Recommendations of the Editorial team
You don’t have to dig out Stefan Raab’s Gaga song “Wadde hadde dudde da” to realize that the witty lyrics aren’t necessarily what’s important in ESC pieces. As is well known, show effects, charisma, sexiness, vivacity, dancing ability and sometimes just the right attitude to life count for much more than a clever line.
On Saturday Sarah Engels will compete for Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest. Known to be a talented singer, proven to be a good dancer (“Let’s Dance”!) and also at least at the forefront in other fields with which you can score points with the audience (see above).
Engel’s song is called “Fire”. Apart from the fact that it is of course a fiery number with catchy pop elements, there is a lot of empowerment logic in it. If you pay more attention to the lyrics – which, as I said, is not absolutely necessary to understand the message – then you realize: It is a declaration of separation to a manipulative ex.
The meaning of “Fire”
The basic plot is of course surprisingly simple: a man treated a woman badly (“nonsense what you’ve been doin’ to me”). He lies or denies his guilt (“you’re a liar,” “stop denyin’”). He disappears and reappears when it suits him (“like a vampire, you hide, then come out at night”). She explains that she is not going back this time. Instead, she is “on fire,” strong, no longer a victim.
This is of course a classic ESC motif: I was injured, now I’m stronger. The beat shows us all. Or to put it a bit more evil: The song is an analogy to the moment when someone, after three months of abstinence from Instagram, suddenly posts a story with a sunset and writes “Healing Isn’t Linear”.
The ambiguity of the word “Fire” somewhere between passion, anger, self-empowerment, excessive libido, revenge and possibly even stagecraft is at least ESC craftsmanship well done. “Fire” also rhymes so well with “Liar.” In recent years, Germany has become significantly, let’s say, less competitive.
To be fair, one also has to say that lines like “I can fake it ’til I make it, but I won’t / If you crave it, you can take it, but you don’t” are, on closer inspection, simply semantic nonsense and sound a bit like DSDS sentence construction kit. It’s fine, as long as the syllables land on the beat.
If Sarah Engels ends up in the lower midfield at the ESC, like her predecessors of the last two years, then at least that has little to do with her song. Ultimately, “Fire” doesn’t tell a story so much as present an attitude. It’s not about a (broken) relationship, but about staging emotional sovereignty. Something that works on TikTok and in front of thousands of fans at the same time.
Sarah Engels: “Fire” – Lyrics
“Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no more
Boy, I’m out of your league
Nonsense, what you’ve been doing to me
Just know that I could take my revenge
I could go out with all of your friendsI could fake it ’til I make it, but I won’t
(Fake it ’til I make it, but I won’t)
If you crave it, you could take it, but you don’t
(Crave it, you could take it, but you don’t)
I don’t want it, I don’t need it
And I won’t let you repeat it
You just play until you break it and it’s blown (blown, blown)I’m on fire, fire
You’re a liar, liar
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no more
Like a vampire, you hide and come out the night
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no moreI’m on fire, fire
(I’m on fire, fire)
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no moreJust wait a minute, you′re gonna see (see, see)
That you won’t find another like me
You’ll come around and I’ll be too late
‘Cause I won’t do the same old mistakeI could fake it ’til I make it, but I won’t
(Fake it ’til I make it, but I won’t)
If you crave it, you could take it, but you don’t
(Crave it, you could take it, but you don’t)
I don’t want it, I don’t need it
And I won’t let you repeat it
You just play until you break it and it’s blownI’m on fire, fire
You’re a liar, liar
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no more
Like a vampire, you hide and come out the night
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no moreI’m on fire, fire
(I’m on fire, fire)
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no more
Like a vampire, you hide and come out the night
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no more(I’m on fire)
I’m on fire (I’m on fire, fire)
You’re a liar, liar
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no moreLike a vampire, you hide and come out the night
Stop denying, ‘nying, no lying, lying no more
I’m on fire
I’m on fire
Like a vampire, you hide and come out the night
Stop denying, “nying, no lying, lying no more”
