Tetiana Ilienko Presents New Song “Through Cliffs, Through Mountains”

On October 15, Ukrainian songwriter Tetiana Ilienko released her new song “Through Cliffs, Through Mountains” (Ukrainian: “Через кручі, через гори”) – an emotional story about a love for which a person is willing to cross distances, overcome obstacles, and even set aside their own pride. Yet behind the romantic image of a journey lies a deeper question: is the person you are walking toward truly worth every step you take?

Tetiana Ilienko wrote the lyrics back in 2008. Eighteen years later, those words have found their musical expression while preserving the feeling of youthful love at their core – intense and uncompromising, yet filled with uncertainty.

The journey becomes the central metaphor of the song. The lines
“Through cliffs, through mountains
I carry my love”
express a willingness to keep moving toward someone despite every obstacle. Here, the cliffs and mountains are not merely physical barriers, but symbols of inner struggles – pride, fear, hesitation, and the difficult steps toward another person that sometimes one has to take first.

As the verses unfold, however, another side of the story emerges. Beneath the protagonist’s determination lies uncertainty: her heart is burning, love brings pain, yet the questions that matter most remain unanswered. Even when “the moon asks” whom she loves, her heart cannot reveal the answer. It is a story about a feeling so powerful that one person is willing to go almost too far – only to begin wondering whether the other person even sees or appreciates the journey being made for them.

“For me, ‘Through Cliffs, Through Mountains’ is not simply a song about overcoming any obstacle for love. It is also about that moment when, somewhere along the way, you ask yourself: is this person actually walking toward me too? You can set aside your pride, take one step, and then another, but love should not be a road that only one person keeps walking,” says Tetiana Ilienko.

The song leaves this inner conflict without a definitive answer. The protagonist continues to carry her love “through cliffs, through mountains,” even as her doubts remain. It is precisely this contrast – between the strength of her feelings and the uncertainty of whether they are truly reciprocated – that creates the song’s emotional tension.

“Through Cliffs, Through Mountains” is a song about being willing to travel a difficult road for love, but also about the importance of listening to yourself along the way. Because sometimes, what matters is not only how far you are willing to go for another person, but whether they are willing to take even a single step toward you.