Czechia Blog Post 2 by Clayton Ng (Revised)

 Czechia’s Identity with “My Sister’s Crown”

Overview and Performers

In the ESCZ competition to determine which song would represent the Czech Republic for Eurovision 2023, the song “My Sister’s Crown” was selected. The fan favorite song had won in a landslide majority vote with more than double the votes of second place, both within Czechia and internationally (Percy, 2023). It was performed by Vesna, an all-female band based in Prague, and led by a singer and composer named Patrici Fuxová. The band’s “music includes elements of folklore combined with contemporary pop…and in 2019 they were nominated for an Anděl Award” (Helgeson, 2023, para. 4). The permanent members of the band are from Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Russia, but for “My Sister’s Crown,” Ukrainian musician Kateryna Vatchenko was also featured. The performance by Vesna ended up making it to the grand finals in the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest and placed top 10 in the final standings.

Context and Novelty

Exploring the context and current events around the time of “My Sister’s Crown,” we find that Ukraine had won the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, meaning that traditionally, they would host Eurovision 2023. However, “having endured partial occupation and annexation in 2014, Ukrainian citizens and their political leadership were confronted with a direct military assault” by Russia in early 2022, which had sent the nation into a frenzy (Dodds et al., 2023, p. 1519). After exploring various possibilities, the supposed Ukrainian broadcaster of Eurovision 2023 announced their country’s step down from the host position. This distinctive event in Eurovision history allowed the opportunity for other countries to bid for the host city position, eventually leading to Liverpool being selected in the place of Ukraine. The performance of “My Sister’s Crown” in Eurovision 2023 has unique literary and visual devices that without the context, cannot be properly understood. The meaning behind the song and its close tie to the significant events surrounding that time are what makes “My Sister’s Crown” a novelty among countless songs that year in Eurovision. According to Chalkley’s analysis of what makes a novelty song, Czechia’s performance fits into the category of “something other than love and heartbreak” (Chalkley, 2017). The strong political message imbedded in the lyrics blatantly showed Czechia’s position in the international conflict at the time, making the song an original and memorable piece.

Lyrics and Music

The lyrics in “My Sister’s Crown” not only have deep, underlying meanings behind them, but they also utilize different languages for intentional representation. Starting with the chorus translated to English, it states, “My beautiful sister, / You are strong, / Brave and the only one. / The crown is yours” (Vesna, 2023). In this excerpt and throughout the whole of the song, the entity of a strong and beautiful sister in the lyrics is used to symbolize the country of Ukraine. The words of encouragement in addition to “the presence of Ukrainian in the chorus adds a layer of subtext to the song, showcasing pan-Slavic support for Ukraine during its invasion by Russia” (Roberson, 2024, para. 4). This apparent alignment with Ukraine is a common theme demonstrated in the lyrics, as another excerpt states, “You can take your hands back / No one wants more boys dead / We’re not your dolls” (Vesna, 2023). In this quote, the hands represent the invading force of Russia into Ukraine while the boys represent soldiers. This section is directed in opposition to the actions of Russia in the war, telling them to withdraw to prevent further bloodshed of soldiers and civilians on either side of the war. Analyzing the potential music devices used in the performance, I would say there are little to none present, as no special instrumentation or vocal styles are utilized on stage or in the backing track. The genre of “My Sister’s Crown” would be considered Slavic Pop, which is the typical music genre composed by the band Vesna.

Staging

Diving into the staging and performers behind “My Sister’s Crown” we discover even more hidden references and symbols with deeper meanings. Whenever the song reaches the chorus, the massive LED screens on stage display a white, grid lined background with the dark silhouette of hands banging on the glass. This gloomy depiction symbolizes “a sense of oppression, like the oppression of the Ukrainian sisters to whom the song is dedicated…[and] also means that we have ‘the power in our hands to do good’” (Panea & Pérez-Rufí, 2024, p. 114). The special effects and specific colors schemes create an atmosphere of sadness and despair surrounding Russia’s acts of violence, giving a sense of impending doom if the war continues to go on. The choreography and body language of the performers also take a much more serious tone, with the women singers often standing uniformly in a line throughout the performance. According to Panea and Pérez-Rufí (2024), “there is also no interaction with the audience in the auditorium and the gaze is directed towards the television viewer” (p. 116-117). However, since the Eurovision Song Contest is supposed to be nonpolitical, a second surface-level message is also conveyed in the performance to cover up the political references made. The constant mention of sisters in the lyrics along with all five female members wearing bright pink clothing and long braided hair portrays a strong feminist theme empowering women. This superficial connotation serves the purpose of concealing the deeper meaning revealed in the song. This performance and stage directing sends the message that Czechia and the western Slavik nations stand against the oppressive influence of Russia, supporting the freedom of Ukraine.

Czechia’s National Identity

In the previous blog post, I concluded that Czechia’s national identity is difficult to distinguish from other Slavic countries. They had been under the influence and control of the Eastern Bloc during the time of the Soviet Union, where many aspects of national identity were forcibly removed to decrease chances of rebellion. So, it was only natural that after the Soviet Union fell, Czechia and other countries controlled, had nearly undefinable national identities. Czechia has since become a member of the European Union in 2004 and has attempted to establish a new national identity for itself. This was achieved through “the culmination of a long period in which relations with the European Communities were strengthened, beginning with a sectoral trade agreement” (“The Czech Republic and the European Union”, n.d.). In the eyes of Czechia, this was a significant step forward, as this allowed for the country to be recognized by the dominant European nations of the west. A new national identity could be formed, building off these new connections and creating a new name for themselves as part of the powerful west European nations.

National Identity Alignment with “My Sister’s Crown”

Regarding Czechia’s development of their new national identity, I would say that the song “My Sister’s Crown” is in alignment. The country’s lack of distinction from their neighboring Slavic countries is reinforced by the multinational group, Vesna, performing the song. The Czech Republic loses some of their self-identity with only three of the singers being Czech while the two others are Slovak and Russian. Additionally, it has long been known that the European powers in the west never had good relations with Russia, so it only makes sense that after Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, the EU would respond negatively. Knowing this would be their response, Czechia selected their Eurovision song to call out the atrocities of Russia and support the country of Ukraine, demonstrating their shared beliefs with other west European nations. They hoped to advance their progress significantly in developing their national identity and be seen as a strong, influential nation in the EU.

On a separate note, essentialism is a common practice used by western European nations in their Eurovision songs. It is the “construction of any [cultural] tradition…[by] selecting certain aspects and marginalizing” typically eastern European countries. Though only faint, we can see the beginning of essentialism taking place in the performance of “My Sister’s Crown.” The use of Ukrainian in the lyrics, though used to encourage and support the Ukraine, could be seen as a form of essentialism. This similarity in themes shared between “My Sister’s Crown” and the Eurovision songs of other western European nations is a sign of alignment with Czechia’s new national identity.