LESSON NOTES

All About S1 #10

Top Five Things You Need to
Know About Romanian Pop
Culture

CONTENTS
2 Grammar

# 10
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GRAMMAR

T he Focus of t his Lesson is Romanian Pop Cult ure

T he Top 5 t hings t o know about pop cult ure in Romania: music,

movies, T V, popular f oreigners, popular Romanian men/women and
sport s figures abroad.

Romanian culture is not only what's between the walls of museum and churches or
appearing in textbooks and documentaries. Romanian pop culture today is on the
cutting edge of many forms of entertainment, from music to sports, movies to
fashion. The creativity of Romanian people is still giving many gifts to mankind.

By the way, it is important to consider that the entertainment industry in Romania is

strongly influenced by both European and American cultures.

1. Popular Music

Romanian music now offers many talented singers and bands covering different
genres, from melodic music and opera to rock. Inna, Antonia, Alexandra Stan,
Nicoleta Nuca, Dan Bittman, Horia Brenciu, Dan Bălan, Smiley, and Paula Seling are
very popular in Romania but some of them have had considerable success abroad
during the last few years. Holograf, Cargo, Mădălina Manole are Romanian bands
and celebrities who were very popular in their day and many people still listen to
their songs. Nowadays among opera singers Angela Gheorgiu is probably the most
beloved artist. Inna is a singer who became famous on YouTube. She was the first
European female singer who surpassed one billion views. Her fame grew and she
sold millions of records worldwide, and at the end of 2011 she became the richest
recording artist in Romania and Eastern Europe.

The male music world is undoubtedly dominated by international star Dan Bălan. He
was born in the Republic of Moldova, where he started his career as a
instrumentalist, songwriter, and singer. Later he moved to Romania with his group
O-zone where he created and released albums. Among the songs he wrote and
produced was the international hit Dragostea din tei known as the Numa Numa
song, one of the best-selling songs in the history of world music. It sold more than
12 million copies in Europe, Asia and Latin America. The Numa numa song was
translated into more than fourteen languages.

Dan Balan started his solo career in 2006. Since then he produced and wrote other
hits like Crazy Loop, Freedom, Lendo Calendo, Funny Love, Lyubi, Domoy and
others. He worked with recording companies in the U.K, U.S, Italy, Russia and
collaborates with international artists like Lady Gaga, Rihanna and others. He sings
in Romanian, English, Spanish, and Russian.

A current Romanian rising star is Nicoleta Nuca with her single Nu sunt.

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2. Popular Movies

Hollywood movies are very popular in Romania, however Romanian has it's own film
culture which is populated by great names such as Horațiu Malaele with his Nunta
Mută ("Silent Wedding") or Radu Mihaileanu with The Concert. All genres are
covered, from comedies to horror movies. One example of a horror movie is Miss
Christina directed by Cristian Mugiu. Other Romanian films on the top of the list are:

Filantropica - Director Nae Caramfil

Closer to the Moon - Romanian-American production, Director Nae Caramfil

Nașa - Directors: Virgil Nicolaescu and Jesus del Carro

Mamaia - Director Jesus del Carro

California Dreamin' - Director Cristian Nemescu

3. Popular Television

Romanian television is populated by talk shows, sports shows, comedy programs,

music programs, and TV news, but mainly by American TV shows or Romanian
shows adapted from American or English formats. Recently Romanians started to be
very addicted to reality shows as well, probably because Romanian people have
some attitudes and reactions that are very interesting and amusing when seen on a
TV screen. Among Romanian TV shows we chose the most popular one: Romania's
Got Talent. This is the Romanian version of the program first originating in the
United Kingdom. It consists of a contest between aspiring talents selected by
public audition.

4. Popular Foreigners

Among popular actors in Romania are Hollywood big names such as Johnny Depp,
Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, and Jennifer Aniston. In sports we have the tennis player
Roger Federer, and soccer players Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi who have
fans in Romania at the moment. However it is the field of music where there is the
largest numbers of foreign artists. Recently Romanians listen to singers like Taylor
Swift, Adele, and Birdy, or to everlasting phenomenon like Madonna and Michael
Jackson; and they also appreciate new stars of pop music such as Beyoncé, Lady
Gaga, and John Legend or bands like One Direction, Maroon 5, and Take That.

5. Popular Romanian Men/Women Abroad and Sport s Figures

Besides all those famous Romanians from the past such as Prince Vlad the Impaler,
Constantin Brancuși, Maria Tănase, Nicolaie Ceaușescu and so on, nowadays
Romania has some new famous figures who are loved throughout the world.

Concerning sports, Romania football players such as Adrian Mutu, Ștefan Radu and
Bogdan Stancu are probably the most known at the present because they are

ROMANIANPOD101.COM ALL ABOUT S1 #10 - TOP FIVE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ROMANIAN POP CULTURE 3
employed by foreign teams. In tennis Romania is represented by Simona Halep, in
boxing by Mihai Nistor, and in gymnastics by Sandra Izbașa.

Finally the symbol of Romanian female beauty for the last sixty years is no longer
alive. Her name was Maria Tănase. She was a Romanian singer who developed an
international career. At present the Romanian actress and fashion model Mădălina
Ghenea is considered one of the most beautiful women in the world.

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