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Serbia: Sanja’s song “Goodbye” presented!

12 March 2016 at 23:00 CET
Sanja Vučić ZAA RTS
In a show Serbia's Song for Europe aired tonight by RTS, Sanja Vučić ZAA, the Serbian entrant for the 2016 Eurovision Song Content performed her song for Stockholm in front of the audience for the very time. This year's Serbian Eurovision entry is called Goodbye, and it's written by Ivana Peters. The song has two versions, though. Iza Osmeha (in native language) and Goodbye (in English) but it has been already decided: ZAA will perform her entry in English.

"First of all, I'm so thankful for the amazing support in this journey I received so far. I really hope you are going to like our song, and that you will recognise that deeply moving emotion we are trying to express through it," Sanja Vučić ZAA told Eurovision.tv after the show.

The initial idea was to make people feel the power of the song and think about its message. Lyrics are quite strong as well. I hope you'll feel some goosebumps while listening to it.

“Violence in any form is unacceptable for me. This song is about destructive love, which turns into a psychological and physical violence at some point. I would like people to recognise it and to start to talk about it. They should not close their eyes. They should react and do something," Ivana Peters, the author of this year's Serbian entry, told Eurovision.tv.

We all have to find the saviour in ourselves. The most important thing is to recognise the strength that you have as a being. The strength that brings love and peace," Peters added.

About Sanja Vučić ZAA

Sanja Vučić ZAA (23) is from Kruševac, Serbia. Since she was a child, Sanja has been expressing talent for music. She finished both primary and secondary music school in her hometown (section: opera singing).





During the studies, Sanja sang in various ensembles, ranging from the band performing ethno music Bele vile (White Fairies), over the jazz orchestra, to the church choir Sveti Knez Lazar (Saint Prince Lazar) with which she toured Hungary, Belarus and Poland.



Furthermore, she attended singing master classes held by the famous opera singer Katarina Jovanović. Sanja also tried enrolling at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade, but without success, which she does not consider to be a significant setback because perhaps precisely that's what led her to the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest 2016.



Since April 2012, when she joined a crossover band called ZAA, as a permanent member, she has performed at more than 100 concerts in the region (at festivals like Exit, Love Fest, Nishville, Arsenal Fest, Overjam Reggae Festival in Slovenia, Lake Fest in Nikšić, etc.).



As a member of ZAA, she has had one album called "What About" recorded. Also, she is working with numerous authors and musicians as a studio singer for radio and TV jingles, advertisements and corporate videos.

About Ivana Peters

Ivana Peters (42) is a composer and singer from Belgrade. She has been in the music world in the Balkans since she was a child. Having played the piano in the primary music school, she also finished secondary music school. At the age of 15, she started singing in a hip-hop group named Who Is The Best.



In 1994, being less than twenty years old, she performed at the Beogradsko Proleće (Belgrade Spring Festival), drawing attention to herself by her exceptional performance. Soon she joined the group TAP 011, one of the most successful pop dance groups in Serbia in the 90s, having many radio chart-busters.



Afterward, she left the group and formed her rock band Negativ (Negative), with which she has released three albums until now. She became an accomplished author by composing and writing lyrics for most of the group's songs.



Ivana Peters also took part in the national selection in 2004 with the song Zbunjena (Confused).

What do you think about the Serbian entry? Let us know.