I was very sad to learn this week that the singer Denisa Emilia Raducu, often referred to as Denisa Manelista, has died from liver disease. As the nickname “Manelista” suggests, Denisa was primarily a singer of manele, a musical genre often ridiculed and unappreciated by most Romanians. But Denisa was truly special. Born on December 13, 1989, Denisa began her singing career as a young … Continue reading Plecat sa cânte la îngeri
When I first came to Romania, I was confronted with a wild and dazzling array of different kinds of music, most of which I had never heard before. It also didn’t help that I couldn’t understand the words either. In fact, due to my odd memory, I can tell you exactly which song I heard in Romanian first, an old and very popular ballad by … Continue reading Music in Romania
Daca esti roman, blogpostu urmatorul e interzis! Nu-l citesti! All Romanians cover your eyes! Yes, for the other three of you in room (hi, Fred :P), this is yet another entry in the category of manele, although it is based off an older Romanian folk song. The video can be found here and is entitled Ce Perversa E Lumea Si Rea, which I’ve translated to … Continue reading How Sick And Evil Everybody Is
I’ve been wanting to break down this song for a long time – it’s full of hilarious Gypsy slang and is a funny, silly song by Nicolae Guta. It has ALL the classic elements of a good Guta video: showing off money (wife slipping Euros in her pocket), total over the top brazenness (putting a radar detector on his horse’s muzzle), gypsies dancing and having … Continue reading Deconstructing Manele – Nu-i Carutza Ca Mertanu
All Things Romania 