As we gear up for Eurovision 2024, our team had a chance to interview Raiven. She will be representing Slovenia with the song “Veronika”.
What’s your earliest Eurovision memory? Do you have a favourite Eurovision song?
My first Eurovision memory is watching Lordi win Eurovision. I have many favorite Eurovision songs – I love both Loreen’s and Kaarija’s entries last year, but I also love “La Forza” from Estonia in 2018. There are many, many songs that I love.
You’ve been a musician for a long time and have a background in classical singing and playing the harp. What made you decide to pursue a career in pop music?
Ever since I was a little girl I was singing both genres, and found both genres very interesting. I never really had a pivotal moment when I said “I wanna do pop”. It was always very natural for me.
Your song “Veronika” is inspired by Veronika of Desenice. What part of her story made you want to write a song about her? What is the message you want to communicate through your song?
Veronika was the first woman accused of witchcraft in my country, and I think her story is very inspiring to anyone who has ever felt out of place, judged, or portrayed to being something that they’re not. I myself have always felt that just because of the way I look, or because of my music, a lot of the time people see me as something that me as a person I’m really not, and I think that’s why this song has such a powerful message.
“Veronika” was written with a large team of songwriters, including Bojan Cvjetićanin of last year’s representatives Joker Out. What was the songwriting process like? How was it to work with that group of people?
Bojan came in to the picture when the song was almost finished. He added the part of “Jaz sem. Ti si. Veronika”, which is now the hook, and I love it. All the melodic lines apart from “Jaz sem. Ti si. Veronika” and a lot of the chord progressions, and the basic first demo idea of the song was created by me at home, in my little pink room where I make all the music. I went to London to my producer, and we improved the demo version, and then together with our producers here in Slovenia, we made the version of the song that you can now listen to. A lot of people were involved in its creation, but the core of the song was constructed by me.
You’ve said previously that “Veronika” wasn’t originally intended for Eurovision. What made you decide to use it for the contest?
I always felt that this song calls for a huge staging and has a lot of staging potential, and I just thought that this song has the dramatics and the kind of dark, creepy poetic vibe that the Eurovision stage can convey pretty well.
You have tried to represent Slovenia at Eurovision a few times before–with “Črno bel”, “Zažarim”, and “Kaos”. How does it feel to finally be selected?
As a Slovenian musician, we don’t really get a lot of opportunities to have such a huge platform as Eurovision is. Also, EMA, our national selection is a great platform to promote our music, so that was the main reason why I always loved performing at EMA. Out of all the four songs, “Veronika” is by far my favorite.
What was the one thing you have learnt from taking part in the Slovenian selection that you will take with you, now that you are heading to Eurovision?
Mostly that I should always know how to shut out the noise, listen to myself first and know what I would like to convey through my song.
What do you think will make “Veronika” stand out against the other entries?
I think I never really thought a lot about how to stand out, it just always happened. I know that every artist has something unique about themselves, but the way to get to that essence and that authentic uniqueness that everyone has you just have to really not try to compare yourself to others, and just listen to yourself.
Have you listened to any of the other competing songs so far? Do you have a favorite? Is there another performer that you’re really excited to meet?
I listened to most of the songs. I love Lithuania, I love Croatia, Serbia, Norway, I really like the darker ones, and ones that have a bit of an edge.
And finally, what would you like to say to anyone discovering your music for the first time through Eurovision 2024?
I would say to just try and listen to the whole body of the work, not just one song but maybe the whole EP, or at least like three songs in a row. Close your eyes and try to immerse yourself in the music visually as well. I always wanted to create an atmosphere with my music.
About Raiven
Sara Cirman, AKA Raiven, is a 27 year old musician well versed with the Eurovision world; having tried to represent her country on three separate occasions. Her debut attempt in 2016 with the song Črno Bel saw her narrowly miss out on the win by only 127 points. Her 2017 and 2018 attempts (Zažarim & KAOS) saw her again narrowly miss out, coming 3rd and 2nd respectively. In addition to her talents as a vocalist, Raiven is a harpist; having learned to play as a child.
Following her 2016 EMA participation, Raiven released her debut, and to date only, album Magenta in 2017. The album saw great popularity and subsequently won the Zlata piščal album of the year in 2018. Outwith her pop career, Raiven has used her talents as a Mezzo-Soprano singer to venture into the world of Opera. She has participated in a series of operas including the likes of The Barber of Seville as Rosina. Additionally, she has flirted with a career in theatre, having participated in a number of plays produced by the Slovenian National Theatre.
Her 2024 Eurovision entry ‘Veronika’ was penned by herself, and a team that included the frontman of Joker Out (Bojan Cvjetićanin) who represented Slovenia last year in Liverpool. The writing team included Martin Bezjak, Danilo Kapel, Peter Khoo, and Klavdija Kopina.
Slovenia’s Eurovision Journey
In 1993, Slovenia made its debut in the Eurovision Song Contest with 1X Band and the song “Tih deževen dan”, which placed 22nd. Since their debut, they have participated 27 times, qualifying 15 times for the grand final.
Most recently, Joker Out represented Slovenia with “Carpe Diem”. Performing at the second semi-final, the band placed 5th, therefore qualifying for the final for the first time since 2019. At the final, Slovenia finished in 21st place, receiving 78 points. Of these, 33 came from the jury and 45 from the televote.
Will Raiven finally bring Eurovision to Slovenia? What do you think of “Veronika”? Let us know in the comments or on social media! Be sure to follow ‘That Eurovision Site’ on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads and Bluesky as we prepare for Eurovision 2024!
News Source: That Eurovision Site
Photo Credit: Tjaša Barbo
Rory Gannon