The well-known “ordinary woman who wears bangs and has a beauty mark” arrives at Sea Dance, bringing happiness, popping energy, and an irresistibly soft, fuzzy feeling.
Maybe she didn’t know she wanted this. Still, this spring, when she decided to apply as Serbia’s representative at Eurovision, Ana Đurić Konstrakta united the entire region with a simple, almost self-evident conclusion — an artist must be healthy. When the song “In corpore sano” began echoing from all directions, so did the question of who or what was Konstrakta, and Ana Đurić became a textbook example of the adage “It only takes 20 years of work to become an overnight success.” Before “Triptih,” Eurovision and Meghan Markle, Ana was the lead vocalist in the bands “Mistake Mistake” and “Zemlja Gruva.” Some of her bandmates from the latter still support her as Konstrakta.
Almost a decade before Konstrakta as its central figure, “Zemlja Gruva” was, well… grooving. With a numerous cast, sometimes going up to 12–13 band members, and with a complete brass section, they were irresistibly reminiscent of the original jazz bands from the Big Band era, although, in terms of genre, they were closer to funk. This phase of Ana’s career brought a few big hits such as “Nisam znala da sam ovo htela,” “Da bi nam.” “Đango,” “Mama,” “Jednom je sada,” and many others. Still today, some of these songs are indispensable in Ana’s set list, and, almost as a rule, the roar from the crowd is loudest to the sound of the trumpet and the words “Dugo, dugo, nisam bila sama…” (I haven’t been alone in a long, long time).
However, when she created a general uproar for herself and everyone around her this spring with “Triptih,” she skillfully commented on media nonsense, the passivity of institutions, rigid human vanity, and the general decadence in which we live. And although her lyrics have always drawn people’s attention to topics that others rarely discuss, this was the first time she reached such a massive audience. The question arises whether it was a matter of luck or timing that we all got to hear the essential songs “In Corpore Sano,” “Nobl,” and “Mekano,” which are now recognisable at first beat in the entire region. This triptych finally brought the artist well-deserved recognition and support that she was long overdue, having been on the scene for almost 20 years, although it may seem that she only started yesterday.
Her incredible performances at Sea Star and EXIT caused tectonic shifts and a unique audience synergy, with the most diverse people singing together as one. That is why we are confident that she will create a top-notch musical atmosphere at a moonlit performance at the opening of the Sea Dance Festival on Friday, August 26th.
