Eileen Khatchadourian
On her debut album Midan, Armenian-Lebanese singer Eileen Khatchadourian reworks traditional Armenian folk songs in a goth-rock style. In this week’s show Eileen talks about her music and influences, about being Beirut’s only Armenian alternative rock artist - and about her latest video being banned in Lebanon...
You can listen to the full show and interview on the Radio Wave Jukebox via the link above. Because the recent banning of Eileen’s video Zarti Vortyag is a rather controversial topic, some more information about this is included here, as well as a transcript of the part of the interview dealing with the ban.
Zarti Vortyag is an Armenian folk song in which a mother asks her son to fight in defence of their people. Although the song does not directly mention the Ottoman Empire’s 1915 genocide of between one and two million Armenians, the lyrics are generally understood to be about this.
In her version of the song, Eileen reads the following quote by Armenian-American author William Saroyan:
"I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia. See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia."
In April, Lebanese government censors ruled that the song’s video could be played only once on television, after which it would be officially banned. Eileen says:
“[I]n Lebanon you have to pass by the General Security, you have to get the approval of the General Security to be able to air your music video on television, especially when it’s terrestrial television, it’s not by satellite. I had to be interviewed, I had to explain each word of the song. And at that time, they told me, ‘You can’t pass this song because it’s propaganda against Turkey.’ I said, ‘Guys, there’s no word “Turkey” in the song, there’s no word of “Ottoman Empire”’. They’re, like, ‘Yeah, you know, the relations, the diplomatic relation is very good between Lebanon and Turkey now, and we can not take the risk to offend them.’
“I said, ‘Come on, this relation between these two countries is not standing on my music video. I mean, I’m not the King of the World or someone! So they just gave me permission to air it one day, which is the day of commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, on the 24th of April. Which is very ironic, because, I mean, why can I offend, that day, Turkey, and not the other coming days? Usually in Lebanon, they censor things when you’re insulting someone, you’re insulting a politician, or when the image is very erotic for them. But there is nothing erotic in my video clip, there is no insult in my music video. So it was very weird. They did something stupid, I think, which helped me a lot, because more people watched this video, because they were asking themselves ‘Why is this video banned?’ I mean, no-one could understand. So because of their stupidity, I had a hell of advertising with this music video.”
[Radio Wave asks: The General Security actually said that it was to not offend Turkey?]
“Yes, they said that they didn’t want to offend Turkey, and the Turkish Ambassador in Lebanon. It was very weird, because Lebanon is a country that’s recognised the Armenian Genocide. If it was a country who didn’t recognise the Armenian Genocide, I would understand maybe, because they don’t believe that a genocide happened. But this is a country which, they accept it, they recognised the Armenian Genocide years ago. I’m Armenian it’s true, my origin is Armenian, but above all I’m a Lebanese citizen. I’m born in Lebanon, my parents are born in Lebanon. So for me, it was a bit hard to accept this.”
We tried to contact the Lebanese Embassy for their comments on the ban, but they didn’t reply; there’s probably a diplomatic rule about not discussing sensitive foreign policy issues on pop music radio shows...
The Armenian Genocide is officially recognised by many states across the world, including the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Slovakia and Poland. It is not presently recognised by the Czech Republic. In Turkey, it remains a criminal offence to publicly suggest that the genocide took place.
Rather than offer further comment, let’s conclude with two other quotes:
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana, 1905.
“Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?” – Adolf Hitler, 1939.
Listen to the full interview, mixed with highlights from Eileen Khatchadourian’s Midan, on the Radio Wave Jukebox, under Friday Ripple > 14.04.2010. The show also features more great Armenian artists, more great Lebanese artists, and the usual global tour of alternative and underground hits. It’s streaming right now on the Radio Wave Jukebox, and the full playlist looks like this:
Eileen Khatchadourian - Sari Siroun Yar (Incognito)
Eileen Khatchadourian - Karouna (Incognito)
Eileen Khatchadourian – Aravod (Incognito)
Deti Picasso - Ai Sarin! (Glubina)
Lavach - Chalakho (self-released)
Eileen Khatchadourian - Zarti Vortyag (Incognito)
Deti Picasso - Kele Lao (Glubina)
Scrambled Eggs - X to Be (Lebanese Underground)
The New Government - Sister Klaus (Lebanese Underground)
Mashrou' Leila – Fasateen (B-Root)
The Incompetents - Urinal Blues Pt. 1 (Incognito)
Lumi - Don't F With My Cat (EMI)
The Plastic Wave - [RE]action (self-released)
Die Antwoord - Enter The Ninja (self-released)
Nul – Utopia (PIT)
Mexican Institute of Sound - Sinfonia Agridulce (Nacionale)
Frightened Rabbit - Set You Free (FatCat)
Shantel -Citizen Of Planet Paprika (Essay)
Soulico - Exotic On The Speaker Ft. Rye Rye (JDub)
Maluca – Tigerazo (Mad Decent)
Alpha Blondy & Mokobe - Travailler C'est Trop Dur
Brother Resistance - Water Master Water (Blue Flame)
Res,Tony Allen,Ray Lema,Baaba Maal,Positive Black Soul,Archie Shepp No Agreement (MCA)
Pitch Black Afro - Zonke Bonke (Ghetto Ruff)
Maga Bo feat. Bigg - 3akel (Soot)
Viviane Ndour w. Fou Malade - Taximan (Jololi)
