MONA is the stage name of Simona Petrova. Although very young, she has already traveled a long path from a shy child in her hometown of Kyustendil to a confident singer performing at competitions and music forums. Inspired by her great-grandmother, who was a folk singer, MONA shares that Bulgarian folklore is always present in her pop songs.

“Folk music is in our blood. It’s my greatest love. When I perform, I feel that only folk music can give me goosebumps, allowing me to truly sense and feel the music. Even when I travel, my playlist isn’t made up of modern songs but mainly consists of folk music, especially choral folk music. And that’s what lights this spark inside me''.

MONA is especially impressed by the elderly women in Bulgarian villages who sing songs learned from their grandmothers. For her, this is particularly valuable because folk music connects us to our traditions, showing us how people lived in the past, though today it reaches us filtered through modern trends. She considers herself part of a new wave of performers who incorporate folklore into their music. What makes MONA different is that her folklore is original.

The young singer aims to create something new that is influenced by the old. After the successful single "Zhiva", which has over one million views on YouTube, MONA created her new song "Sila" ("Strength"). MONA authorеd the music and the lyrics, and for the arrangement, she turned to ROBI (Roberto Nikolov). "Sila" flows effortlessly after a difficult period for the singer. In this song, MONA demonstrates her strength — for her, the power that always hepls her is our folklore, music and traditions.

The video for "Sila" features a sign language interpretation as a call for art to be accessible to everyone. MONA conceived this idea in a dream and realized it with the help of Nuri Yasharov — a hard-of-hearing actor, visual artist, teacher and expert in Bulgarian sign language. The singer is deeply committed to this cause, saying:

''Only 16% of artists worldwide create music that is accessible to everyone. I want to be part of changing this fact. I want my music to be a bridge between worlds!''

Published and translated by Kostadin Atanasov

Photo: Facebook / MONA, YouTube