"Despre tine" (Romanian: "About You") is a song recorded by the Moldovan group O-Zone, released in Romania around December 2002[A] by Media Services as a single. Written and produced by the band's founder Dan Balan, it was included on a reissue of their second studio album Number 1 (2002) and later on their third studio album DiscO-Zone (2003). Work on "Despre tine" spanned three weeks in September 2003, and its recording took place at the MOF Records studio with the assistance of Bogdan Popoiag. Following the international success of O-Zone's 2003 single "Dragostea din tei", "Despre tine" was re-released in select European markets in August 2004. Musically, it is a dance-pop track performed in Romanian.
At the MTV Romania Music Awards 2003, "Despre tine" won Best Song and Best Dance, and received a nomination for Best Dance-Pop Song at the Radio România Actualități Awards the same year. Commercially, the track achieved success, though on a smaller scale than "Dragostea din tei". It topped the Romanian Top 100 in 2003 and later reached number one in Norway in 2004, while also charting within the top 10 in Austria, Wallonia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. The song was certified double gold in Romania and gold in France. A music video to promote "Despre tine" was released in 2004 and portrays O-Zone performing the track at a club among a dancing crowd. The group also gave select televised live performances of the song, including appearances on Hit Machine in France and on Top of the Pops in Germany.
Background and release
O-Zone was a Moldovan group formed in 1999 by Dan Balan. The original lineup included Balan and Petru Jelihovschi, both of whom had previously performed in the gothic and doom metal band Inferialis during the 1990s. Seeking a more commercially viable sound, the duo released O-Zone's debut studio album Dar, unde ești... later in 1999. The album found success in Moldova, but Jelihovschi subsequently departed the project to pursue a career in television.[1] Balan cast two new members—Radu Sîrbu and Arsenie Todiraș—and, in 2002, relocated the group to neighboring Romania in search of a larger music market.[2] The absence of a language barrier, as Romanian is spoken in both countries, and their sense of unity, resulting from their shared history, facilitated this move.[3]
The label Media Services issued "Despre tine" as a single in Romania.[4] While the precise date remains unclear, the track debuted on the Romanian Top 100 chart in December 2002, suggesting that it had received radio airplay by that time.[5] It was subsequently included on a same-year reissue of O-Zone's second studio album, Number 1 (2002).[6] A remix of the song, subtitled "Unu' in the Mix", appeared on the Romanian edition of the group's third studio album, DiscO-Zone (2003),[7] while the original version was included on the album's 2004 and 2005 international releases.[8]
Following the widespread success of O-Zone's 2003 single "Dragostea din tei", "Despre tine" began receiving international radio airplay as early as July 2004.[9] On Latvian radio stations, the track was reportedly broadcast under the title "Mă înec în ochii tăi" (Romanian: "I Am Drowning in Your Eyes")—a phrase derived from its refrain.[10] The single was re-released in late August 2004 across select European markets,[11] with physical editions issued in countries including France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden.[12] The cover artwork used for most versions was designed by French illustrator Gil Formosa.[13]
Recording and composition
"Despre tine" was written, composed, and produced by Balan. Recording took place at the MOF Records studio with the assistance of Bogdan Popoiag, who also handled mixing and mastering.[14] Work on the track spanned three weeks in September 2002, according to Popoiag, who later claimed that he had made substantial contributions to the track's composition that remained uncredited.[15]
Musically, "Despre tine" is a dance-pop song performed in Romanian.[16] Andrei Vulpescu of Curentul likened it to the group's "Dragostea din tei",[10] and identified the lyric "Nu-mi răspunzi la SMS" (English: "You don't answer my SMS") as a well-known line from the song among the Romanian public.[17]Libertatea's Petre Dobrescu observed that this lyric coincided with the rising popularity of mobile phones in Romania at the time.[18]
Reception
"Despre tine" debuted at number 92 on the Romanian Top 100 in December 2002,[5] before reaching the top position in February 2003, where it remained for three consecutive weeks.[19] The single was certified double gold in Romania later that year.[17] At the MTV Romania Music Awards 2003, "Despre tine" won Best Song and Best Dance, and received a nomination for Best Dance-Pop Song at the Radio România Actualități Awards the same year.[20]
Following the song's international release in 2004, it entered several European charts. Gardianul opined that the overseas success of "Despre tine" dispelled O-Zone's status as one-hit wonders,[21] a label attributed to them by some publications,[22] though Vulpescu considered its impact less substantial than that of "Dragostea din tei".[23] In July 2004, "Despre tine" peaked at number eight in Italy.[24] It subsequently reached number four in Denmark and number one in Norway in August of the same year. The single spent ten consecutive weeks in Denmark's top 10, and 11 in Norway, including eight consecutive ones at number one. In the latter country, it became O-Zone's second chart-topping single, replacing "Dragostea din tei" at the summit.[25]
Throughout September 2004, "Despre tine" reached number two in France, remaining in the top 10 for 11 consecutive weeks,[26] as well as number nine in Wallonia and number four in Spain.[27] It earned a gold certification from the French Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique (SNEP) for sales of 250,000 copies.[28] In October and November, "Despre tine" also peaked at number four on Billboard'sEuropean Hot 100 Singles chart,[29] number seven in Sweden,[30] and entered the top 10 in all DACH countries (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland).[31]
Promotion
An accompanying music video for "Despre tine" was released in 2004 at the latest.[13] It starts with Sîrbu, Todiraș, and Balan materializing one by one onto a dance floor, as seated spectators watch from the sidelines. Each band member is dressed in a black shirt paired with a white blazer and trousers. A subsequent close-up shows Balan's trousers transforming into black fabric embellished with red stars, while a pair of sunglasses appears on his face.[32]
The scene then cuts to a newspaper advertising O-Zone's comeback. The group reappears on the same dance floor, with Balan sporting the aforementioned outfit, and Sîrbu and Todiraș wearing colorful, patterned outfits as they perform the song against shifting lights and a multicolored disco ball. The bystanders from earlier join the trio and dance alongside them. Additional shots depict the O-Zone members separately singing into a microphone or―following another costume change―playing electric guitars and drums together. The video concludes with the crowd looking downward toward the camera, pointing at it.[32]
For further promotion, O-Zone performed "Despre tine" at select televised events. They appeared on the French program Hit Machine on 4 September 2004,[33] the German Bravo Super Show[de] on 1 October 2004,[34] and Top of the Pops in the same country also that year.[35] Before disbanding in 2005, O-Zone gave a performance of "Despre tine" at the Golden Stag Festival in Romania in September of that year.[36]
123Although the exact release date of "Despre tine" is unclear, the song opened on the Romanian Top 100 chart in December 2002, indicating that it had received radio airplay by that time.[5]
Dobrescu, Petre (27 July 2003). "O-Zone, căzuți din tei"[O-Zone, fallen from the linden tree]. Libertatea (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 20 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
Dobrescu, Petre (27 July 2004). "O-Zone, acuzați de furt"[O-Zone, accused of theft]. Libertatea (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 23 January 2025. Retrieved 1 October 2025.
"O-Zone, succes la Hollywood"[O-Zone, Hollywood success]. Libertatea (in Romanian). 22 September 2005. Archived from the original on 20 September 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024– via HotNews.
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