In the middle of a Greek field, the artist, dressed in fake traditional clothes, lip-synchs a performance by stealing the words of 1930s singer Roza Eskenazi. The angelic song is “Eimai Prezakias” (I’m a Junkie) and is about the beauty and happiness of a drug-addicted life.In 1936, the Greek government banned this audio track but now it is now considered part of the National Artistic Patrimony.
From evening until morning
I live my life by Heroin
And I possess the whole world
When I snort the white powder
The whole world is my possession
When I have Heroin and snort
And when the police comes around
I squirt out ink like an octopus
When you get high
You become bold
A king, a dictator
A god and ruler of the world
When you take Heroin
You become happy
And you see everything
In the world through pink glasses
Ah Heroin, my brother until resurrection!
Greece is all mine
And her pitiful state is laughable
She is missing a foot
that she gambled at dice
I will be a dictator
And the world will become ashes
Someone would light the shisha for me
And someone else would put it out
When you get high
You become bold
A king, a dictator
A god and ruler of the world
When you take Heroin
You become happy
And you see everything
In the world through pink glasses” *
“Eimai Prezakias” (I'm a Junkie) by Eskenazi-Semsis-Tomboulis, 1934 * English translation of the lyrics
web version: 3':07", dOCUMENTA(13) research website