Last time I had some thoughts regarding language in the music. The conclusion was that non-English singers have less chance of becoming famous worldwide.
Of course, in the group mentioned above of people, Poles are included. With one of the most difficult-to-learn languages, our nationality is in the group with slight chances of reaching a musical top outside Poland. It is difficult to break into international peaks singing in the national, non-English language.
What examples of Polish singers and bands could I give you, my Dear Friend, that have lyrics worth listening to? Below you will find examples.
The misfortune (or fortune, it all depends on one’s point of view) of these bands is that they sing in Polish:
a) Kult, with a charismatic vocalist named Kazik Staszewski;
b) Dezerter, a legend of Polish Punk;
c) Maanam, with a famous female vocalist who died in 2018, Kora.
Undoubtedly, this concise list could include some more Polish musical bands. All these bands have precious lyrics in their repertoire. Non-Polish-speakers cannot appreciate the pure wisdom and magic hidden in the words of Polish musical groups. I doubt whether translating these songs into English would be a good idea. The charm and sense of the lyrics could be lost in a translation. Of course, I could be wrong. I hope that someday someone will prove to me that, indeed, I am wrong.
Nevertheless, there are exceptions. Which ones? For example, a Hungarian band, “Omega,” has a famous song named “Gyöngyhajú lány.”
It is a song that is recognized worldwide. For English-speaking people, it is known as “The girl with pearly hair.” However, in my opinion, a general rule is that if a song is not written and sung in English, it will be challenging to reach the very top.
In the end, I could ask an open question whether, for example, Björk, if only sang only in Icelandic, would she make a career as she already did? Is the language in music as crucial as I wrote?
