sanah’s idiolect
Although sanah’s original lyrics, distinguished by their contemporary, colloquial and youthful language, have received many sceptical and critical reviews, it cannot be denied that the singer has developed her own distinctive style. One can even talk about the idiolect of the artist and her fans, characterized by diminutives (‘sorka’ [sorry], ‘łezki’ [tears], ‘kawka’ [coffee] or ‘kabanosiki’ [dried sausages]), colloquialisms (‘miałam bzika’ [I went bonkers] , ‘do zo’ [see ya], ‘sztos’ [bummer]) and Anglicisms derived from youth slang (‘plis’ [please], ‘bye bye’, ‘dissuje’ [dissing], ‘fejkowy uśmiech’ [fake smile]). In addition, the artist freely and selectively uses capital letters, hence her own nickname, as well as the titles of some songs or albums, are written in lowercase. It has also become a recognizable sign of sanah to add the letter ‘h’ to the end of words, analogous to her artistic pseudonym. Her website is thus ‘stronkah’ (from strona), and she weaves it into posts in her social-media communications: ‘Chcę z Wami na dobreh!!!!’. This has already become a part of her own brand and works perfectly to make the connection between the text and sanah – both by her and by her fans – in a simple way.
The artist sings about everyday things and universal issues that young people can easily identify with – heartbreaks, dreams of reciprocating affection or desperate behaviour in hopes of being noticed. In this she focuses on being open and authentic, hence her use of colloquial language and elements of youth slang, which is meant to be close to the audience. This language can be seen as the coming of a new generation to the forefront and a sure sign of the times, but there is more to it than that – after all, sanah is not the only artist using colloquialisms in her work – they are characteristic of hip hop, rap, but also pop.
Perhaps what makes her language stand out is its contrast with the singer’s image (gowns, lace, flowers, elegantly pinned-up hair, evening makeup), as well as with pop that’s interesting in terms of sound and instrumentation. The viewer may feel a certain dissonance when the words of the song about a burger from a fast-food chain are illustrated with a nostalgic video showing a grandmother making dumplings in a country house. In addition, the diminutives used by the artist, intended to shape her image as a delicate, giddy young girl, sometimes seem to deliberately infantilize her expressions and work. Certainly, the image sanah developed of herself is heavily influenced by the Internet, above all by social media, which makes her very controversiality and originality translate directly into popularity and interest in the subject – both fans and haters. Sanah’s idiolect is therefore not only a testament to contemporary language but also an individual feature of the singer’s work, an integral part of her artistic image.
