How do you solve a problem like Imperija?

The Macedonian Eurovision song selection is normally a much more sedate affair. Either they have a long drawn out national final and everyone cries fix but doesn't really care too much, or else they pick Kaliopi and everyone worships at her feet.

This year, Vlatko Lozanoski and Esma Redžepova were a popular choice, but no sooner had 'Imperija' been presented in a live show on Macedonian TV than complaints began to fly in the national media, and a few days later we learned that the song might be changed. Earlier this week, it was confirmed by MKRTV that this would be the case, and on Friday we will hear the new song for Macedonia.

So what happened? It's not at all clear, but let's try and explain.

Firstly it was said that the song would undergo 'changes in the arrangement and lyrics'. The reasons for this weren't particularly clear - the lyrics themselves aren't particularly political or controversial and the arrangement is fitting for the song, however the decision was made after "clearly stated views and contructive suggestions of experts and Macedonian audience".

MKRTV were apparently unhappy with the standards set in the video in particular; they'd let the artists and video producers have a completely free rein this year, and the resulting product was not 'dignified' enough to be presented to a European audience. It appears they were generally unhappy with the whole thing from the moment it was completed, but with a show to broadcast, had no choice but to run with the original song and video for the presentation.

The major bone of contention was the prominent appearance of buildings and monuments from the 'Skopje 2014' project, a government building program. Skopje 2014's aim is the construction of museums and other buildings, as well as monuments, in a neo-classic style, which has been strongly criticised for "constructing nationalistic historicist kitsch" as well as just generally being very expensive and a waste of money in what's not exactly a cash-rich economy. In effect, the whole video plays as a propaganda piece for the achievements of the current government, made up of a nationalist, right-wing party (VMRO-DPMNE).

It's perhaps somewhat unusual and unexpected that MKRTV would speak out so publicly against the government in this way, which leads me to suspect there's somewhat more to this than is being said. Certainly, even if the video were the root cause, there'd be no need to change the song itself.

However, that is what's happening. One of the reports wrote that Lozano had threatened to leave the project if the song wasn't changed, and indeed it seems he's got his way. The new song will be written by Darko Dimitrov and Lazar Cvetkovski (the latter is Lozano's own producer) with Simeon Atanasov, the composer of 'Imperija'. Esma herself will reportedly sing in the Romani language this time, rather than in Macedonian, and the song will have much stronger influences from the world of gypsy music after criticism of the 'ethno-motifs' in 'Imperija'.

So, who knows what really happened? One of the articles mentioned 'Eurovision representatives' being involved in the discussions, so perhaps there was an element of the EBU that disapproved of the blatant political posturing - though for once it seems it wasn't due to annoying the Greeks! There's certainly more to it than meets the eye, but to summarise what we know for sure, the main objection within Macedonia seems to be that there was an element of 'ethno-kitsch' to both the song and the video, which it seems will be eliminated in favour of something more genuine.

And what potential does the new song hold? I have to admit that, while I liked 'Imperija', I was a little disappointed in the overall product, but this new song doesn't sound like it will have the same accessibility as the previous. With strong gypsy influences and opportunities for both singers to show off their vocals, it could potentially wind up having little chance in a European context.

You can hear 'Imperija' below (the video has disappeared from the internet), before the new song is released on Friday.

Reaction: Lozano and Esma for Macedonia

Macedonia has long been my favourite country at Eurovision, ever since entries like 'Samo ti', 'Ne zori zoro' and 'Od nas zavisi'. Even '100% te ljubam' is a great slice of cheesy 90s girl-pop. They've lost their way somewhat in recent years, failing to qualify to the final four times in a row (though I still liked the entries), before changing their approach in 2012, internally selecting one of the biggest stars in the country in Kaliopi, a decision that paid dividends.

Now for 2013 MRT is repeating that formula, announcing last week that Vlatko Lozanoski and Esma Redžepova will represent the country in Malmö. On the surface, this combination of young popstar and folk music legend is pretty unusual, but I have pretty high hopes that they can build on their success in 2012, and potentially go even higher with this choice.

Vlatko Lozanoski, or Lozano as he is known, is perhaps best remembered among Eurovision fans for his song 'Letam kon tebe', which probably should have won the 2010 Macedonian Final. The track, and particularly the album that was released in the same year, have strong echoes of the late Toše Proeski about them, both in Lozano's vocals and in the production. Indeed, I wouldn't be at all surprised if many of the tracks he has recorded had previously been written for Proeski. Lozano has been one of the most popular Macedonian pop singers over the past few years, both in terms of sales and radio play.


In contrast, Esma is known as one of the biggest names in Romani folk music, both in Macedonia and beyond. Much of her repertoire is in very traditional styles, with new songs building on Romani folk motifs, and she has released over 50 albums, in both the domestic market and the world music scene. She even took part in Jugovizija in 1971. Her work frequently appears on those terrible 'Music of Eastern Europe' compilations, which, if you didn't know any better, would give you the impression that all anyone in the former Eastern bloc listens to is gypsy wailing and cow-stomach instruments battling with overly cheery hippity-hoppity dancers.

Fortunately, that's far from the case, and Esma has also lent her distinct vocals to pop tracks over the past ten years, creating some pretty interesting fusions of pop and folk styles that show just how well these combinations can work. She duetted with Magazin on 'Dani su bez broja', and in 2003 joined Kaliopi on 'Bel den', one of the best tracks on the latter's critically acclaimed Ne mi go zemaj vremeto album.


'Ljubov e', a duet with Adrijan Gaxha, placed a close second in the 2006 Macedonian Final. The best of these collaborations, however, is a duet with the aforementioned Toše Proeski on his Ako me pogledneš vo oči. 'Magija' was a huge hit in 2003, and also came out in a Serbian version. With the comparisons I mentioned before, I have my fingers very firmly crossed, and if Macedonia's songwriters can come up with something like this again, I will be very happy.


It probably wouldn't be a winner - it's far too Eastern for that - but I do think they have the potential to pull off a great performance, and hopefully secure another strong result for Macedonia. We'll hear the song in February, and I personally can hardly wait!