Daria was born in Aschaffenburg in southern Germany to a Croatian mother and German father. She lives in Austria and is now singing for Croatia: The artist has what it takes to feel confident during an international event such as the Eurovision Song Contest. She’s been through ten years of singing lessons in renowed music schools and has performed in musical productions such as ‘Chicago’, ‘Cats’ and ‘Little Shop of Horrors’.
Although she enjoyed performing in musicals, “I do prefer the pop music scene”, she reveals. Possibly because she loves Croatian music, which tempted her to participate in Dora, Croatia’s national final for the Eurovision Song Contest. “I wanted to give this genre a try, so I checked in”, she says matter-of-factly.
Delegation Head Aleksander Kostadinov provides more insight into what Daria has actually mastered: “She went through seven tough Saturday night televoting shows and won the competition. She’s one of the hardest-working artists I’ve ever seen, probably because she’s from Germany. I don’t see Croats working like that,” he adds, tongue-in-cheek.
Her performance will see her singing, dancing and also changing her dresses, all at the same time. “We did many rehearsals in Zagreb,” she admits, still smiling. “I told you, she’s like a machine,” says Kostadinov, also smiling. Again, he’s alluding to her German roots.
However, it looks as though Croatia has prevailed over Germany and Austria. Prior to the Dora contest, Daria vowed to move to Zagreb if she won the competition. We know how the story ended – accordingly, she’s now got an apartment in the Croatian capital. “I’m very proud to sing for my country, it is a big honour for me,” she says. Still, she’s staying true to her multiculturalism – not only have she and her entourage sung the song Celebrate in Croatian, but also in German, English, French and Russian.
