DRAGANA MIRKOVIĆ

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OFFICIAL WEB SITE: http://www.dragana-mirkovic.com http://www.dragana.at

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FAN CLUB: http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/draganagagamirkovic/

One of the most prominent music stars in ex-Yu - Dragana Mirković - has released a new album called "Trag u vremenu" for the "Komuna" musical producing company after spending 4 years off-stage.

Dragana has constantly been on the top of her musical genre for the past twenty years. All the things she has achieved in her splendid musical career are due solely to her voice, talent, carefully chosen songs as well as professional attitude towards her occupation. She has built her stardom by her hits (many of which have become evergreens), her excellent albums, unbeatable circulations of sold products, grand tours in almost every part of the world and her high budget video clips which have utterly outstripped their time... Conscientious towards herself and the others, modest and unobtrusive, but all the same wilful and worthy, Dragana has become the truelove for her faithful public and this love has been returning back to her for two decades.

Childhood

Dragana Mirković was born in the village of Kasidol, near the town of Požarevac, in a six-member family consisting of a grandfather, grandmother, father, mother and a sister, called Dušica. Dragana had carefree childhood - she didn't lack anything because her worthy and reputable parents strived to secure her with all the necessities. But above all, the most precious thing she has acquired from her parents is her upbringing. They have implanted in her virtues like integrity, diligence, morality, modesty, expansiveness and willingness to help people unselfishly. She was much more attracted to the enchanting sounds coming out from her grandfather's (Dragutin) accordion, than to any dolls or childish games. She was only five years old when she learned to sing her first song, namely the folk song "Devojka sokolu zulum učinila". "I vividly remember how I was singing and crying in one. I felt so sorry for the cast of falcons who burnt out because the girl had set the wood on fire" - recalls Dragana. Teachers were quick to notice the exceptional musical talent of their excellent student and Dragana regularly represented her school at local school contests. Only thirteen years old, the youngest leading singer of KUD "Kasidol", she used to open and close spectacles where she would perform side by side with many popular names. The shyness of this calm and unpretentious young girl could take over the love for music only. The great stage fever before each appearance spoiled the initial chords of her songs and totally absorbed in them, she couldn't hide the emotions, which were provoked by the rhymes she used to sing. The news about the prodigious child in Kasidol were quickly spread far and wide, which led numerous people from the neighbouring places to go and hear her. They would wonder in disbelief how the dainty and fragile girl of fourteen that she was, could produce such a fine and mature voice. The tale about the talented girl from Kasidol would spread even further - as far as people of great importance in the musical field. The leaders of the "Diskos" musical company came to the house of Dragana's parents to negotiate with them about their daughter making a record for the company. The father, Predrag, was flabbergasted. "Don't do this to me, I pray to you as to the good God! She hasn't even finished school yet" - he would say. Dragana was also amazed at this offer. To this moment singing had been nothing but a fun for her. Her dearest dream was to graduate from University, learn English and become a tour guide in order to travel around the world. Nowadays all her dreams seem to have come true - she speaks English perfectly (she even sung her vocals in her film "Slatko od Snova" in English) and she has travelled all over the world, only it's that she has done that not as a part of the job of a tour guide, but as one of the greatest music stars in Yugoslavia ever!

First album

The people from "Diskos" would insist upon making a music star out of this talented young lady. The family gathered, talked it over and decided that Dragana should make the record only when she has finished primary school. It was not long before fifteen-year-old Dragana Mirković brought home her Vukova diploma, along with her first album "Imam dečka nemirnog". "I was straight from the school benches to the studio. It was very nice, indeed, because all of these important and older people, among which rather popular names, would consider me a prodigious child." - says she. After she has done the work in the studio, Dragana got back to Kasidol. It was a few months later when she heard her pilot song all of a sudden. "I was listening to Radio "Požarevac" I and at a time there was a song whose tunes sounded familiar to me. It was a shock! I was listening to my own voice!" - recalls Dragana. Her song "Imam dečka nemirnog" reached top lists and her album sold 160.000 copies - a genuine star was born! She was given the nickname of "Luče iz Kasidola".

Career

Dragana continued recording albums and having more and more success. "Imam dečka nemirnog" was followed by albums like: "Umiljato oko moje", "Spasi me samoće", "Ruže cvetaju samo u pesmama", "Najlepši par", "Simpatija", "Dragana" (from which great hits remain to this day - "Kaži mi sunce moje", "Dobra devojka", "Što te nema"). She had fruitful cooperation with the composer Miodrag M. Ilic who made some of her greatest hits ever: from "Simpatija" as far as one of the most beautiful Serbian folk songs "Kad bi znao kako čeznem". As a member of "Južni vetar" she used to sing on tours in all parts of one-time Yugoslavia, along with Sinan Sakić, Šemsa Suljaković, Mile Kitić... They made a record-breaking concert for its time at "Tašmajdan" stadium in front of 11.000 people. Dragana's amazing success dates back to 1990 and on to this day. She has won "Poselo Beograda 202" three following times, "MESAM", "Oskar popularnosti", the "Melko" statues, "Zlatne gramofone", golden and diamond albums various posters and recognitions... Dragana is the most rewarded singer of all times in Yugoslavia. As a proof of this comes the list of more than thirty gilded statues she has received for "The best singer of the year", "The most often sold album", "The hit of the year" the association of Radio Serbia pronounced Dragana Mirković to be the "Singer of the decade" in 1993. This very year readers chose the "most popular person" in periodicals and Dragana was rated in the prestigious third place.

Vertiginous succeeds

After "Južni vetar", Dragana goes to "ZAM" production to the deceased Raka Đokić, and records one of the best sold albums ever. All 13 songs became great hits and they still are: "Umirem majko", "Pitaju me u mom kraju", "Dve sudbine", "Dolaze nam bolji dani", "Moralo je leto proći", "O, da li znaš"…

Collaborating with Zlaja Timotić, she makes songs in a modern "folk and rock" style which are enthusiastically accepted by the audience. That way she gets a whole new army of teenagers, which become her biggest fans. Members of a founded fan club "Dragana Mirković" accompany Dragana on her months long tours.

Publishing houses begin fighting for Dragana. From "ZAM" production she goes to "PGP RTS", "Grand", "Komuna"… With each new album, which she calls "Dragana", she improves her old ones.

She picks her songs by her sensibility and rich taste for music. The audience enthusiastically accepts them equalising their emotions with their idols': "Baš tebe volim ja", "Do poslednjeg daha", "Vetrovi tuge", "Zaboravi srce", "Nije tebi do mene", "Crni leptir", "Nisam ni metar od tebe", "Od kad sam se u tebe zaljubila", "Tugo mjih dana", "Plači zemljo", "I u dobru i u zlu", "Volela bih da te vidim", "Nema promene", "Dušu si mi opio", "Zagrli me majko", "Kojom gorom", "Dolina kestenova", "Samo da te vidim", "U godini", "Koliko je prevarenih", "Da li znaš", "Sama", "Ostani"…

She also records successful duets with her colleagues: "Oči pune tuge" with Željko Šašić, "Divlja devojka" with Nino, "Srcu nije lako" with Divlji kesten, "Ja imam te a k'o da nemam te" with Hari Mata Hari…

To the big family of her hits she adds these songs from her newest album: "Trag u vremenu", "Tamo gde je milo moje", "Evo dobro sam"… The songs make conquest to the first listening. They sound just like what we expect from a star such as Dragana. The arrangements are modern, there are beautiful "doubles" with the spirit of our national music, and Dragana's specific voice and style of singing faithfully bring memorable, poetic lines.

Universal artist

The folk singer with the most shot videos in Serbia was always ahead of time, initiating innovations. She didn't mind spending all the money she destined to high budget video presentations unseen in our country as well as on the Balkan, always maintaining that her audience deserves the best. Animated video presentation for the song "Za mene si ti" was the most expensive video clip ever shot in our country.

What we could only see on MTV, on concerts world-famous stars, Dragana first brought to Belgrade. On a concert in the Centre "Sava" in 1995, she had a ear-microphone instead the classic one, that allowed her a fully freedom of movement and dancing with her dancing group with a carefully composed and well trained choreography.

Dragana's specialty isn't only in good songs, video presentations and spectacular concerts. She has also given her audience a film: "Slatko od snova". The film, that had a premiere on the 12th of April 1994, is a fairy story with elements of a comedy. Dragana is a girl working at a McDonald's and she dreams of fame on the scene. Delivering orders she meets the king of show business that is also the owner of the "Dream factory", and is giving her an opportunity to succeed in making her dreams come true. On the way to her success she meets the spirit of Elvis Presley, who is, foreseeing to be a Serb, called Veselin Prislić. The spirit of Presley is becoming her main confederate.

That she's a real universal star that sings, dances and acts she has proven with appearing on the Viennese festival of modern art "Wiener Festwochen" at a performance of our artist Milica Tomić. Milica has named her work after Dragana's song "I kad jednom pukne ovo srce moje, videćeš u njemu samo ime svoje" with a goal to show us the relationship of global and local in art, through musical media.

The crowd was so enthusiastic with Dragana's performance that she was forced to have a whole mini concert instead of singing just one song. She had a well-attended press conference the next day, which she led in English language, answering journalists' questions from all over the Europe.

Dragana in private

Dragana met the man of her dreams, her husband Toni Bijelić, coincidentally over her aunt and uncle that live in Vienna, where she went to have a concert not knowing that her destiny is connected to that city. How ever, it was love at first sight.

"That moment, when he offered me his hand, I felt something unusual. From the pressure of all emotions I didn't even hear his name. I thought I'm never going to see him again, but he made it all different." - remembers Dragana.

Everyday phone calls were warming up emotions and hardening Dragana's decision to consist her life with the life of Toni.

After a year and a half of platonic love, Dragana packed her luggage and flew to Vienna to Toni. She came to stay. Forever.

If you ask Dragana Mirković which is the most romantic way to propose to a girl, she'll say: "In a car, at the intersection, when the light is red." That original way Toni proposed to Dragana. They got married in a month, got their son Marko and later their daughter Manuela. Dragana loves the role of being a wife and a mother, admitting that she's never been happier and more complete.

If you ask her does she believe in fairy tales, she'll answer with a smile. She lives in a fairy tale.