Marija Šerifović

Marija Šerifović (Serbian: Марија Шерифовић, pronounced [mǎrija ʃerǐːfoʋitɕ]; born 14 November 1984) is a Serbian singer and record producer. She won the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest for Serbia with "Molitva" (Prayer), and is to date Serbia's only Eurovision winner. Since 2015, she has been a judge on televised singing competition Zvezde Granda.

Marija Šerifović
In 2009
Born	14 November 1984 Kragujevac, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia
Occupation	Singer producer television judge
Years active	2003–present
Musical career
Genres	Pop ballad
Instruments	Vocal
Labels	City Grand

Life and career

Early life

Marija Šerifović was born on 14 November 1984 in Kragujevac, central Serbia, to Rajko, a Muslim/Orthodox drummer, and Verica Šerifović, an Orthodox folk singer.[1] While Verica was nine months pregnant with Marija, Rajko left Verica for another woman with whom he had a son, Danijel, who is a singer and vocal coach. Marija described her father as an abusive alcoholic who would regularly beat her mother.[2]

2003–2014: Breakthrough and Eurovision

Šerifović released her debut album Naj, Najbolja (The Very, Very Best) in 2003 under City Records.[3] The following year, she won the Budva Music Festival with 'Bol do ludila' (Pain until Insanity). She claimed victory at the Radio Festival in 2005 and released her sophomore record Bez Ljubavi (Without Love) in 2006.[4] A year later, she held her first concert in Sava Centar, Belgrade.

With the song "Molitva" (Prayer), Šerifović was chosen to represent Serbia in the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest. She won both the semi-final on 10 May (with 298 points) and the final on 12 May (with 268 points), becoming Serbia's first—and to date, only—Eurovision winner.[5] Returning home, she was greeted by more than 70,000 people in front of the Civic Assembly of Belgrade, and also held a concert in her home town in front of 60,000 co-citizens. Šerifović performed her winning song in the 2008 contest in Belgrade, and was part of the jury that chose Ireland's entry for the 2008 contest and Sweden's entry for the 2009 contest. "Molitva" was included in the list of the 10 best Eurovision winners according to the SBS in 2016 and to The Independent in 2019, while The Eurovision Times, a fan blog, ranked it as the third best Eurovision song of all time.[6][7][8]

In 2008, Šerifović released her third album, titled Nisam anđeo (I'm not an angel), and a year later, her fourth Anđeo (Angel).[9][10] In May 2010, she held a concert in the Belgrade Arena. In 2013, Prva TV aired a documentary about Šerifović titled Confession, in which she talked about her difficult childhood, rise to fame and coming out as a lesbian.[11] In 2014, Šerifović released her fifth record, Hrabro (Bravely).[12]

2015–present: Zvezde Granda and major success

In July 2015, Šerifović released the single "Pametna i luda" (Smart and Crazy). In September of the same year, she became a judge on the televised singing competition Zvezde Granda alongside Jelena Karleuša.[13] In October, Šerifović saw success with "Sama i nervozna" (Alone and Nervous). In March 2016, she held a concert in Zetra Olympic Hall in Sarajevo. Between May 2016 and March 2018, Šerifovć released "Svoja i tvoja" (My Own and Yours), "Deo prošlosti" (Part of the Past), "11" and "Nije ljubav to" (Love isn't That). Šerifović then performed in the sold-out Belgrade Arena and, in July 2018, at the Koševo City Stadium in Sarajevo. Between March and May 2019, Šerifović embarked on a tour called 'Druga strana ploče' (The Other Side of the Record), during which she covered her favorite songs from other artists and performed her own hits. It listed seven sold out shows, six of which were in Sava Centar in Belgrade and one in SPC Vojvodina in Novi Sad.[14] Additionally, in June 2019, Džejla Ramović, mentored by Šerifović, won the 13th season of Zvezde Granda.[15]

Personal life

Šerifović identifies as lesbian. The Guardian identified her as an open lesbian in 2007. The newspaper's music critic, Germaine Greer, argued that it was Šerifović's "outsider" status as both Romani and lesbian that helped her create her Eurovision-winning performance in 2007.[16]

Discography

Studio albums

• Naj, Najbolja (2003)
• Bez Ljubavi (2006)
• Nisam Anđeo (2008)
• Anđeo (2009)
• Hrabro (2014)

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominee/work	Result	Ref.
2007	Marcel Bezençon Awards	Artistic Award	Herself	Won
	Eurovision Song Contest 2007	Contest	Participant/Herself	Won
2019	Music Awards Ceremony	Female Pop Song of the Year	"Nije ljubav to"	Nominated	[17]
		Music Video Song of the Year	"11"	Nominated
		Concert of the Year	Štark Arena, 24 May 2017	Nominated
		Female Artist of the Year	Herself	Won
2020		Concert of the Year	Druga strana ploče (Sava Centar)	Won

See also

• Music of Serbia
• List of singers from Serbia
• Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest

References

1. "Ispovest" (PDF). Marija Šerifović. 2014. p. 14. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
2. "MARIJA ŠERIFOVIĆ OTKRIVA: Lezbijka sam, seks sa devojkom je divan!". Telegraf. 27 November 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
3. "Naj, Najbolja". discogs.
4. "Bez ljubavi". discogs.
5. http://www.theage.com.au/news/general/eurovision-glitter-brings-hope-to-gay-serbs/2008/05/20/1211182773178.html
6. "10 Most Deserving Eurovision Winners". SBS. 13 April 2016.
7. "Eurovision Song Contest: Every winner ranked from worst to best". The Independent. 18 May 2019.
8. "Best Eurovision Song Ever". The Eurovision Times. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
9. "Nisam Anđeo". discogs.
10. "Anđeo". discogs.
11. "I Am A Lesbian! – Marija Serifovic Opens Up in Her Film "Confession"". InSerbia News. 28 November 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2015; "The 8 LGBTI artists who made Eurovsion what it is today". Pink Star News. 17 May 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
12. "Hrabro". discogs.
13. "Počinje snimanje nove sezone: Evo ko su novi članovi žirija "Zvezda Granda"!". Blic (in Serbian). 15 September 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
14. "Druga strana ploče – na bini plesao hrvatski voditelj, u publici pala prosidba, Marija najavila povlačenje iz medija". svet.rs (in Serbian).
15. "Džejla Ramović pobjednica Zvezda Granda". ba.n1info.com (in Bosnian). 21 June 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
16. Greer, Germaine (21 May 2007). "Go, Marija! Eurovision's triumphant lesbian Gypsy". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
17. "Ovo je lista dobitnika regionalnih MAC muzičkih nagrada" (in Serbian). Tracara.com. January 2019.

External links

• Official Site
• Official label site
• Marija Serifovic complete discography
• An exclusive interview of the “Eurovision 2007” winner Maria Sherifovich for a «New Portal»