Romania: WRS always approaches life with rhythm in mind

The latin rhythms and Balearic beats of Llámame have already been heard booming around the PalaOlimpico multiple times, now that WRS has had his first few rehearsals on stage. He looks quite at home there, almost instantly, but how did the run-throughs really go for the Romanian rhythm-maker?

I’m so happy with everything, it went amazing. I was a bit nervous because it was with a headset, and it was the first time in my whole life I was singing with a headset. And I really didn’t wanna screw it up! But it was amazing – the sound quality, and then the stage is huge, too. And I saw some pictures; seeing the costumes with the lights and the graphics – it’s a dream come true. I love what I do and this is the reason i’m here on this planet – to spread joy. So it’s amazing that this is happening for me.

📺 Watch: WRS – Llámame (Exclusive Rehearsal Clip)

Anyone tuning in to WRS’ performance during the Second Semi Final can look forward to not just those costumes, lights and graphics that the artist is so enthused about, but also some impressive moves that have been choreographed in such a way that many viewers will no doubt want to be joining in on, too. This is no coincidence, as dancing always forms a major part of WRS’ compositions.

Dancing is so important to me, because I don’t play any instrument. Also, I’m a songwriter. And for me, the biggest help I get when writing is from my body – because my body is my instrument. When I write a song I always think about how the body will be able to move to it – the breakdowns, the dancing, the rhythm. So yes, dancing helps me a lot. And on the stage, for example, even if I don’t have choreography, I feel the stage and I feel the limits it has; knowing I have to cover all the stage. I have this connection with the cameras and the people, too; I feel their energy.

The linguists amongst you won’t have failed to notice that despite being from Romania, and singing the majority of his song in English, WRS has chosen to write in Spanish for the chorus, the most infamous parts of the song, and for the song title itself – Llámame. For the bop-writer from Buzău, this came quite naturally, as he’s always had an affinity for the Spanish language. His introduction to it, however, might not be the same as how most people get to grips with it…

In Romania, when we were super young, we were practically forced to watch Telenovelas! My mother and my grandmother, while I was growing up, they watched a lot of Telenovelas. The first foreign language that we heard in our house was Spanish. So for me, it’s so easy to understand and to write in Spanish.

So. We’ve covered the Llámame. We’ve mastered the 'hola, mi bebé-bé'. What’s the deal with his name? How are we pronouncing WRS? Well, it’s actually pronounced 'urs’. And it’s not that far removed from his real name, believe it or not.

My surname is Ursu, which means 'bear’ in Romanian. And I decided to make it a bit fancy; I changed the u to a w. But you can call me whatever you like! If you listen to my music and you like my music, call me what you like!

📺 Watch: WRS – Llámame (Official Music Video)

It’s fair to assume that there will be a lot of people listening to his music once they’re introduced to the sights and sounds of Llámame on the Eurovision stage. It will be WRS’ biggest international platform to date, and he’s just released his debut EP, Mandala, to mark the occasion and to make sure that there is music for all his new fans to get acquainted with. It’s a stage he’s understandably happy to be on, but in WRS’ case, it’s one he’s dreamt about for as long as he can remember.

My earliest Eurovision memory, I was watching with my mom – she introduced me to Eurovision. Every year, we would be watching Eurovision – I had to stay at home and watch it with her. And I remember Ruslana’s moment. When I saw the choreography, it was just everything. I think that first experience, when I watched Eurovision, it helped me shape my dream of becoming an artist. It was and still is the biggest production out there. And when I first saw that on the television, I thought I really wanna do that in my life – the stage and the lights and just everything about it.

To watch Romania’s WRS have his full-circle Eurovision moment, you can tune in the Second Semi Final on Thursday 12 May, where he’ll be performing Llámame.

📺 Watch: All 40 Songs Official Recap

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