Maxim Behar: I really enjoy conveying my messages through music

Maxim Behar discusses his musical projects on the "Be Yourself" program on the "Horizon" channel of the Bulgarian National Radio, hosted by Zheni Moneva.

Host (Zheni Moneva): It's a pleasure to introduce the globally renowned PR specialist Maxim Behar, who last year revealed another talent and surprised us by rapping in a song together with Bulgarian rapper Mihail Mihaylov, known as Misho Shamara or Big Sha, his son Mihail Mihaylov Jr., known as Lil Sha, and a country singer—Sara Haralson. The song was dedicated to PR professionals, which definitely sparked huge interest. But before that—Merry Christmas!

Maxim Behar: Thank you! Merry Christmas to you, your listeners, and everyone who loves music in Bulgaria.

Host: How did this musical adventure with hip-hop artists begin?

Maxim: It was a huge series of coincidences and different events that brought me together with Misho Shamara, whom I've known for 15 years. We participated in a culinary TV show called "The Cherry on the Cake," part of the international franchise "Come Dine with Me." We cooked together, and after the show, he went to America, and I remained here in Bulgaria. However, we were in touch on Facebook all the time. Misho is really into political comments and had commented on something political on Facebook. Someone attacked him because of it, and I defended him. He thanked me, saying I was the only one who defended him, that I was a true friend, and that he owed me. I told him he owed me nothing, and at most, we could make a song together. Over the year, Misho occasionally would message me on Facebook, saying he was coming to Bulgaria to record the song and asking if I had any ideas. My first reaction was to link it to my business and PR. I wrote lyrics in Bulgarian. They arrived with Lil Sha, who was 19 at the time and, with an innocent child-like look, told me we would sing it in Bulgarian, but it wouldn't be listened to, so he suggested we do it in English. I told him I didn't have English lyrics, and he asked me to dictate while he wrote the lyrics in English. And so our first song was born. It even had a line, "My name is Max Behar, you need a PR."

Host: There's a rhyme.

Maxim: The kid asked me for a word that rhymes with PR, and I had never before realized my surname could rhyme with PR. And somewhat absolutely spontaneously, I said, "PR – Behar." And that's how our first song, "PR We Are," was born. It was a great success because we found a very good production company in America that spread it in seconds on all major platforms. Then, I started sending this song to all American radio stations to spark their interest. At one point, one of the radio stations, Hot21, their editor responded, saying he really liked the song and started broadcasting it. He asked what I wanted in return, and I had only one condition—that it be broadcast simultaneously on Hot21 in New York and Bulgaria. We arranged for it to be played at the same minute in New York and Sofia, and so it happened. After that, Hot21 listeners rated it first.

Host: And how did Sara Haralson get involved in the project?

Maxim: Sara Haralson also came into the project by absolute chance. I went to have a beer at a place owned by our beloved famous singer Vasil Georgiev—Vasko the Patch. A friend was playing there. We were with my wife at the theater, and he had asked us to come for a drink afterward. And I saw a singer performing. I took 1-2 photos and videos. I really liked how she sang and posted them on Facebook. The next morning, she sent me a message on Facebook saying she was already in Munich because she was returning to America early in the morning. She asked me who I was and why I had posted her on Facebook. I told her, it’s because I really liked how she sang. The conversation happened while she was at the airport in Munich, waiting for her flight to Nashville, where she is from. At one point, I told her I had made a song with Bulgarian rappers and needed a female vocal. She asked me to send her the song, which I did, and she just replied with one sentence, "I'm in." So, we collaborated with Sara Haralson, with whom we made this song, and another one—"Runaway," a remix of "PR We Are," which was played in many Sofia nightclubs and is the disco version of "PR We Are," again with Sara Haralson. At one point, after our third song in practice, she was nominated for four Grammy nominations for country music awards. Absolutely unexpectedly, at Vasko the Patch's bar, I met Sara Haralson from Nashville. So, she joined our projects, and I am thrilled. Of course, I am not a professional singer; of course, rap is a little easier to sing than pop, blues, and lyrics, but for me, this is the marketing of public relations. With our next song, "Runaway," I wanted to tell young people to run away from their comfort zone because many young people, especially Gen Z, stay in their comfort zone in a company, in an office, store, or wherever they work and they don't work much, they don't make changes, and they are calm. I told them to get out of their comfort zone to succeed. Life is very difficult, and people must fight to protect their place. They will have failures, probably more than successes, but when success comes, they will be very sweet, which is the context of the whole song. It was also very popular and reached third place in Hot21. It still spins constantly in New York, which shows that the best RnB and rap radio in America, when they play a song, they hashtag you on Twitter, and you always know when your song has been broadcast on the radio. And I receive 2-3 such messages daily for my two songs, "PR We Are" and "Runaway."

Host: We listened to "PR We Are"—the first musical experience of my guest, the world-renowned PR expert, who made a second song this year, again rapping, and not long ago, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of his agency. I expected you to sing at this event since you have had such success with your two songs, but Poli Genova sang, and before her, Yoana Dragneva, and it was very nice. With what attitude, Mr. Behar, do you enter the new year 2025? Will your musical activities continue?

Maxim: First, I want to develop our business even more vigorously because I believe it is very important for a country like Bulgaria. We do many international projects, and many international investors know Bulgaria through us. Bulgaria needs a better image and branding. All this political mess that is currently in Bulgaria reflects very negatively on the image of our country, so I really want to work very hard next year to make Bulgaria more accessible to foreign investors and to tell them that such mess in politics exists everywhere and not to worry about it. In France, Germany, Belgium, and elsewhere, these are normal processes of an already non-working system called democracy. Until a better system is invented, we will have these problems. But at the same time, Bulgaria is a very safe country—I state that absolutely categorically. Sofia is a very safe city. Bulgaria is a country full of young, intelligent, ambitious people who could help any business. And these are the messages I want to send through my projects, which I do. This summer, with Misho Shamara and his son Lil Sha, we made a project that will be on all music platforms in January. It's called "Viva Bulgaria." In this project, I will talk about Bulgaria and why it is called "Viva Bulgaria." We filmed the video, and the only thing delaying us at the moment is the production of the music video in our studio. I wanted a song about Bulgaria, which for me is very serious, that people abroad will hear and say, "Viva Bulgaria, but why Bulgaria?" I really wanted to release it together with the video, instead of just the audio, because in the video, we are showing the young people and pleasant things from Bulgaria. It may sound slightly tackily patriotic and not quite so sublime—"Viva Bulgaria." You may ask yourself, why would Maxim Behar, who raps, sing about Bulgaria? But for me, this is 90% marketing and 10% music. The music is really good and very catchy, and so is the chorus. We added violins as well. Despite being rap, I insisted on having violins to make the song easy to remember; we have one part with the chorus without music and overall, really interesting elements. When someone searches Bulgaria on Spotify or YouTube, I would like them to find this song. There will be other things as well, of course—some stories about people, which won't contribute to a good image to our country. Still, there will be young people who, when they hear the song, will say, "Wow, Viva Bulgaria! Let's see where this country is!" and this is part of my biggest desire over the last 30 years, the image of Bulgaria as it is to be promoted abroad and that's why I wrote this song. I have another one, which we will probably release next summer, but it has already been written, and we just need to record the vocals. It's related to my other favorite country, the Seychelles.

Host: We can't forget the Seychelles.

Maxim: This song is called "Seychelles We Are" and has already been created—it has lyrics, a beat, flow, and all possible musical elements. We just need to record it, and we'll release it next summer. It's a great pleasure, after having spoken to people through books, articles, postings, photos, videos, and whatnot for the last 50 years, to now be able to promote what I want to tell them through music.

Host: And since we meet on a holiday—December 25th, what would you like to say to our listeners who are currently tuned into the "Horizon" program with us?

Maxim: Of course, first of all, I wish everyone a Merry Christmas, and may you be healthy and happy. Those are the two most important elements we actually need—health and happiness because an unhappy person cannot succeed and, therefore, cannot feel good. However, what I want to tell them long-term sounds like this: "Never give up." You may have problems now, and you will have problems in the future. There is no such optimal society where everyone lives happily and without problems. Those are chimeras—they do not exist. But never give up in the face of difficulties, strive to succeed, and never harm anyone so that you can also feel good. And you will always have failures, like everyone else. I have also had them, of course, and everyone does. But you get up, dust yourself off, and continue forward. If someone trips you up or you stumble or fall accidentally, with this philosophy, you will always be positive. This is so needed now in our society, torn by wars, economic crises, political crises, and extremely incompetent and misunderstood politicians who probably do not even understand themselves, but we must not give up and must continue moving forward. That is what I want to wish all the listeners of your show, Zheni, on the "Horizon" program and the National Radio, and to all people in Bulgaria.

Host: We also add Maxim Behar's musical message, "Runaway." Good luck and see you soon!

Maxim: Thank you very much!

You can listen to the interview here.

Photo: BTA