Vanna (singer)
Encyclopedia
Ivana Ranilović-Vrdoljak (born September 1, 1970 in Koprivnica
, Croatia
, Yugoslavia
) is a pop singer
from Croatia
. She is also known with her artist name Vanna.
in 1989. In that year she left her hometown to live and study in Zagreb and whilst studying, she performed in a band called BOA
.
In 1992 her professional career as a singer was launched. She joined a eurodance
band called Electro Team
and became an instant star. Not only was she a singer but also a co-author and song-writer of all the songs performed by Electro Team; she won many important Croatian music awards. The band's albums all officially became platinum
although is no accurate system in Croatia to monitor number of record sales. The song "Tek je 12 sati" became a hit, and was popular elsewhere across the former Yugoslavia republics
.
In 1997, Vanna left Electro Team to start a solo career and record her first album, I to sam ja. Vanna has since recorded three more solo albums and has won several other awards.
She came first at Zadarfest
(held in Zadar
) three years in succession (1999, 2000 and 2001). Her album 24 sata reached gold.
In 2000 she came second in Dora, the Croatian national final for the Eurovision Song Contest
with a song written by Bruno Kovačić
and Ivana Plechinger. Being runner-up, she decided to participate again in 2001 and now won with Tonči Huljić
's song Strune ljubavi. Shortly after Dora, she gave birth to daughter Jana. Vanna represented Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001
in Copenhagen
on May 12, 2001 and finished 10th. She sang the song in Croatian
and in English
, now entitled Strings of My Heart
.
After Eurovision, Vanna released a live album called Vanna u Lisinkom and won Zadarfest again with Više nisi moj. She won prizes in several other festivals and she is now about to release a new album.
Vanna is married to Andrija Vrdoljak (son of Antun Vrdoljak
who is a Croatian film director) has two children (a boy and a girl) and currently lives in Zagreb.
Koprivnica
Koprivnica is a city in northern Croatia. It is the capital of the Koprivnica-Križevci county. In 2011 the city administrative area had a total population of 30,872, with 23,896 in the city itself.-Population:...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
) is a pop singer
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
from Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. She is also known with her artist name Vanna.
Biography
As a child, Vanna won prizes in various national children and youth festivals. Her debut was at Zagrebfest, a contest held in ZagrebZagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
in 1989. In that year she left her hometown to live and study in Zagreb and whilst studying, she performed in a band called BOA
BOA (band)
BOA is a Croatian music group, which was especially prominent during the 1980s around the former SFR Yugoslavia.-History:The band's early history started in Zagreb, then SR Croatia in 1974, when its founding members Mladen Puljiz and Slavko Remenarić, switched their interest from classical music to...
.
In 1992 her professional career as a singer was launched. She joined a eurodance
Eurodance
Eurodance is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s or early 1990s primarily in Europe. It combines many elements from House, Techno, Hi-NRG and especially Italo-Disco...
band called Electro Team
Electro Team
Electro Team is a hip hop/eurodance band from Croatia, active since 1987 .ET's July 1993 single "Tek je 12 sati" was named by journalists and music critics as Croatia's hit of the decade. E.T...
and became an instant star. Not only was she a singer but also a co-author and song-writer of all the songs performed by Electro Team; she won many important Croatian music awards. The band's albums all officially became platinum
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is a dense, malleable, ductile, precious, gray-white transition metal...
although is no accurate system in Croatia to monitor number of record sales. The song "Tek je 12 sati" became a hit, and was popular elsewhere across the former Yugoslavia republics
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
.
In 1997, Vanna left Electro Team to start a solo career and record her first album, I to sam ja. Vanna has since recorded three more solo albums and has won several other awards.
She came first at Zadarfest
Zadarfest
Zadarfest is a music festival held annually in Zadar, Croatia. The festival was first held in 1993.The festival gives out several awards, its highest being the Grand Prix.- Festival winners :*1993 - Gibonni with "Život me umorio"...
(held in Zadar
Zadar
Zadar is a city in Croatia on the Adriatic Sea. It is the centre of Zadar county and the wider northern Dalmatian region. Population of the city is 75,082 citizens...
) three years in succession (1999, 2000 and 2001). Her album 24 sata reached gold.
In 2000 she came second in Dora, the Croatian national final for the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
with a song written by Bruno Kovačić
Bruno Kovacic
- Biography :His career began in the 80's when he formed the band called D-Day. Afterwards he worked with all the important musicians and singers in and around Croatia as a musician, composer or an arranger...
and Ivana Plechinger. Being runner-up, she decided to participate again in 2001 and now won with Tonči Huljić
Tonci Huljic
Tonči Huljić is a Croatian musician, songwriter and music producer from Split.Huljić made his name in the late 1970s as the founder and key member of pop band Dalmatinski magazin...
's song Strune ljubavi. Shortly after Dora, she gave birth to daughter Jana. Vanna represented Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001
Eurovision Song Contest 2001
The Eurovision Song Contest 2001 was the 46th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 12 May 2001 in the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was the first time in 36 years that Denmark hosted the Eurovision Song Contest, thanks to the Olsen Brothers' win the previous year in Stockholm...
in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
on May 12, 2001 and finished 10th. She sang the song in Croatian
Croatian language
Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
and in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, now entitled Strings of My Heart
Strings Of My Heart
"Strings Of My Heart" was the Croatian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001, performed in English by Vanna....
.
After Eurovision, Vanna released a live album called Vanna u Lisinkom and won Zadarfest again with Više nisi moj. She won prizes in several other festivals and she is now about to release a new album.
Vanna is married to Andrija Vrdoljak (son of Antun Vrdoljak
Antun Vrdoljak
Antun Vrdoljak is a Croatian screenwriter, film director and former actor and political appointee.-Life:Antun Vrdoljak was born in Imotski, Kingdom of Yugoslavia . He studied acting at the Academy of Drama Arts at the University of Zagreb. His acting debut was in 1957 film Nije bilo uzalud...
who is a Croatian film director) has two children (a boy and a girl) and currently lives in Zagreb.
Discography
- Electro Team (1992, with Electro Team)
- Second To None (1994, with Electro Team)
- Anno Domini 1996 (1996, with Electro Team)
- I to sam ja (1997)
- Ispod istog neba (1998)
- 24 sata (2000)
- U Lisinskom (2001)
- Hrabra kao prije (2003)
- Ledeno doba (2007)
- Sjaj (2010)