Vesna Zmijanac

Vesna Zmijanac
Весна Змијанац
Zmijanac performing in 2011
Zmijanac performing in 2011
Background information
Born
Vesna Zmijanac

(1957-01-04) 4 January 1957
Nikšić, PR Montenegro, FPR Yugoslavia
GenresFolk
Occupations
  • Singer
  • actress
InstrumentVocals
Years active1979–present
Labels

Vesna Zmijanac (Serbian Cyrillic: Весна Змијанац, pronounced [ʋêsna zmijǎːnats]; born 4 January 1957) is a Serbian singer. Having sold around 6.7 million records, Zmijanac is recognized as one of the most popular singers from the former Yugoslavia, and has also maintained popularity in neighboring Bulgaria.[1][2][3]

Zmijanac made her recording debut in 1979 and is best known for hit songs "Nevera moja" (1975), "Kad zamirišu jorgovani" (1988), "Svatovi" (1990), "Idem preko zemlje Srbije" (1994) and "Malo po malo" (1995). Her emotional vocal delivery and melancholic ballads earned her the nickname "Queen of Sadness" (Kraljica tuge).

Early life

Vesna Zmijanac was born on 4 January 1957 in Nikšić, PR Montenegro, FPR Yugoslavia to mother Kovina from Kraljevo, SR Serbia and father Dušan from Sisak, SR Croatia. Zmijanac's nationality is Serbian. Her parents divorced when she was just a year old. Subsequently, Zmijanac was raised by her maternal grandmother in the village of Kovače near Kraljevo because her parents moved abroad to work.[4] Zmijanac also briefly lived in Vienna with her mother, where she attended high school, from which she eventually dropped out. She did, however, finish a typing course.[5]

According to Zmijanac, she showed interest in music from an early age, citing folk singers Šaban Šaulić, Esma Redžepova, and Safet Isović as the biggest influences on her vocal performance.[6]

Career

While living in Vienna, Zmijanac was discovered by singer Šaban Šaulić, who offered her to join him on his European tour.[7][6] Šaulić also helped her get signed by PGP-RTB, under which she released her first single "Hvala ti za sve" in 1979. Three years later, she starred in the movie Sok od šljiva, directed by Branko Baletić. Her first album, Ljubi me, ljubi, lepoto moja, was released in 1982. Zmijanac also made a cameo in the television series Kamiondžije ponovo voze in 1984.

During the early eighties, she started collaborating with Miroljub Aranđelović Kemiš, who wrote her first major hit "Nevera moja" (1975). Her fifth album, titled Dođi što pre, was released the following year, selling 400,000 copies.[4] Same year, she won the main prize at the International Music Fair (MESAM) in Belgrade with the song "Kraj nogu ti mrem". The album was also followed with her first national tour. With this success Zmijanac became one of the most popular Yugoslav singers, only competing with Lepa Brena. The follow-up album, Jedini si ti, was sold in half a million copies.[4] Her 1987 album, titled Istina, was sold in 850,000 copies, making it of one the best-selling albums in the former Yugoslavia.[8] The album featured a popular duet with Dino Merlin, called "Kad zamirišu jorgovani". Zmijanac embarked on her second tour, performing at the Hala Pionir, Belgrade and Zetra Olympic Hall, Sarajevo to over 10,000 people.[4] Other big hits of hers from this period include "Ne kunite crne oči" (1986), "Kunem ti se životom" (1987) and "Kazni me, kazni" (1988).

In 1990, Zmijanac released her eighth studio album, Svatovi, under new label Komuna, which was promoted with a tour and ten consecutive concerts at the Belgrade's Sava Centar. During the nineties, four more bodies of work were released, on which she collaborated with the likes of Momčilo Bajagić Bajaga and Rambo Amadeus.[9] These albums include popular songs such as "Svatovi" (1990), "Idem preko zemlje Srbije" (1994), "Ja imam nekog, a ti si sam" (1994) featuring Slavko Banjac, "Malo po malo" (1995) and "Da budemo noćas zajedno" (1997).

In 2000, Zmijanac published a book, called Kad zamirišu jorgovani, which was described by her as "an attempt of an autobiography".[10] In October 2010, she participated on Survivor Srbija VIP: Philippines alongside her daughter, Nikolija. Zmijanac was the second contestant to be eliminated on the show.[11] Her final album to date, Sokol, was released in 2011 through PGP-RTS. Zmijanac competed on the seventh season of the reality television show Farma. She eventually voluntarily left the show after finding out about her daughter's pregnancy.[12] In December 2019, Vesna Zmijanac was awarded with the Life Achievement Award from the Association of Music Artists of Serbia.[13] In October 2020, she was proclaimed the National Music Artist of Serbia at the Folk Music Assembly of Serbia.[14]

Private life

In the 1980s, Zmijanac was married for three years to songwriter and instrumentalist Miroljub Aranđelović Kemiš; he later married singer Zorica Brunclik.[15][16]

From her second marriage to economist and former PGP-RTS marketing chief Vlada Jovanović, she had a daughter, singer Nikolija Jovanović, on October 19, 1989.[17]

Zmijanac endorsed President Aleksandar Vučić in the 2022 Serbian general election.[18] During the March 2026 rally of Serbian Progressive Party, Zmijanac, who performed at the event, stated: "The president should be supported in any case. I have always been with the government. [ ... ] You should always be with the government, because then you don't have any problems".[19][20] Her daughter Nikolija and son-in-law Relja Popović, on the other hand, participated in the 2025 student-led anti-government protests.[21]

Discography

Studio albums
  • Ljubi me, ljubi, lepoto moja (1982)
  • Ti mali (1983)
  • Šta će meni šminka (1984)
  • Zar bi me lako drugome dao (1985)
  • Dođi što pre (1986)
  • Jedan si ti (1987)
  • Istina (1988)
  • Svatovi (1990)
  • Ako me umiriš sad (1992)
  • Idem preko zemlje Srbije (1994)
  • Malo po malo (1995)
  • Posle svega, dobro sam (1997)
  • Šta ostane kad padnu haljine (2003)
  • Sokole (2011)

Filmography

Filmography of Vesna Zmijanac
Year Title Genre Role Notes
1981 Sok od šljiva Film Kadivka
1984 Kamiondžije opet voze Television Herself 1 episode
1994 Novogodišnja priča TV movie
2010 Survivor Srbija Season 3, 2nd eliminated
2016 Farma Season 7, walked on day 95

Bibliography

Books
  • Zmijanac, Vesna (2000). Kad zamirišu jorgovani : [pokušaj autobiografije]. Evro.

See also

References

  1. ^ "ONI SU BILI NAJTIRAŽNIJI IZVOĐAČI U JUGOSLAVIJI : Brena, Šaban, Zorica, Miroslav i Halid prodali najviše ploča!". Mondo.rs (in Serbian). 23 January 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  2. ^ "Vesna Zmijanac o basnoslovnoj zaradi: Mogla sam da kupim 3 zgrade u Knezu i da ne trepnem". Telegraf.rs (in Serbian). 22 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  3. ^ "Vesna Zmijanac zaludela Bugare, a onda izašli Stoja i Sinan, i napravili LUDNICU!". Telegraf.rs (in Serbian). 15 October 2016. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d "Zlatna ploča - Vena Zmijanac" (in Serbian). RTS. May 2014. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021.
  5. ^ Jovanović, V. (16 August 2022). "Svinjarstvo, daktilografija: Koje je škole završila estrada". Nova.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Balkanskom ulicom: Vesna Zmijanac, prvi deo". YouTube (in Serbian). 9 February 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  7. ^ "Vesna Zmijanac: Šaban je bio moj učitelj, moje sve u muzici". Nova.rs (in Serbian). 6 March 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  8. ^ Savić, B. (27 August 2022). "Njihove pesme su se orile zemljom: Ovo su najprodavaniji izvođači Jugoslavije". Nova.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  9. ^ "Vena Zmijanac: Skraćujem aplauze da stane više pesama na koncertu" (in Serbian). Nova S. March 2020. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021.
  10. ^ Dedakin, I. (11 March 2022). "Estradne autobiografije: Zmijanac utrla put Suzani, Lukasu, Nedi". Nova.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  11. ^ Mijatović, M. (3 November 2010). "Vesna i Nikolija dobile još jednu šansu". Blic.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  12. ^ "Vesna Zmijanac saznala da će postati baka pa napustila Farmu". Blic.rs (in Serbian).
  13. ^ M. Ćunković (4 December 2019). "Nagrade za životno delo Marinku, Merimi, Daši..." (in Serbian). Večernje novosti.
  14. ^ "Nikolija podelila majčin uspeh". Idjtv.com (in Serbian). 28 December 2020.
  15. ^ "Zorica i Vesna opet drugarice! Pevačice ratovale 29 godina zbog Kemiša". Blic.rs (in Serbian). 21 October 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  16. ^ Savić, M. (10 October 2022). "Pre Zorice Brunclik: Ovako su izgledali Vesna Zmijanac i Kemiš dok su bili u braku". Nova.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  17. ^ "Nikad se ne pojavljuje u javnosti! Ovo je bivši muž Vesne Zmijanac sa kojim ima ćerku". Blic.rs (in Serbian). 16 February 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  18. ^ "Ko je sve od javnih ličnosti ove godine podržao Vučića?". Danas.rs (in Serbian). 31 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  19. ^ "Vesna Zmijanac uoči mitinga SNS: Uvek sam bila uz vlast, jer onda nemate nikakvih problema". N1info.rs (in Serbian). 21 March 2026. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  20. ^ "Dimitrije Vojnov: Izjava Vesne Zmijanac je politička izjava godine". Danas.rs (in Serbian). 22 March 2026. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  21. ^ Manojlović, Jelena (16 March 2025). "Pevači, influenseri, glumci, sportisti: Poznate ličnosti ujedinjene u podršci studentskim zahtevima". Nova.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 22 March 2026.
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