"Poison Cake" (Croatian: Otrovna torta) is a song by Bosnian Croat singer-songwriter Marko Bošnjak, released on 10 January 2025 through Aquarius Records. It represented Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Basel, Switzerland, after winning the national selection Dora 2025 on 2 March 2025. The song failed to qualify for the grand final, finishing 12th in the first semi-final with 28 points.
Background and Composition
"Poison Cake" was written by Bošnjak together with Bas Wissink, Ben Pyne, Emma Gale, and Filip Majdak. Bošnjak received a rough demo from the UK- and Ireland-based writers Gale, Pyne, and Wissink, and completed the track with Croatian producer Filip Majdak, who brought influences of industrial metal to the arrangement. Bošnjak described the song as his "Hannah Montana went Miley Cyrus" moment — a deliberate departure from the emotional Balkan ballads he was previously known for.
Musically, the song blends dark pop, EDM, garage, opera, and industrial beats. It is 2 minutes and 58 seconds long.
Lyrics and Meaning
The song is a metaphorical story of revenge and empowerment, inspired by fairy tales such as Snow White and Hansel and Gretel, as well as the film The Help (2011). The "poison cake" serves as a symbol for justice or retaliation served to those who have abused or manipulated someone. The lyrics depict a narrator who has been wronged and, rather than remaining a victim, reclaims power by preparing a deadly confection for their oppressor.
Key lyrical imagery includes:
- Kitchen/cooking as a metaphor for crafting a plan of retribution
- "Serpent snake" as a symbol of hidden strength and cunning
- "Tingles of poison" representing the consequences of betrayal
- "Sweet revenge" as a refrain underscoring the duality of sweetness and danger
Bošnjak stated that the song is "of multidimensional meaning" and that everyone can interpret it in their own way.
Music Video
The music video, released on 21 February 2025, is heavily symbolic. It features:
- A green poison poured over a cake, symbolising injustice and transformation
- A two-metre Indian python, representing danger, change, and liberation
- A scene of Ophelia in water, evoking Romanticism and darker fairy tales
- Mirrors reflecting internal struggles and the search for identity
- A magical tree and apples, alluding to Snow White and the temptations of revenge
Critical Reception
The song received highly polarised reviews. Croatian outlet Mixer rated it 8/10, while Finnish broadcaster Yle gave it 2/10, describing it as "strange and rambling, where cuteness is mixed with horror and embarrassment." Vulture ranked it 36th overall among Eurovision 2025 entries, calling it "borderline unlistenable" for its disjointed structure. Following his Dora victory, Bošnjak faced widespread homophobic backlash online, and the song was accused of being "satanic."
Commercial Performance
"Poison Cake" reached number 1 on the HR Top 100 (Croatian domestic airplay chart) in the week of 10 March 2025, after debuting at number 31 in January.
Other Uses of the Term
Beyond the song, "Poison Cake" also refers to:
- Poison Cake Test (also called Red Rabbit Test): A quality control procedure in manufacturing where defective parts are intentionally mixed into a batch to test the competence of quality inspectors. If an inspector fails to identify the defective parts, retraining is required.
- Halloween Poison Cake: A traditional Danish bright green almond-flavoured cake with cocoa icing, popular as a Halloween treat.
