DENA, Money, Sex and Fun: Unlocking 90's Chalga

Cash. Diamond Rings. Swimming Pools. Dena is a girl who knows what she wants. Her iconic, debut single became a global, Gen-Y anthem, and was ostensibly a massive ‘Fuck You’ to Dena’s pet hates: materialism and cold weather. Now based in Germany, she’s swiftly becoming one of the country’s fastest rising stars and worst kept secrets. Effortlessly slick, her sound draws on everything from late 90’s dance, to contemporary RnB, and you can hear it being bumped from trendy parties everywhere from Brooklyn to Berlin.
DENA takes us on a guided tour through 90's Chalga, throwing light on some of its odder incarnations. She explores the genre's central symbols and the formative role it had within Bulgarian culture.

[@johnappleby405]

Interesting piece. I’d never heard of chalga until I went to Sofia recently and saw a reference to it in a book I purchased from the national gallery. It certainly fits with what Bulgarians I talked to told me about the nineties!

[@kirilvelinov7774]

Japanese chalga is called Arabesque
Arabesque uses Indian rhythms and melody