Sanja Vučić ( sr-Cyrl, Сања Вучић, ) is a Serbian singer and songwriter. Initially the lead vocalist of the Serbian crossover band ZAA, she represented Serbia at the

Eurovision Song Contest 2016 The Eurovision Song Contest 2016 was the 61st edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Stockholm, Sweden, following the country's victory at the with the song "Heroes" by Måns Zelmerlöw. Organised by the European Broadcasting ...

with the song "Goodbye". From 2017 to 2022 she was a member of

pop folk Folk-pop is a musical style that may be 1) contemporary folk songs with large, sweeping pop arrangements, or 2) pop songs with intimate, acoustic-based folk arrangements. Recording production values created a unblemished style that appealed to ...

girl group

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

, during which time they represented Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contests 2020 and

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

with the songs " Hasta la vista" and " Loco Loco".

Life and career

Early career

Vučić finished both primary and secondary music school in

Kruševac Kruševac ( sr-cyr, Крушевац, , tr, Alacahisar or Kruşevca) is a city and the administrative center of the Rasina District in central Serbia. It is located in the valley of West Morava, on Rasina river. According to the 2011 census, t ...

, at the department of

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

singing. During her studies, she sang in various ensembles, ranging from the band performing ethno music Bele vile, to the town

jazz orchestra A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

, and in the church choir Saint Prince Lazar.

ZAA (2012–2016)

The band ZAA was founded in Kruševac in 2008 and Vučić joined in April 2012. Their music is a mix of styles from

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

music and dub, to

post-rock Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation with ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and punk. They have performed in over 200 cities throughout the former Yugoslavia, and also performed in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, Czechia and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

. The band has participated in numerous festivals, like Exit,

Nišville Nišville ( Serbian: Нишвил, Nišvil) is an annual summer music festival held in the Ancient Fortress of Niš, Serbia. From the festival's very beginning, its concept has been based on presenting the ‘traditional’ jazz forms togethe ...

, and Reggae Serbia fest. As a member of ZAA, Vučić has made one album called ''What About'' (2014).

Eurovision Song Contest 2016

Radio Television of Serbia Radio Television of Serbia ( sr-Cyrl, Радио-телевизија Србије, sr-Lat, Radio-televizija Srbije, italics=yes; abbr. RTS/PTC) is Serbia's public broadcaster. It broadcasts and produces news, drama, and sports programming thro ...

internally selected Sanja Vučić for the

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

. A press conference with the artist, held by RTS, took place on 7 March 2016 in Košutnjak,

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

where it was announced that the song Vučić would perform at the Eurovision Song Contest would be titled "Goodbye (Shelter)" and was written by Serbian singer-songwriter and lead vocalist of the rock band Negative,

Ivana Peters Ivana Pavlović ( sr-cyr, Ивана Павловић; born August 22, 1974), better known as Ivana Peters ( sr-cyr, Ивана Петерс) or Ivana Negativ ( sr-cyr, Ивана Негатив), is a Serbian singer-songwriter. Initially recogni ...

. The Serbian performance at the Eurovision stage featured Sanja Vučić performing together with four backing vocalists and a male ballet dancer. The choreography and staging of the performance interpreted the song's

abuse of women Violence against women (VAW), also known as gender-based violence and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), are violent acts primarily or exclusively committed against women or girls, usually by men or boys. Such violence is often consi ...

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

message. In the final, Serbia performed in position 15 and placed eighteenth out of the 26 participating countries, scoring 115 points. Vučić was an international jury member in the Czech national selection process to the

Eurovision Song Contest 2018 The Eurovision Song Contest 2018 was the 63rd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Lisbon, Portugal, following the country's victory at the with the song " Amar pelos dois" by Salvador Sobral. Organised by the European Broa ...

and in the first semi-final of the selection for the French entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2019.

Hurricane (2017–2022)

In 2017, Sanja became a member of the Serbian

girl group A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...

. Their first single, "Irma, Maria", was released shortly afterwards. The group gained regional popularity with the song "Favorito". They participated in the 2020 edition of Beovizija, the Serbian national selection for the

Eurovision Song Contest 2020 The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 was planned to be the 65th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It would have taken place in Rotterdam, Netherlands, following the country's victory at the with the song "Arcade" by Duncan Laurence. The con ...

, where they won the competition and were selected to represent

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Hasta la vista". However, in March the contest was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Europe The global COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Europe with its first confirmed case in Bordeaux, France, on 24 January 2020, and subsequently spread widely across the continent. By 17 March 2020, every country in Europe had confirmed a case, and all ...

. In November 2020, it was confirmed that Hurricane would represent

at the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with the song " Loco Loco". At the contest, Hurricane performed in the second semi-final and placed 8th with 124 points, therefore qualifying for the grand final. In the final, they placed 15th in a field of 26 entrants, scoring 102 points. After the contest, "Loco Loco" went on to become a hit in the

Balkan The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

region. After the contest, the group released various singles and collaborations. On 4 May 2022, Hurricane announced that they would be disbanding, with its members going on to pursue their solo careers. On 20 September 2022, Vučić released her first solo single titled "Omađijan". On 29 November of the same year, Vučić released her second solo single "Đerdan", featuring the Serbian rapper Nucci.

Controversies

On 20 September 2022, Vučić was a guest on

Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

talk show ''Ami G Show'', together with

Maja Nikolić Marija Nikolić ( sr, Маја Николић, born 11 April 1975 in Niš, Serbia, Yugoslavia), better known as Maja Nikolić, is a Serbian singer and reality television personality. Life and career Early life Marija Nikolić was born in Sara ...

Sajsi MC Ivana Rašić Trmčić ( sr-cyr, Ивана Рашић Трмчић, born on 12 October 1981), better known as Sajsi MC, is a Serbian rapper, singer and songwriter. Recognized as one of the most prominent female rappers in Serbia, her lyrics exp ...

, Predrag Azdejković and

Vesna Vukelić Vendi Vesna Vukelić ( sr-cyr, Весна Вукелић; born 25 November 1971), known by her stage name Vendi ( sr-Cyrl, Венди, links=no), is a Serbian singer, television personality and former model. Initially a glamour model, she made her deb ...

. Following the 2022 EuroPride, held the previous week in

, all of the guests stated their opinions on Belgrade Pride, leading to a conflict between the

LGBT activist Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movements are social movements that advocate for LGBT people in society. Some focus on equal rights, such as the ongoing movement for same-sex marriage, while others focus on liberation, as in the ...

Azdejković and the

anti-LGBT Anti-LGBT rhetoric comprises themes, catchphrases, and slogans that have been used against homosexuality or other non-heterosexual sexual orientations in order to demean lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. They range from t ...

Vukelić. Vučić stated: "I am

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

and I believe that everybody needs to express their freedom, and love is love. About the

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, float (parade), floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually ce ...

itself, I don't want to make a stance." Her hesitance to unequivocally support the parade was met with controversy from her fans. The next day, Vučić took to

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

and made a statement: "I would like to clarify some things about last night's show, I have to say I was very uncomfortable and I was not used to the tone that the show took in its certain parts, and led by that I wanted to avoid being part of the discourse, primarily because I was a guest on the show for different reasons. I have always been an ally, love and equality will always have my support!"

Discography

With ZAA

Studio albums

* ''What About'' (2014)

With Hurricane

As a solo artist

Singles

As featured artist

Filmography

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vucic, Sanja Living people Musicians from Kruševac 21st-century Serbian women singers Serbian punk rock musicians Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Serbia Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2016 Women punk rock singers Year of birth missing (living people)