Eurovision 2026: Alexandra Căpitănescu's paradox. One of the best-ranked Romanians at Eurovision: “Scandal always sells”
One of the best-known artists from Romania, who represented our country at Eurovision, is extremely optimistic that Alexandra Căpitănescu will qualify for Saturday's final of this year's edition of the music contest.
Mihai Trăistariu believes that the Romanian representative has even greater chances to access the last act of the competition also due to the criticism that Alexandra Căpitănescu received as a result of the controversial message of her song, “Choke Me”.
“We have a saying in showbiz: sex sells, everything related to sex, that it's a scandal, that something sexy sells. Everything rises and it automatically raised her in the polls almost 20 places. So, it didn't harm her, but on the contrary: it brought her to the attention of everyone who clicked”, said Mihai Trăistariu on Thursday, at Euronews Romania.
Mihai Trăistariu also referred to the criticisms coming from Great Britain, following which there were voices that demanded that the song “Choke Me” be removed from the competition on the grounds that it incites sexual violence.
“Critics immediately raised her in the polls and at the betting houses. Scandal always sells and the sexual parts don't say anymore. People clicked on the song to see what's wrong with that song. And it's not that bad. The voice is very good and then it only helped her. Any scandal helps,” the singer pointed out.
Mihai Trăistariu is the artist who had one of Romania's best rankings at Eurovision. He placed 4th at the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest held in Athens with the song “Tornero”. This was one of Romania's best Eurovision performances, with the artist then scoring 172 points.
Romania's best rankings at Eurovision
Romania achieved the 3rd place twice, the highest position so far:
- 2005: Luminita Anghel & Sistem – “Let me Try” (3rd Place, in Kiev)
- 2010: Paula Seling & Ovidiu Cernăuțeanu (Ovi) – “Playing with Fire” (3rd Place, in Oslo)
Other notable results of Romania in the Top 10:
- 2006: Mihai Trăistariu – “Tornero” (4th place)
- 2017: Ilinca and Alex Florea – “Yodel It!” (7th place)
- 2002: Monica Anghel and Marcel Pavel – “Tell Me Why” (9th place)
Alexandra Căpitănescu enters the competition tonight
The 2026 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest is being held in Vienna this year. The first semi-final was on Tuesday 12 May, while the second semi-final takes place on Thursday evening. The grand final is scheduled for Saturday, May 16.
The representative of our country will take the stage of the Wiener Stadthalle in the first part of the second semi-final.
Alongside Alexandra Căpitănescu, her bandmates, Bogdan Stoican, Luca Şofron, Matei Cohal and Thomas Cîrcotă, will perform.
Alexandra Căpitănescu said of her controversial song, “Choke Me”, that it is “a personal manifesto”. “It's a very honest story, about the fragile balance between falling and coming back,” Romania's representative at Eurovision 2026 told HotNews.
“It is both the song with which we participate in Eurovision, and a statement to our own people to let go of the fears and limits of the past. Fears are represented by the ghost voice, which, although it is not seen, makes its presence felt in our minds. The conclusion is strong and says in the chorus that only love can break the circle of these fears and fears”, she added, for HotNews.
Along with Romania, Albania, Denmark, Armenia, Cyprus, Switzerland, Norway, Azerbaijan, Luxembourg, Malta, Bulgaria, Australia, Ukraine, Czech Republic and Latvia will also compete in the second semi-final.
Thursday night's semi-final will be broadcast live on TVR 1, as will Saturday's final from 10 p.m.
The Eurovision 2026 final will also be broadcast on the official Eurovision YouTube.
criticism
The song “Choke Me” has attracted a lot of criticism, including from the UK, which is introducing a law that prohibits the possession and publication of pornographic material showing strangulation or suffocation.
The lyrics include phrases such as: “Love me, make my lungs explode” and “Born for you to control me, I want you to suffocate me” or “All I need is your love, I want you to suffocate me”.
Căpitănescu stated 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 gets hurt.
The song is far from being the first Eurovision entry to cause controversy, recalls the German agency DPA. Last year, the BBC lodged a complaint about the Maltese song 'Kant', the Maltese word for song sounding similar to an English slang for female genitalia.
The disqualification of the piece was requested
Criticism of the song that our country is competing with has also spread online, where many Eurovision fans have asked for the song to be disqualified or the lyrics to be changed.
In the past, the contest organizers intervened in similar situations. For example, recalls the British newspaper The Guardian, the EBU in other years requested the removal of words such as “shit” or “pussy” from the lyrics.
According to The Guardian, the BBC did not file a complaint regarding Romania's song this year, and the video of the song is available on the EBU website.
