Romania has also pushed the boundaries of the ESC with their musical contribution.
Shortly before the end of the ESC finals in Vienna Things will get tricky again: Romania will be in 24th place right in front of hosts Austria. Alexandra Capitanescu performs the song “Choke Me” and not only makes a name for herself with her dark performance. The text is about strangulation, albeit in a metaphorical sense as a pointed image of toxic attraction, loss of control or power games.
Problematic lyrics?
There has recently been a serious debate in the UK about sexual violence, pornography and the normalization of dangerous practices. The British government announced new laws against online abuse and violent pornography in November 2025. This explicitly includes criminalizing the possession or publication of pornographic depictions of strangulation or suffocation.
According to the government, the aim of the measures is to curb violence against women and girls and to prevent the spread of such content on platforms. Also that one “Guardians” reported at the time that pornography involving “choking” would be included in the planned criminal offenses.
Does the Romanian ESC contribution go too far?
However, that does not mean that Romania’s ESC entry automatically violates the rules. Legally, of course, a song title cannot be equated with pornographic images and the lyrics also repeatedly veer off into a provocative, yet harmless direction.
Nevertheless, the irritation is understandable. Because “Choke Me” doesn’t just leave it with an abstract title. Motifs of control, shortness of breath and submission emerge in the published lyrics; the chorus repeatedly works with the title-giving formulation:
Phantom, you feel like a phantom
Why do you wanna tame me?
It’s hard to breathe in
Do you feel me? Do what I say
And don’t you ever betray me
You are here to obey me
Are you not? All I need is your love
I want it to choke me, choke me, choke me
Born for you to control, I want you to choke me
Ch-ch-ch-choke me, ch-ch-ch-choke me
Love me, make my lungs explode
All I need is your love, I want it to choke me
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For the EBU, a familiar problem in a new form
The ESC wants to be colorful, free and sometimes provocative, but at the same time it should remain a TV event suitable for the masses that runs at prime time in many countries. What works for some as a dramatic pop exaggeration can seem like a trivialization of dangerous, violent images for others. This is exactly where the weakness of the article lies: Even if “Choke Me” is meant metaphorically, the title forces a debate that is bigger than the song itself.
Romania is likely to attract attention with its appearance – this is not unimportant strategically just before Austria’s final effect. But attention is not always just an advantage at the ESC. In this case, it could also mean that there is less talk about singing, stage design and performance than about the question of why a competition that reaches millions of people waves through such a title without any major visible classification.
