The Romanian television broadcaster (TVR) has defended the controversial song "Choke Me", which represents Romania at Eurovision, rejecting accusations that the song trivializes a dangerous sexual practice, news agency dpa reported on Wednesday.
The title of the song by Romanian artist Alexandra Capitanescu is meant to be a metaphor, TVR told dpa, arguing that it is committed to artistic freedom, the values of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and the spirit of the Eurovision Song Contest, which promotes "diversity, inclusion, dialogue between cultures and authentic expression through music".
The EBU did not comment on the matter.
TVR said the meaning of the song would be publicly explained by the artist herself "during the staging of the performance" in Vienna.
"The artistic concept of the stage performance is specifically designed to highlight the metaphorical nature of the message and to rule out any literal interpretation of the lyrics," TVR wrote.
The song has drawn widespread criticism, including from the United Kingdom, which is introducing a law prohibiting the possession and publication of pornography materials depicting strangulation or suffocation.
The lyrics include phrases such as: "Love me, make my lungs explode" and "Born for you to control, I want you to choke me" or "All I need is your love, I want it choke me."
Capitanescu said in early March that the lyrics should not be interpreted literally, arguing that art should not be subject to censorship as long as no one is hurt.
The song is far from the first Eurovision entry to stir up controversy, dpa recalls. Last year, the BBC lodged a complaint over Malta's song "Kant", as the Maltese word for song sounding similar to a vulgar English expression for female genitalia.
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