The Spanish-language international hit song “Despacito” now has a Ukrainian-style cover.
Ukrainian cover band B&B Project presented its version of the song, along with a music video, on their YouTube channel on Aug. 5.
The video features the band members playing “Despacito” on an embankment of the Kyiv Reservoir (also known as the Kyiv Sea).
“Despacito,” by Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi and rapper Daddy Yankee, was released in January. The music video of the song has already reached over 3 billion views and became the most viewed video on YouTube. The song has topped the charts in 45 countries around the world.
The Ukrainian version reached 189,488 views on YouTube in just three days.
B&B Project are Tetiana Mazur, who plays the bandura, a traditional Ukrainian stringed instrument, and Serhii Shamrai, who plays the button accordion.
Shamrai says that the band covers songs they themselves like, in order to create and share new versions of them.
“Sometimes a song gets stuck in our heads, and we want to show our own vision,” he told the Kyiv Post.
And that’s exactly what happened with “Despacito.”
Drummer Kostiantyn Marko, who occasionally performs with the band, joined B&B Project to record this cover.
B&B Project was founded two-and-a-half years ago in Kyiv and is still based here. They play Ukrainian traditional songs as well as covers of popular foreign pop songs, giving them a Ukrainian folk sound.
Previously the band released covers of the themes of the TV series “Game of Thrones” and “Sherlock.”
