Heart of Steel (Tvorchi song)

"Heart of Steel"
Single by Tvorchi
from the EP Heart of Steel
Language	English, Ukrainian
Released	1 December 2022
Genre	Future bass
Length	2:36
Label	Best Music
Composer(s)	Jimoh Augustus Kehinde Andrii Hutsuliak
Tvorchi singles chronology
"Вимкни телефон" (2022) "Heart of Steel" (2022)
Music video
"Heart of Steel" on YouTube
Alternative covers
Eurovision version single cover
Eurovision Song Contest 2023 entry
Country	Ukraine
Artist(s)	Tvorchi
Languages	English, Ukrainian
Composer(s)	Jimoh Augustus Kehinde Andrii Hutsuliak
Lyricist(s)	Jimoh Augustus Kehinde Andrii Hutsuliak
Finals performance
Final result	6th
Final points	243
Entry chronology
◄ "Stefania" (2022)
"Teresa & Maria" (2024) ►
Official performance video
"Heart of Steel" (Grand Final) on YouTube

"Heart of Steel" is a song by Ukrainian electronic duo Tvorchi. The song represented Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 after winning Vidbir 2023, Ukraine's national selection.^[1][2]

Background and composition

According to the duo, the song warns about the dangers of nuclear warfare. In an interview, the duo alluded to the purpose of the Eurovision Song Contest's creation as one of the inspirations for the song, saying, "we looked into the past of this contest. [The Eurovision Song Contest] was created after the Second World War to unite Europe. Today, while some are playing with nuclear threats, our people with steel hearts are protecting all of Europe."^[3] The song has a message of not giving up in the face of adversity, with a powerful beginning to symbolize the message. In the official music video for the song, a portal between reality and an afterlife is prominently featured, with the band saying that humanity chooses what awaits them for the future.^[4]

Production

Tvorchi member Andrii Hutsuliak started writing "Heart of Steel" in 2022, during the siege of Mariupol. After watching videos of the Ukrainian army defending the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works, he was inspired to write a song based on the determination of not giving up the area.^[5]

Eurovision Song Contest

Main article: Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest 2023

Vidbir 2023

Vidbir 2023 was the seventh edition of Vidbir, the competition that determines the Ukrainian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest. The competition took place in the Maidan Nezalezhnosti metro station in Kyiv, and consisted of a final on 17 December 2022.^[6][7] Ten entries competed and the winner was selected through the combination of votes from a public televote and an expert jury. Ties would be decided in favour of the entries that received higher scores from the public televote.

At Vidbir, the song performed last out of the ten competing songs. Both members were dressed in costumes similar to hazmat suits, with Hutsuliak wearing a black suit and Kehinde wearing a yellow suit. A video screen behind them showed the dangers of nuclear warfare, and two background dancers also appeared, both wearing gas masks.^[3]

At Eurovision

According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. As the winning country of the 2022 contest, Ukraine automatically qualified for the final.^[8] Tvorchi performed in position 19 and came in 6th place, with 243 points.

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "Heart of Steel" Chart (2023) Peak position Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[9] 37 Greece International (IFPI)[10] 84 Iceland (Tónlistinn)[11] 10 Lithuania (AGATA)[12] 12 Poland (Polish Streaming Top 100)[13] 97 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[14] 65 Ukraine Airplay (TopHit)[15] 7 UK Singles (OCC)[16] 95 UK Indie (OCC)[17] 32

Monthly charts Monthly chart performance for "Heart of Steel" Chart (2023) Peak position Ukraine Airplay (TopHit)[18] 15 Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "Heart of Steel" Chart (2023) Position Ukraine Airplay (TopHit)[19] 67

References

1. "Ukraine: TVORCHI wins Vidbir with Heart Of Steel". Eurovision Song Contest. 17 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
2. "Переможцем нацвідбору на «Євробачення-2023» став гурт Tvorchi з піснею «Heart of Steel»". STV (in Ukrainian). 17 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
3. Sulima, Valery (17 December 2022). ""Євробачення-2023": TVORCHI здивували своїм номером у фіналі нацвідбору". ТСН (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 17 December 2022.
4. "TVORCHI – Heart of Steel: прем'єра потужного треку до Нацвідбору на «Євробачення 2023»". Novy. 10 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
5. Zuyeva, Karina (17 December 2022). "Tvorchi: Хочемо показати на Євробаченні прогресивну електронну українську музику". Fakty. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
6. Kotubei, Olesia (16 December 2022). "Нацвідбір на Євробачення-2023: де дивитися і слухати". suspilne.media (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 16 December 2022.
7. Gannon, Rory (5 October 2022). "🇺🇦 Vidbir 2023 to take place on December 17th". That Eurovision Site. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
8. "EBU, UA:PBC and BBC agree to host 2023 Eurovision Song Contest in the United Kingdom". Eurovision.tv (Press release). EBU. 25 July 2022. Archived from the original on 25 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
9. "Tvorchi: Heart of Steel" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
10. "IFPI Charts". ifpi.gr. Archived from the original on 25 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
11. "Tónlistinn – Lög" [The Music – Songs] (in Icelandic). Plötutíðindi. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
12. "2023 20-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
13. "OLiS – oficjalna lista sprzedaży – single w streamie" (Select week 12.05.2023–18.05.2023.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
14. "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 20". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
15. "Top Radio Hits Ukraine Weekly Chart: Apr 20, 2023". TopHit. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
16. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
17. "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
18. "Top Radio Hits Ukraine Monthly Chart: April 2023". TopHit. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
19. "Top Radio Hits Ukraine Chart 2023". TopHit. Retrieved 24 September 2024.