#everybody's waiting

[eurovisijan]

Remember that you are loved and strong

Go leave a like on my insta

Update: KRIS REPOSTED?????????

Update2: check out this and other JO pieces on my Redbubble

[mitamicah]

More Bojan + Protagonist art because I felt like experimenting :3

[izpira-se-zlato]

As heard on Val 202

[zadig-fate]

Thoughts on the choice to write Everyone's Waiting in English

So I've seen a lot of criticism (or implied criticism) within the fandom of Bojan's choice to attempt an emotional song like Everyone's Waiting in English and complaints that his lyrics sound clumsy or less emotional/less genuine because he's not as good a songwriter in his non-native language. While I agree there's room for improvement in that respect, I want to examine and also defend this choice from a different perspective.

More below the cut, but tl;dr: even if the output isn't as eloquent, processing difficult feelings and personal struggles can actually be easier in your non-native language because it provides some distance and forces you to rethink how you view them.

When JO first announced they were moving to London and planning to do more songs in English, there was a lot of pushback, and those of you who remember the live discord Q&A (which I think was moved to IG or TikTok because of video troubles?) might remember Bojan getting a bit annoyed about this and stating that ultimately they make music for themselves, not for the public, and that while they appreciate the resonance their music has found with people, it's still first and foremost theirs.

This statement is always on my mind when I think about their choice to experiment with English songs and new sounds. And obviously I can't read Bojan's mind, but I can imagine that writing songs in English, even if they're not perfect, might give him a kind of personal satisfaction and a tool for working through his feelings that writing in his native languages doesn't.

Disclaimer: the following are just my non-scientific observations.

Some of my mutuals might know that I work as a translator, specifically as a literary translator. I recently translated an incredible book written in German by a Czech author. He is quite a famous Czech writer and this was the first book he had ever written in German, his non-native language. It deals with a lot of difficult themes like WWII, the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia, etc. When I met with him to discuss the English translation, he told me that he had to write this book in German because he couldn't write it in his native Czech. It would feel too close, too emotional. So he chose to write it in German, where he could examine these feelings from a distance and write a more honest book as a result.

And honestly, I get it. My native language is English. I learned German, my second language, as an adult, so to me it is and will always be non-native. I struggle with depression and anxiety and have been in therapy in both languages. I have personally made a lot more progress doing therapy in my non-native German than in my native English. You just fall into a lot of familiar thought patterns in your native language... it's easier to think less critically about your feelings in your native language because they feel so natural.

There's a kind of distance you get when processing your own thoughts and feelings in a fluent-but-non-native language that forces you to engage more consciously with them. You have to describe them in different words, in a different language altogether, so you have to reflect hard on what you really think and feel and how to best describe that in your other language. It's not possible to have a kneejerk reaction; you're forced to think things through.

It can also be easier to express thoughts in your second language that might feel uncomfortable in your native language because the words themselves are bound up with so much more emotion and context. And it places you a step away from the family and peer pressure in your native language. Bojan has even said in interviews that he feels more free to be himself in Serbian or English while feeling pressure to be a "good boy" in Slovenian.

All in all, if we take JO and particularly Bojan at their word that they're doing songs in English because they want to and not because they feel like they have to, I can see how writing in English might be genuinely therapeutic for Bojan, even if the end results are not as polished as his Slovenian lyrics. They may be more honest, even if they sound less refined and native.

I guess the question is whether he could have written Everybody's Waiting in Slovenian. From a technical standpoint, of course the answer is yes, but from an emotional one...? I'm not sure. Personally I can imagine that his anxieties might be easier to admit to and examine in another language, and not in the language of the country(ies) where he's so famous and has become such an idol. Maybe he feels like English gives him more distance and freedom in an emotional sense, even if his lyrical output isn't as strong. I can't read his mind, I can only say that I would understand.

[hotcat37]

Everybody's Waiting inspired moodboard 💡

[damiannasworld]

I just love it how they both took a negative downside of fame (Käärijä with online bullying and JO with anxiety) and turned it into an art in a form of these incredible songs. 😭 They're so brave for this and I admire them so much. 🥹

[chocolatepersonafun]

Bojan needs help with the piano.

Thank goddes for Jan, he can apparently play any instrument (that's so SO hot!!!).

[bookloverfangirl]

And how have you spent the last hour?

[hazzybat]

This is the only thing I'll say about the music vid

Anyone else notice how much closer Bojan is to the camera? Shorty pants was done dirty by being put next to Kris 🤣

[illbringyousolace]

Joker Out x Damon Baker, part 2

The lyrics on the first page are from Matt Maeson's song Hallucinogenics.

The lyrics on the second page are from Joker Out's Everybody's Waiting.

[puuta-heinaa]

Everyone is so talented in this fandom/in Bojan's stories, meanwhile best I can do instrumentally is this.

[rbf451]

At Kantine, Köln 24.3.2024 ines_26500 ig story 25.3.2024

[stealthywing]

Everybody's waiting at the ball

[me-sploh-rada-imas]

ohhh the whole vibe is completely different!! bojan's voice sounds incredible, the bass slaps, jan on keys nearly made me cry, the whole instrumentals are amazing i loved it!

if anyone wants to listen it's still available here

[prettiesforyou]

It's okay. I'm pretty good at waiting. You're on the 17:06 too?