ κι αστεράκια σκούπεσ μαγικά ραβδάκια
Galaxies and little stars swept by magical wands

Σ' ένα ρετιρέ κομήτη σε τραβάω από τη μύτη
In a rooftop comet, I pull you by the nose

Χαμογέλα μωρό μου χαμογέλα
Smile, my baby, smile

Χαμογέλασε λιγάκι δώσε μου κι ένα φιλί
Smile a little, give me a kiss

Σκάσανε σαράντα δράκοι κόκκινη χρυσή κλωστή
Forty dragons burst with a red golden thread

Ξετυλίγεται να τρέξει να μασ δέσει να μασ μπλέξει
Unraveling to run, to bind us, to entwine us

Σε μοντέρνο παραμύθι με ηλεκτρικό ρεβύθι
In a modern fairy tale with an electric pulse

Μια φορά κι έναν καιρό είχεσ δράκο φοβερό
Once upon a time, there was a fearsome dragon

Τη μαμά σου
Your mother