# Poison Cake

"Poison Cake" is a song by Bosnian Croat singer-songwriter Marko Bošnjak. Described as story of revenge and standing up for oneself, the song was released on 10 January 2025 through Aquarius. It was written by Bošnjak, together with Bas Wissink, Ben Pyne, Emma Gale, and Filip Majdak. The song will represent Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025.

## Background and composition

"Poison Cake" was composed and written by Marko Bošnjak, Bas Wissink, Ben Pyne, Emma Gale, and Filip Majdak, with Wissink producing the song. Inspired by fairytales like "Snow White" and "Hansel and Gretel", as well as the film The Help, the song is described as a story of revenge and standing up for yourself. It is further described as a track of "vengeful emotions, anger, and a desire for justice, told through a powerful metaphor of depriving those who have abused their position."
Bošnjak, in addition, said that "Poison Cake" is something completely new to him. He added, "the song is energetic and it’s about something totally unexpected from me, as a musician. I think the song is of multidimensional meaning and that everyone can recognize it and experience it in their own way." Wiwibloggs described the song as "[mixing] pop, garage, opera and some very dark industrial beats".

## Critical reception

During an interview in the Croatian television show IN magazin [hr], Croatian singer and actress Maja Šuput gave a positive remark on the song. She commented that "Poison Cake" was marginal for her, describing the song as "both sweet and a little demonic", and ended up supporting Bošnjak. Moreover, in an interview with Croatian online newspaper Index.hr, Serbian singer Milica Pavlović commented that she liked the song, its stage performance in Dora 2025, and "the way it goes through multiple roles". On the other hand, Josip Bošnjak, writing for the same publication, commented that the song "tries too much, and none of it quite succeeds". He further wrote, "imagine copying 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by lifting the structure, but inserting uninspired melodies and lyrics inside".

## Eurovision Song Contest 2025
### Dora 2025

Dora 2025 was the national final format organised by Croatian Radiotelevision (HRT) to select the Croatian representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2025. For 2025, the competition saw 24 entries competing across two semi-finals, held between 27 and 28 February 2025, and a final on 2 March 2025. The qualifiers for the final from each phase were determined exclusively by a public televote, with the top eight entries from each semi-final qualifying for the final. The winner of the final was then selected by a 50/50 combination of votes from a professional jury and the Croatian public via televoting.
Bošnjak was officially announced to compete in Dora 2025 on 5 December 2024. "Poison Cake" was drawn to compete in the second semi-final, and was announced as one of the eight qualifiers in the semi-final. In the final, the song performed 13th in the running order, and scored 83 points from the jury and 47 points from televoting for a combined total of 130 points, ultimately winning the contest and the Croatian spot for the Eurovision Song Contest 2025.

### At Eurovision

The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 will take place at St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, and will consist of two semi-finals to be held on the respective dates of 13 and 15 May and the final on 17 May 2025. During the allocation draw held on 28 January 2025, Croatia was drawn to compete in the first semi-final, performing in the second half of the show.

## Charts

Chart performance for "Poison Cake" :
| Chart (2025) | Peak position |
| Croatia Domestic Airplay (HR Top 100) | 1 |

## Release history

Release dates and formats for "Poison Cake" :
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Version | Label | Ref. |
| Various | 10 January 2025 | Digital downloadstreaming | Original | Aquarius | |