"I never had a problem with being fat," says Czech soul queen and body positive activist Dannie Ella
A lot of people know you as a singer with fuller shapes who is not ashamed of them. I even saw the term "plus size rebel" on your instagram profile. What exactly do we mean by that?
I would start by saying that we live in a country where this topic is still a bit taboo. If someone has even a few extra kilos or is too thin according to others, they have to listen to a lot of comments about how bad it is. In contrast, the trend in the world is towards self-confidence and love for your body, no matter what it looks like, and it is this positive trend that I am trying to promote here. And what do you mean by plus size rebellion? Apart from the fact that I don't hide and walk through the sewers in inconspicuous baggy clothes just so that no one will notice that I am fat, I love to provoke narrow-minded people with my self-confidence, distinctive clothes and smile.
Do you think that there are not many people like that in the Czech Republic who preach body positivity?
There are a few nice plus size groups and influencers here, unfortunately. But most of them deal with body positivity only marginally and they deal more often with how to lose weight and dress to look slim than how to work on self-love and accept all our perfect imperfections. Weight loss and exercise is actually quite often confused as a path to self-love. But body positivity isn't just about weight, it's all about accepting yourself as a whole person. Whether it's an eagle nose, legs in an "x" or even stretch marks, it would be beautiful if we allowed ourselves to love ourselves exactly as we are right now.
For example, you pass on a lot of inspiration on social media, specifically on your Instagram profile. How do people react?
On social media, I mostly have followers who are there because I interest them in something, so their reactions are naturally positive. However, what they really think is none of my business. (laughs) And honestly, I don't really care. We all have a different setup.
What about on the street? Have you ever encountered any negative reactions?
Yeah. If you're different from the standard, and you're not ashamed of it, it's hard for a lot of people to swallow. In real life, I sometimes hear some comments on the street, and the interesting thing is that it's always from women, and most often from older women. And they're definitely not models. (laughs) But it only happens here, I've never encountered it anywhere else in the world. Here, they are all Google-promoted health experts and you, if you are overweight, according to them, also have diabetes and ten heart attacks. If a person feels good about their higher weight and is healthy, it immediately arouses suspicion in people. But so it is with everything - skin color, better job, sexual orientation. Some people can't accept otherness. Their prejudices arise from stereotypes and the fear that what they condemn might also affect them, and so they develop a hatred of those who, by their mere existence, awaken this feeling in them.
Nevertheless, I would ask whether any gradual change can be perceived from your point of view? Do you think that the Czechs are moving forward in any way? That they are able to accept a certain otherness?
I think that it is going very slowly. All trends generally come to the Czech Republic quite late, whether it's music, fashion or anything else. Also, there aren't many strong personalities and real body positive influencers who spread the idea of "liking myself as I am". It's a bit better in the plus size area. In Slovakia, Celeste Buckingham comes to mind, but I don't know anyone who I can name with confidence.
In connection with Celeste, Ewa Farna comes to mind. Isn't she one of those who spread this idea?
I'm not sure if Ewa is really publicly spreading the idea of self-acceptance, or if she is more forced to do so because she is just trying to defend herself in a positive way against media attacks. It's extreme if the media constantly writes about you as an "almara" or a "sow", that would be a big strain on everyone's psyche. I'm sure Eve is also aware of the effect she has on young people and how their own self-acceptance can be affected when someone talks about their idol in such a nasty way. She doesn't have many other options, so I think it's more of a defense than a conscious spreading of body positivity direction. Of course she took it very responsibly and faced the terror of the media with positivity. She's a gorgeous and healthy girl with feminine shapes, and she's a singer, not a model, so I don't think she needs to address her weight at all and shouldn't be subjected to having to deal with jerks who make a living hurting others.
As far as having a positive self-image, have you always had that?
Yes, I've always had self-esteem to spare. Although it might not have been if I had a weak personality. What your childhood environment tells you is somehow stored in your subconscious. I looked very developed and feminine at the age of eleven due to a hormonal disorder, and my children perceived that I was fat and often repeated it to me. Maybe that's part of the reason I accepted it and didn't cringe when I gradually started gaining weight due to hormones. I never really had a problem with being fat.
Never really?
Actually, yes. I was once in a relationship where my partner let me know he didn't like it. Which I don't understand why he chose me in the first place. (Laughs) When you care about someone, you care about their opinions, questions and doubts come up in your mind. Well, that happened to me too. I even tried to lose weight. For my self-acceptance, it was such a trial by fire, and my song I'm Calling was written about it. It seemed illogical to me to have another person judge me and decide my appearance or determine my self-esteem based on whether they liked my body, as long as I felt good about myself. I removed that issue from my life early on and it made me incredibly stronger.
Hearing all this, is there any recipe for liking yourself? It's true that a lot of people don't have the willpower to handle themselves.
When we realize that everyone perceives beauty differently, we stop worrying about what others think and start focusing on ourselves. We used to have a trend of very thin models here and many girls wished they looked like them. Today, on the other hand, we have a trend for big butts, wide eyebrows and fake lips, and so every other woman worries about being imperfect. Plus size models wouldn't have stood a chance in the fashion industry a few years ago. This means that the exact definition of what is right or beautiful doesn't really exist. Everyone sees it differently and trends change. The only prescription is to stop listening to those who convince us of our inadequacy and start filling ourselves with whatever activity we enjoy.
It is true that society has a huge influence on the perception of how many people feel in their bodies...
Yes. When a person thinks they're bad because they're fat, skinny, or even purple, it always starts with the influence of the people around them or the environment they grew up in. It's the same as when you're in an area affected by the plague, it's hard not to get infected there too. When someone is told for a long time that they will never actually be happy enough as they are, they become a stressed and anxious being who ends up being really unhappy. It's actually a paradox. Healthy girls break down because they are constantly told from childhood that they won't find a partner, friends, a job, and that the world won't accept them if they don't look like what society preaches and is used to. Of course it would be good to set a healthy mindset throughout society. Whether it is about doctors and their bullying of overweight and underweight patients or the attitude of individuals.
This will probably be a bit difficult, if at all possible...
It certainly is. And that's why I consider positivity points such an important part of life. If one wants to like oneself, one has to take into account that our society is not yet very ready for body positivity, and one might even hear negative comments.
So how can we best resist these negative comments?
Build real and healthy self-confidence. In the beginning, we need to start taking small steps to find faith in ourselves. Just give yourself any small task, and it doesn't matter if it's exercising, painting a picture, or anything else. Simply doing something for ourselves that makes us happy, that makes us feel good, and that moves us somewhere at the same time. To make us feel good about it. And it doesn't have to be any big things. However, the moment we accomplish it, our self-esteem increases every time. We gradually start to believe in ourselves more and more and then we can move on to bigger tasks, to go beyond our comfort zone, to surpass ourselves.
What does that mean?
For example, taking on clothes I hadn't worn before because I was afraid of what others would say. If you do that, you'll find it's not so terrible. Over time, along with building your self-esteem, you'll realize that you don't actually mind if someone gives you crap because you've already built up faith in yourself. It's good to take it one step at a time and realize that miracles don't happen overnight. It's a long run. You also need to answer the questions: why do I feel bad? What does it make me feel? The biggest problem is in us, not in our environment. If we accept ourselves as we are, whether in the positive or the negative aspect, we have won. People who have ever had to fight with themselves or for themselves and learn to accept negations from others without being affected in any way are much stronger mentally, more resilient, achieve their goals and just let go of anything.
Is there anyone who inspires you in this regard?
I follow many different singers, artists, body positive and plus size influencers on social media. But I can't quite say that it inspires me, more like it makes me happy. The joy of knowing that each person is different. That the world is so diverse. Diversity is what I enjoy, and that's my inspiration. You have the same thing in nature with animals and plants, if everything looked the same it would bore us. I'd like to maybe mention Alicia Keys. She may not wear makeup, but she's still in the showbiz world. She's a natural in a world where unnaturalness is promoted, yet she works in it and she's confident. I haven't reached that point yet, so I have a long way to go, too. It is, in short, the journey of a lifetime. But that's okay, too.
