"Naħseb Fik" (; ) is a song by Maltese singer

Aidan Aidan, Aiden and Ayden are anglicised versions of the Irish male given name ''Aodhán''. The Irish language female equivalent is ''Aodhnait''. Etymology and spelling The name is derived from the name ''Aodhán'', which is a pet form of '' Aod ...

released on 19 March 2021. It was his first song written in the

Maltese language Maltese (, also or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language derived from Siculo-Arabic, late medieval Sicilian Arabic with Romance languages, Romance Stratum (linguistics), superstrata. It is the only Semitic languages, Semitic language pred ...

and was produced by

Boban Apostolov Boban Apostolov (, born 1984) is a Macedonian composer, songwriter, arranger and record producer. Biography Boban Apostolov was born in 1984 in Yugoslavia. At the age of six, he began to play violin in the music school Ilija Nikolovski – L ...

. "Naħseb Fik" received positive reviews upon its release and reached number one on Malta's singles charts. The song was praised for its catchiness and for being a rare example of a pop song in the country written entirely in Maltese, though the song received criticism due to allegations of

plagiarism Plagiarism is the representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 ''Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close ...

. It was included in the singer's 2023 debut album ''

This Is Aidan Aidan Cassar (; born 17 December 1999), known mononymously as Aidan, is a Maltese singer-songwriter. Career In 2018, he competed in the ''Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest 2018#Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2018, Malta Eurovision Song Contes ...

''.

Background and release

The song is about a developing relationship that is taking root and was produced by Macedonian musician

who Aidan stated "knows the industry very well". Aidan premiered it at the 2021 edition of Malta's national song festival

Mużika Mużika Mużika Mużika (formerly the Malta Song Festival) is the national song festival of Malta. Origins and other festivals in Malta The first Malta Song Festival was organized by the Maltese people, Maltese section of the Young Christian Workers ...

. The song was written in

Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Maltese ...

as he said the country did not have a "radio pop hit" in the language. He stated in an interview that he had not performed or written in Maltese before and that the festival "seemed like the right time to give it a shot". He succeeded to the final of the competition before being eliminated, saying he "really did not expect" the song to be well received and the numerous videos on

TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...

featuring the song. In May 2021, he released an acoustic version of the song with

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...

and the Palace String Orchestra. "Naħseb Fik" was featured in his debut album ''

'' released in March 2023.

Critical reception

Television Malta Television Malta (; TVM) (formerly known as ''Malta Television Service;'' MTV and ''Xandir Malta'') is a Terrestrial television, terrestrial television network in Malta operated by the Public broadcasting, national broadcaster, Public Broadcasti ...

reported that the "modern style and summery rhythm" was well received by Maltese people and played frequently on local radio stations. ''Malta Daily'' attributed its success to its "catchy Mediterranean vibe and beautiful use of the Maltese language". The song reached number one on Malta's singles chart and became the most popular Maltese song on

Apple Music Apple Music is an audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users can select music to stream to their device on-demand, or listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the sister internet radio stations Apple Musi ...

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and

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. Johnathan Cilia of ''Lovin Malta'' praised the song's

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...

beat and orchestral elements but said the song became popular due to its "memorable tune and catchy lyrics". Jean Paul Azzopardi of ''Lovin Malta'' said that the song added to the "diversity of the local music scene" as unlike other Maltese pop songs it was sung entirely in Maltese.

Controversy

In May 2021, a video which simultaneously played "Naħseb Fik" and " Tick Tock" by English musicians

Clean Bandit Clean Bandit is an English electronic music group formed in Cambridge in 2008. They have achieved four number-one singles and six additional top-ten songs on the UK Official Singles Chart. Since 2016, the group has been a trio comprising foundi ...

and

Mabel Mabel is an English female name derived from the Latin ''amabilis'', "lovable, dear".Reclams Namensbuch, 1987, History Amabilis of Riom (died 475) was a French male saint who logically would have assumed the name Amabilis upon entering the prie ...

went viral. The video noted that the songs had similar beats and

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural, or simply changes) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from ...

with several parts of both songs lining up at the same time. Following its release, several Maltese musicians accused Aidan of plagiarism.

Mario Vella Mario Vella (born 1953 in Tripoli) is a Maltese philosopher, economist and politician. He was Governor of the Central Bank of Malta from 2016 to 2020. Biography Studies and academic career Vella was born to a Maltese family in Tripoli, Libya, ...

, who had initially praised the song, said that the allegations against the singer were "plain and grievous". Wayne Camilleri said that he was disappointed as he thought the song was a "catchy innovative composition".

Moira Stafrace Chris & Moira were a Maltese musical duo, formed by Moira Stafrace and Christopher Scicluna. They were best known for representing Malta in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest. Life and career Stafrace was born in Malta in 1970. At the age of 12 she ...

agreed that it was disappointing as her daughter had informed her of the song and her initial reaction was "finally, a good popular song in Maltese". Aidan denied the plagiarism allegations against him stating that in commercial music, "all current hit songs sound the same on radio". He stated that in order to keep up with "what's in or not" in

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...

, he listens to hundreds of songs to get inspiration. He added that "music should unite, and this is exactly why this track is doing its rounds".

Music video

The song's music video was released on 7 April 2021 and was filmed by Victor Abela and directed by Gary Bugeja. Most of the video was recorded in

Marsaskala Marsaskala, sometimes written as Marsascala is a seaside town in the Southern Region, Malta, Southern Region of Malta. Originally a fishing village, it has grown into a tourist destination and a permanent hometown for an ever-growing population. ...

with the underwater segment being shot at the Malta Film Studios. ''Lovin Malta'' said that the music video embodied the song's "local spirit" as it featured scenes of Maltese culture and landscapes whilst the protagonist sings in his mother tongue. It received the best music video award at the 2021 Lovin Malta Social Media Awards.

Charts

Notes

References

{{Aidan (singer) 2021 singles 2021 songs Aidan (singer) songs Controversies in Malta Songs in Maltese Number-one singles in Malta Song recordings produced by Boban Apostolov Songs involved in plagiarism controversies Songs written by Aidan (singer) Songs written by Boban Apostolov