It’s now time to check out the competing entries in the second semi-final. First up, we go to the land of tennis stars, turbo-folk and one of Europe’s craziest nightlife scenes . It’s Serbia!!!
History
Serbia first participated in the Eurovision Song Contest as an independent nation in 2007, having previously taken part as part of Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro. Their first participation was also their first win, with Marija Šerifović singing “Molitva”. This made them one of only two countries to win the contest on their first attempt (the other being Switzerland, who won the first contest in 1956) They also reached the top 10 in 2008 (6th), 2012 (3rd) and 2014 (10th). Last year, Sanja Vučić came 18th in the final with “Goodbye (Shelter)”.
Selection
The Serbian broadcaster, Radio Television of Serbia (RTS), internally selected both the song and singer. Tijana Bogićević was annouced as this year’s Serbian representative.
Artist
Tijana Bogićević was born on November 1st 1981 in Novi Sad in northern Serbia. She was a backing vocalist for Nina at the 2011 contest. She also tried to represent her country in 2009 with the song “Pazi šta radiš” (Watch what you’re doing) but failed to get past the semi-final. Her first big success in Serbia came with the release of her single “Čudo” (Miracle) in 2013. The following year she released a duet with Aleksa Jelić, “Još jednom”(One more time). She currently lives in the United States. Her entry for Kyiv “In Too Deep” was written and composed by Borislav Milanov, Joacim Persson, Lisa Desmond and Johan Alkenaes. Milanov and Persson also worked together on last year’s Bulgarian entry, “If Love Was a Crime”.
Song Review
It’s ten years since Serbia’s first win and boy are they hungry for a second one! The song is very radio-friendly and the Tijana’s vocals are very strong. However, I don’t see it as potential winner because while the chorus and bridge drive it home, the verses are a bit too timid in comparison to the rest of the song. A winning song needs to be strong throughout, not just in places. That said, it is a shoe in for the final.
What Could Have Been
Belgrade has gained a reputation over the past few years for having one of the craziest club scenes in Europe. So why not send a song representative of that, like Zap Me Strobe? This DJ duo made of Ivee Ivana Aleksandrović & Damjan Eltech. Everyone these days loves a nice dirty bass and Zap Me Strobe combine that with traditional folk elements, as seen in “Katamana”. It would have massive appeal and could send Serbia shooting up that leaderboard.
Срећно у Србији!
Will Tijana rise to the top or fall into the depths of despair? Leave you comments below. Stay tuned tomorrow for another Eurovision preview!
(Sources: eurovision.tv, RTS, YouTube)
Thinking About It 