Aleksandra Kovac
Encyclopedia
Aleksandra Kovač is a Serbian
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...

 singer-songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

. She is the eldest daughter of eminent composer Kornelije Kovač
Kornelije Kovac
Kornelije "Bata" Kovač is a famous Serbian composer. He is a father of Aleksandra Kovač and Kristina Kovač, both successful Serbian singers.-Early life:...

 and the elder sister of singer Kristina Kovač
Kristina Kovac
Kristina Kovač is a Serbian singer and composer. She is a major pop star in Serbia. She became famous during the 1990s when she and her sister Aleksandra Kovač were the big attraction in Serbia and surrounding countries - R&B band K2...

. Alongside her sister Kristina, Kovač came to media prominence as a part of girl group
Girl group
A girl group is a popular music act featuring several young female singers who generally harmonise together.Girl groups emerged in the late 1950s as groups of young singers teamed up with behind-the-scenes songwriters and music producers to create hit singles, often featuring glossy production...

 K2
K2 (Kovac sisters duo)
K2 was a Serbian pop, R&B, funk and dance duo, formed by sisters Aleksandra and Kristina Kovač in 1990. They worked with many producers worldwide and released five albums. After eight years, the band finished its work in 1998...

, and then launched a successful solo career in 2001. She won a Best Adriatic Act Award
MTV Europe Music Award for Best Adria Act
The following is a list of the MTV Europe Music Award winners and nominees for Best Adriatic Act.-2000's:-2010's:...

 at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2006
MTV Europe Music Awards 2006
The MTV Europe Music Awards hit Copenhagen at the Bella Center/Rådhuspladsen in 2006. The venue was made to feel like a VIP club with exclusive, intimate performances...

.

Early and personal life

Aleksandra Kovač was born in 1972 to eminent Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

n musicians, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

 and music producer Kornelije
Kristina Kovac
Kristina Kovač is a Serbian singer and composer. She is a major pop star in Serbia. She became famous during the 1990s when she and her sister Aleksandra Kovač were the big attraction in Serbia and surrounding countries - R&B band K2...

 and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

 Spomenka Kovač, who died in 2006 of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

. She has two younger sisters; Kristina
Kristina Kovac
Kristina Kovač is a Serbian singer and composer. She is a major pop star in Serbia. She became famous during the 1990s when she and her sister Aleksandra Kovač were the big attraction in Serbia and surrounding countries - R&B band K2...

, born in 1974, who is also a musician, and Anja, born in 1988, who is an actress. Kovač was born and raised in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...

. Surrounded with music throughout her childhood, Kovač began playing the piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 aged 15, while already writing her own material since the age of 13. She cites Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...

, Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

 and Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...

 as her idols, and is also a recognized philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...

.

1989—1998: K2

In 1989 Kovač and her younger sister Kristina
Kristina Kovac
Kristina Kovač is a Serbian singer and composer. She is a major pop star in Serbia. She became famous during the 1990s when she and her sister Aleksandra Kovač were the big attraction in Serbia and surrounding countries - R&B band K2...

 formed a duo named K2
K2 (Kovac sisters duo)
K2 was a Serbian pop, R&B, funk and dance duo, formed by sisters Aleksandra and Kristina Kovač in 1990. They worked with many producers worldwide and released five albums. After eight years, the band finished its work in 1998...

, and signed a five year recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...

 with Dave Margereson and Kenny Thompson
Kenny Thompson
Kenny Thompson is a Belgian football player currently playing for K.A.A. Gent. As from the season 2010-2011, he plays for SK Lierse.-External links: transfermarkt.de...

 from Mismanagement, a record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...

 based in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. The same year they supported Labi Sifre at his tour in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The sister supported Bebi Dol in her song "Brazil
Brazil (Bebi Dol song)
"Brazil" was a song of the Eurovision Song Contest 1991, performed in Serbo-Croatian by Bebi Dol, representing Yugoslavia....

" at the Eurovision Song Contest 1991
Eurovision Song Contest 1991
The Eurovision Song Contest 1991 was the 36th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 4 May 1991 in Rome. Due to the Gulf War and mounting tensions in Yugoslavia, RAI decided to move the contest from Sanremo to Rome, which was perceived to be more secure....

. In 1993 K2 supported Errol Brown
Errol Brown
Errol Brown MBE is a singer and songwriter, best known as the frontman of Hot Chocolate. He has British citizenship by marriage to Ginette and they live in The Bahamas...

 from Hot Chocolate on a tour. After the tour, they continued working with Brown's band New Underground, a Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

 based production team, consisting of Robert Maddix
Robert Maddix
Robert Joseph Maddix is a civil servant and former political figure on Prince Edward Island of Acadian origin. He represented 3rd Prince and then Evangeline-Miscouche in the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 1993 to 1999 as a Liberal.He was born in Wellington, Prince Edward Island,...

 and Jonathon Beckford. Working on that project, the sisters discovered soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...

 and funk music, and quickly absorbed the sounds of her Manchester friends’ record collection, which was ripe with old-school soul music, such as Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...

, Sly Stone
Sly Stone
Sly Stone is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, most famous for his role as frontman for Sly & the Family Stone, a band which played a critical role in the development of soul, funk and psychedelia in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1993, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of...

, Parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...

 and Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer.He is best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Super Fly, Mayfield is highly...

. At the same time, Kovač studied classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...

 at the Belgrade University.

In next five years, K2 worked with great names in music such as Derek Bramble, who worked with Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...

 and Nona Gaye
Nona Gaye
Nona Marvisa Gaye is an American singer, former fashion model, and screen actress. The daughter of soul music legend Marvin Gaye and granddaughter of jazz great Slim Gaillard, she began her career as a vocalist in the early 1990s...

, the writing duo Rod Argent
Rod Argent
Rod Argent is an English rock musician and a founding member of the 1960s English pop group The Zombies and the 1970s band Argent....

, who produced albums for Tanita Tikaram
Tanita Tikaram
Tanita Tikaram is a British pop/folk singer-songwriter, best known for the hits "Twist in My Sobriety" and "Good Tradition" from her 1988 debut album, Ancient Heart...

, and many others. After their contract with Mismanagement expired in 1995, the sisters returned to Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...

 and wrote, arranged and produced their debut album K2, that hit number one on the charts. K2 sold more than 70 000 copies, and the band had a successful tour all over the country. Their second album, Malo soula
Malo Soula
Malo Soula is a 1996 album by Serbian pop duo K2. It was released in spring 1996.The album contains 10 songs. The producers of all the songs off album were sisters Kovač themselves, with Kristina being the main and Aleksandra, a co-producer. The main single was "Dabadamdam", was released in...

, was released in 1996, and hit the charts. In 1997 K2 signed a recording contract with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...

 to release an album for the Spanish market, and the sisters traveled to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...

 to record it. In 1998 K2 released their album Vamos de Fiesta. After a successful promotion of the album and a tour, the group returned to Belgrade and stopped working.

1999—present: Solo career

Kovač's first solo forays came between tours and gigs with her sister. In 1993 she performed in Spain with latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...

 dance
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...

 group Locomía
Locomia
Locomía is a Spanish pop group popular in the 1980s and 1990s. They combined elements of tropical with British music of the New Wave and New Romantics. Their first hit was the eponymous "Locomia"....

, playing the keyboards and singing back vocals. She also backed singer Mickael Herzog on his Spanish your.

Soon after K2 stopped performing in late 1990s, Aleksandra decided to continue solo, but now not only as a performer and composer, but as an arranger and producer as well.

She met a talented and perspective young producer and musician, Roman Goršek (of the group Plejboj
Plejboj
Plejboj was a Serbian punk rock/ska band from Belgrade.- Formation, rise to prominence :...

), and with him forms the production team "RAProduction", that has been successfully creating music for the past 9 years.

Aleksandra is asked to work with many performers from Croatia and Bosnia, such as: Nina Badrić
Nina Badric
Nina Badrić is a Croatian pop singer. Before starting her career in the entertainment industry she used to be a bank teller. She began performing in early 1990s, exploiting the sudden popularity of dance music, but her repertoire gradually became more mainstream...

, Ivana Kindl, Jacques Houdek, Deen
DEEN
Deen is a Japanese popular music band, formed in 1993. Members frequently changed until the release of first album, and from there Deen had 4 members, vocalist Shuichi Ikemori, keyboardist and leader Koji Yamane, guitarist Shinji Tagawa and drummer Naoki Utsumoto. In January 2000, Utsumoto left...

, Severina Vučković
Severina Vuckovic
Severina Vučković is a Croatian singer and actress. She is commonly referred to by her stage name Severina.- Music career :Severina's style can be described as pop with various folk and cabaret influences. As a child, she took smaller parts in theatre and opera productions in her native Split...

, Goran Karan
Goran Karan
Goran Karan , is a Croatian singer from Split. He specializes in songs influenced by Dalmatian folk music and is known for his powerful and refined tenor voice...

, Boris Novković
Boris Novkovic
Boris Novković is a Croatian pop singer. Born in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina in the former Yugoslavia, his interest in a musical career was cultivated by his family background, with a mother who taught music, and a father, Đorđe Novković, who was a leading Croatian songwriter and music manager...

, Vesna Pisarović
Vesna Pisarovic
Vesna Pisarović is a Croatian pop singer.Pisarović was born in Brčko, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Yugoslavia and grew up in Požega, Croatia, a part of the same country until she was 13...

, Sandi Cenov
Sandi Cenov
Aleksandar "Sandi" Cenov, also known simply as Sandi, is Croatian pop singer who was popular in early 1990s. His first album was released in 1992.In the 2005 elections for Zagreb City Assembly he was one of the candidates on the list of Tatjana Holjevac....

, etc...

Aleksandra and Roman also produce the songs and albums for the majority of these performers.

In 2001 they begin work on the EP "You and Me", which they single-handedly produce and publish. The EP contains four of Aleksandra's soulful, R&B compositions they convey her experiences in love and life through a mix of funk, soul and two-step. In the same year, Aleksandra and Roman are invited by some of the top world managers to come and present their music and work.

They go to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 and begin a collaboration with John Mason, the leading entertainment lawyer in the US.

Aleksandra has signed publishing contracts with companies such as Air Chrysalis, EMI Spain, Croatia records, Menart and she is a member of HDS and HUZIP in Croatia and STIM in Sweden.

She composes music for many theatre plays, as well as the score for the RTS
Radio Television of Serbia
Radio Television of Serbia or Serbian Broadcasting Corporation is the public broadcaster in Serbia. It broadcasts and produces a variety of news, drama, and sports programming through radio, television and the Internet. RTS is, since July 2001, a member of the European Broadcasting Union. RTS is...

' TV series Lisice, numerous commercials (Telekom, Grete, Banini) and TV shows.

In 2006 she released her first solo album, Med i mleko ("Honey and milk"), and with it, again proved herself as a talented singer and songwriter. Her album was one of the best-selling albums in 2006.

In 2006, Aleksandra appeared in RTS
Radio Television of Serbia
Radio Television of Serbia or Serbian Broadcasting Corporation is the public broadcaster in Serbia. It broadcasts and produces a variety of news, drama, and sports programming through radio, television and the Internet. RTS is, since July 2001, a member of the European Broadcasting Union. RTS is...

 TV show TV lica: Kao sav normalan svet, a show that allows to the viewers, to look inside in a normal day of a popular Serbian TV star, and gave the opportunity to her fans to see how her private life looks like. In that occasion, Aleksandra showed her dogs, and was asked where she likes to go during the day.

In May 2006, she appeared on the cover of Cosmopolitan Serbia
Cosmopolitan Serbia
Cosmopolitan Serbia is the serbian edition of the world famous women's lifestyle Cosmopolitan magazine. It's first issue was published in may 2004, feauting Mischa Barton on the cover. The headquarters of the magazine are based in Belgrade...

.

On April 26, 2007 Aleksandra held her first concert in Expo sala in Belgrade. The concert was organised by Serbia's freshly launched Fox televizija.

In February 2008 Aleksandra went to Slovenia to collaborate with a band named Leeloojamais. Together they recorded a bilingual song (in Slovenian and Serbian) titled "Mi" ("We"). Aleksandra has described the collaboration as a "great honor to be on RTV Slovenia participating in the Eurovision Song Contest, and in fact this song received the best response from the audience." The song was written by a Croatian author and it was translated to Slovenian and Serbian by the band and Aleksandra. The song is a single on the Leeloojamais album "Country Club Music".

Singles

Year Title Album Notes
2001 "For Better or Worse" You and Me
2006 "Ti" Med i mleko
Med i mleko
Med i mleko is the first solo album from Aleksandra Kovač, a Serbian R&B performer. It was released in Serbia and Europe in spring 2006....

"C'Mon Boy"
2007 "Nemoj ovako"
2009 "Have You Ever Had a Dream" U mojoj sobi
U mojoj sobi
U mojoj sobi is a second studio album by Serbian pop singer Aleksandra Kovač. It was released in 2009.The album contains 11 songs, out of which one is sung in spanish, and one in english language...


Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result
2006
MTV Europe Music Awards 2006
The MTV Europe Music Awards hit Copenhagen at the Bella Center/Rådhuspladsen in 2006. The venue was made to feel like a VIP club with exclusive, intimate performances...

MTV Europe Music Awards
MTV Europe Music Awards
The MTV Europe Music Awards were established in 1994 by MTV Networks Europe to celebrate the most popular music videos in Europe. Originally beginning as an alternative to the American MTV Video Music Awards, the MTV Europe Music Awards is today a popular celebration of what MTV viewers consider...

Best Adriatic Act
MTV Europe Music Award for Best Adria Act
The following is a list of the MTV Europe Music Award winners and nominees for Best Adriatic Act.-2000's:-2010's:...

2010 Serbian Oscar Of Popularity Best Female Pop Singer

External links

  • Official Website
  • Aleksandra Kovač at MySpace
    MySpace
    Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....

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