Boonika Bate Doba was the debut entry for Moldova at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 in Kyiv performed by the band Zdob şi Zdub. This was also the first of the group's two appearances at the contest.
It qualified from the semifinal in 2nd place. In the final, it was performed 4th following Portugal and preceding Latvia. At the close of voting, it finished in 6th place with 148 points, guaranteeing Moldova an automatic place in the 2006 final.
It remained Moldova's best result for 12 years until Sunstroke Project bettered that mark in 2017 where they finished 3rd.
Lyrics[]
It’s a jump up jungle, little like a break beat
Never seen that hit – bunica beat the drum-a
Big mallet in the hand, high hat in the same beat
She’s screaming like Hawkins, my old Big Mama
Bunica beat the drum-a like I never heard before
She’s a slapping Miss Blackman, gimme some more
Check it, let’s kick it, we wanna dance now
We are turning into hammers, ticking rhythm out
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
I love so much doba making boom-boom
Now get your body moving, just follow the tune
It’s a real magic – Big Mama play her drum-a
She’s flying into trance like an Indian shaman
Who’s the Beatles? Where from is Peter Pan?
Who’s the gypsy Jimi Hendrix? She don’t care, that Mrs. L.
I smile, I cry when I see that crazy baba
Dizzy tempo, dizzy, let’s go, my music mama
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica cu machuca bate doba ‘n casa mare
People in the place, feel your body shakes
Bunica beat the drum-a tapping out the breaks
Pop you up with that beat, get rid of rotten meat
You dig with your soul deep inside that rock ‘n’ roll
She’s a drum machine, you know what I mean
She wanna play jumparale to make you spin
Drain a bottle of wine, no need to roll the leaves
By the end of that show, you will blow yourself to bits
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica cu machuca bate doba ‘n casa mare
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica cu machuca bate doba ‘n casa mare
You are real drum machine
You make me wanna dance, you are slapping queen
To get that state you drink juice from grapes
And I go deep into the music space
Bunica bate doba
Bunica bate tare
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa ma… ma… ma…
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
Bunica bate doba (Hey)
Bunica bate tare (Hey)
Bunica bate doba cu machuca ‘n casa mare
It’s a jump up jungle, little like a break beat
Never seen that hit – grandmamma beat the drum-a
Big mallet in the hand, high hat in the same beat
She’s screaming like Hawkins, my old Big Mama
Grandmamma beat the drum-a like I never heard before
She’s a slapping Miss Blackman, gimme some more
Check it, let’s kick it, we wanna dance now
We are turning into hammers, ticking rhythm out
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma with the mallet beats the drum in the big house
I love so much drum making boom-boom
Now get your body moving, just follow the tune
It’s a real magic – Big Mama play her drum-a
She’s flying into trance like an Indian shaman
Who’s the Beatles? Where from is Peter Pan?
Who’s the gypsy Jimi Hendrix? She don’t care, that Mrs. L.
I smile, I cry when I see that crazy baba
Dizzy tempo, dizzy, let’s go, my music mama
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma with the mallet beats the drum in the big house
People in the place, feel your body shakes
Grandmamma beat the drum-a tapping out the breaks
Pop you up with that beat, get rid of rotten meat
You dig with your soul deep inside that rock ‘n’ roll
She’s a drum machine, you know what I mean
She wanna play jumparale to make you spin
Drain a bottle of wine, no need to roll the leaves
By the end of that show, you will blow yourself to bits
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma with the mallet beats the drum in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma with the mallet beats the drum in the big house
You are real drum machine
You make me wanna dance, you are slapping queen
To get that state you drink juice from grapes
And I go deep into the music space
Grandmamma beats the drum
Grandmamma beats it hard
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Grandmamma beats the drum (Hey)
Grandmamma beats it hard (Hey)
Grandmamma beats the drum with the mallet in the big house
Videos[]
Zdob Si Zdub - Boonika Bate Toba (Moldova) Live - Eurovision 2005