Musical Digest: Honorata Skarbek "Wonder Woman"

Women…we all love ‘em and we sure as fuck can’t live without them.

Women have dominated the box office, the music charts and quite literally created a rift in the economy for the better. Women are strong, tenacious, and influential. They make things happen.

We, by default, make the world go ‘round.

Among all of that tough exterior and wisdom is also a subtle fragility.

I have started to embrace my femininity after years of experimenting with androgyny influenced very much by my deep, deep love for pop-punk, dark eyeliner and defying the very poignant, clear-cut definition of what a woman should be in the eyes of society versus what a woman actually is…and let’s face it…this definition will vary from one woman to another.

Let’s start with something as trivial as hair, specifically the length of a woman’s hair. Have we ever wondered why hair, for example, is such an integral part of the very definition of a woman?

Some cultures forbid women from showing off their hair under the guise of it being sacred and too promiscuous for a stranger’s eye. Some hair is protected by religion. Other cultures will embrace hair through various styles dictated by folklore.

In the United States, also known as my adoptive motherland, women have the freedom to do anything they please with their hair and many will turn to social media for inspiration and experiment with different styles; but we aren’t strangers to controversy and unsolicited criticism from people who perhaps just…don’t get it.

I’d walk you through my respective phases that have spurred from spontaneity and the incredibly massive weight that was lifted from my shoulders when I went from a very basic hairstyle to a pixie cut in a matter of minutes. I closed my eyes and told the hairdresser to do her worst.

She actually SLAYED...

Hair, while complimentary, holds a lot of trauma. It’s like the epicenter for traumatic experiences much like the shoulders are the epicenter for hoarding stress. So…SNAP, SNAP, SNAP and at 16 years old, I watched the transformation happen right before my eyes. In that moment, it’s like me and the mirror were the only thing that mattered. I was under a spell because I knew I was doing something that many were going to be pissed off at me for doing, but I couldn’t help it. As I continued to clench my fists and continued to trust the process, I couldn’t believe it. I was turning into exactly who I wanted to be under all that suburban insecurity.

And the trauma…was snapped in two and I never really understood it at the moment, but I felt a sense of relief.

Don’t be fooled though. Many were quick to call me Justin Beiber, question if I was a lesbian and that this was my coming-out story, or would simply make snide remarks about the way I’d style my hair. My grandmother refused to speak to me. Boys were cruel.

And I couldn’t be happier with my newfound image. It was mine and it was on my terms. In looking back at all of it, I’m so damn proud of that woman because despite all of that, she stood prouder, stronger, much more confident than ever.

I had the absolute BEST time in high school because I was authentically happy with who I was and who I was becoming. As stupid as it may sound, that decision to snap all of that away paved the way for exactly who I have molded into today; a strong, independent, charismatic, confident woman with a ferocious hunger for life.

There are many women that I look up to myself and this piece is about a woman that continues to steal my heart by tugging at my heartstrings through her music, Ms. Honorata Skarbek.

I covered her former single “Recepta” a couple years ago and felt that that was the optimal introduction to my own universe and love for Polish Pop music.

Poland’s music is very underrated, but rest assured I’m here to deliver and bridge the gap. Polish artists are inspired by the English language, phonics and they incorporate a lot of innuendos into their work quite often.

The newest single from Honorata Skarbek is dubbed “Wonder Woman” debuted on March 8, 2024 which conveniently falls on International Women’s Day. Earlier in the year, Honorata has also launched her first podcast coined under the same moniker which centered around conversations with women that have influenced, shaped and touched upon her life.

In the season, we are introduced to prolific figures such as her mom, Bozena Skarbek, who is a fashion influencer in her own right.

The podcast opens with a raw and honest conversation that covers a lot of topics that I’m sure long esteemed fans such as myself may not have been privy to. This includes the reminisce of Honorata’s premature diagnosis of leukemia; an autoimmune consequence that had forced her to be homeschooled in order to avoid close contact and further exposure to unwanted infections, her treatment, her challenges associated with that and people’s dissonance when Honorata was paving her own way in the music industry and thereby a name for herself on the Polish pop music scene.

Despite her massive success, she continues to be extremely humble, reserved and grateful.

“Wonder Woman” was born as a prelude. We can hear the bridge of the chorus in the beginning of the episodes as well as the closing credits, but the track is also a perfect way to tie the very first season of her debut podcast.

Honorata calls this her official debut and dedication to women all over the world.

The lyrics are composed by Anastazja Maciag, Jeremi Siejka, Patryk Skoczynski and Honorata Skarbek.

The first half of the song is illustrated in maroon. The music video opens up with a baby girl grappling or becoming conscious of their existence, laid out in a crimson tutu, hugged by her mother…

“I’d like to scream rather than whisper, I bet that they can hear me underwater/I jump straight into the fire/as dangerous as it is/the wind tells me to go/losing the ground from underneath my feet/I can sense I have the power/to acknowledge that what doesn’t kill me, makes me stronger/a poker face that doesn’t register fear/it’s like a trance/I am born again”

The opening lyric [loosely translated from its Polish adaptation] pays homage to the four elements that keep the world afloat. It unravels a story of purity and birth, a woman coming to terms with her existence, then quickly pivoting to the various stages of life, maturity, growth and reminiscence of the many battles she has faced, fought in, conquered or maybe even have felt the sting of defeat.

Because like the phoenix, we rise again from the many pivotal moments that have caused us to get back up.

The chorus follows with…

“Like a wonder woman with no barriers and barricades, I swim towards the current waves/I pick the roses despite their sharp thorns/I don’t think anything can hurt me”

Which alludes to the many trials, tribulations, and experiences that women overcome to then become immune to the sting of sharp thorns because they have conquered their own set of setbacks, so they are immune to more inconveniences or harsh times as they have survived worse.

I think this is a prime example of why Pop music follows a simple, yet smart strategy in captivating the listening ear with catchy melodies whilst also transcribing a powerful message. I can only reflect on my experience as a woman in the United States, however with the recent social media uproar of promoting the erasure of women, I think the lyrics of this chorus are especially significant.

At this stage of the second verse, the color scheme of the music video changes course from that of crimson red to cerulean blue in which Honorata transforms into the protagonist equivalent of the wonder woman, who is meant to represent her, as her own visual entity, but also opens the framework for the listeners to imagine their own interpretation of this visualization

“The future is covered in ice/yesterday’s frigidness falls like an autumnal leaf/a ray of sunshine is bound to warm my soul/with every sunrise I’d like for those harsher lessons to turn to a miracle”

This lyric is a poetic way to describe the passing of time, embracing a proverbial storm as it can’t last forever; after it rains and pours, the sun will shine brighter and in that the vision will also become clearer.

It then follows the chorus which is harmonized two more times.

I personally loved the production value, the message behind the song as well as its visual homage and the fade from maroon to lapis. I liked the nostalgic costume nod to 2020’s “Zwiazek X” featuring Cooks which I also often tune into.

I think Honorata Skarbek has done it again and has a Polish Pop hit on her hands.

If you’re thirsty and hungry for more foreign Pop updates from yours truly, I have an entire arsenal, but to slowly ease you in, consider checking out the track below.