Romanian band E-an-na has released “Propaganda,” a powerful social commentary wrapped in music, launched at a highly charged moment for Romania ahead of the first round of presidential elections. The track is a cry of rebellion against manipulation, corruption, and the polarization that defines the country’s social and political landscape.
“Propaganda” is more than a venting of frustration; it is a response to real injustices in recent years: people dying from exhaustion at work, young individuals breaking under the pressure of an indifferent system, corruption that kills in hospitals and care homes, and a political class that weaponizes fear and disinformation to maintain its grip on power.
“We felt our voices were being stolen, that every act of protest was being turned into a tool for someone else’s agenda. We wondered if speaking out still made sense when everything has become just a stream of images, fleeting emotions, and political mascots. This song is our answer. It’s our rage turned into lyrics, because we can’t stay silent anymore,” says Andrei Oltean, the band’s lead vocalist.
“Propaganda” serves as a wake-up call – about how every revolt eventually gets co-opted and distorted, how politics and social media blur truth and feed illusions, and how people are turned into animals, blinded by fear and empty promises.
A world where everyone ends up wearing the same mask
The music video is a visual metaphor inspired by “Rhinoceros” by Eugène Ionesco – a story about people gradually abandoning independent thought in order to conform. Much like Ionesco’s characters who transform into rhinoceroses, the video follows a masked politician – half-human, half-rhino – who becomes increasingly influential. In a simulated TikTok feed, he wins over the public with populist messages, and more and more people begin to wear his mask without question.
By the end, society is trapped in a grotesque spectacle where truth is buried beneath layers of fake news, fear, and illusion.
A call for clarity
“Propaganda” urges listeners to open their eyes. In a world where politics is indistinguishable from entertainment and elections seem like nothing more than a stage for hollow promises, E-an-na calls on Romanians to resist manipulation, think freely, and look beyond the mask.
The single is available on all major streaming platforms, and the music video can be watched on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnJ4JW2yPqY