Aleksandar Vuksanović ( sr-cyrl, Александар Вуксановић; born 3 November 1968), better known by his stage name Aca Lukas ( sr-cyr, Аца Лукас), is a
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...
n
pop-folk
Turbo-folk (sometimes referred as pop-folk or popular folk) is subgenre of contemporary pop music with its origins in Serbia, that initially developed during the 1980s and 1990s, with similar music styles in Bulgaria ( chalga), Romania ( mane ...
singer and musician.
Career
Vukasnović began his career in the early nineties by preforming alongside Serbian rock musician
Viktorija and her band.
His stage name comes from the Belgrade nightclub "Lukas", where he would sing during his beginnings. In 1994, Lukas released his debut album ''Ponos i laž'' (''Pride and Lie'') under ITV Melomarket. It was followed by ''Pesma od bola'' (''Song Out Of Pain'', 1996) and ''Lična karta'' (''ID'', 1998), on which he started working with prominent songwriters
Marina Tucaković
Marina Tucaković ( sr-Cyrl, Марина Туцаковић; 4 November 1953 – 19 September 2021) was a Serbian lyricist and songwriter. Born and raised in Belgrade, Serbia, Tucaković had a degree from the Economic Faculty at the University ...
and Aleksandar Radulović Futa. The albums' title songs became two of his arguably best known songs. His
signature hit, "Lična karta", coveres "Trauma" by Greek singer
Anna Vissi
Anna Vissi ( el, Άννα Βίσση, , ; born 20 December 1957), is a Greek Cypriot singer and songwriter. She studied music at conservatories and performed locally before moving to the professional scene in Athens, in 1973, where she signed ...
. In November 1999, Lukas held his first solo concert in
Pionir Hall, Belgrade to 10,000 fans.
During the early 2000s, Vuksanović was signed to
Grand Production
Grand Production ( sr, Гранд продукција) is a Serbian record label and production company predominantly focused on folk performers. The label produces the weekly television show ''Grand Parada'', launched their own cable television ...
, under which he released the subsequent album ''Rođendan'' (''Birthday'', 2000). Same year, Lukas also performed at the
Belgrade Fair to reported 20,000 people.
His fifth album, titled ''Nešto protiv bolova'' (''Something For the Pain'') was released in 2002 through Music Star Production. It was succeeded by ''Istina je da lažem'' (''The Truth Is That I Am Lying'') in 2003 under
BK Sound
BK is the common abbreviation for the Burger King chain of fast food restaurants.
BK or Bk may also refer to:
Businesses and organizations
* The Bank of New York Mellon, the New York Stock Exchange symbol for The Bank of New York Mellon Corporat ...
. During the next two years, Lukas would make a hiatus to focus on his
substance addiction problem.
He returned in 2006 with ''Jagnje moje'' (''My Lamb''), released under Grand Production. Lukas won the second Grand Festival with "Upali svetlo" in 2008, which was included on his eighth album ''Lešće''.
In November 2010, he performed in the
Belgrade Arena
Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 million ...
for the first time. In 2012, Lukas released ''Stil života'' (''Lifestyle'') through
City Records
City Records (full legal name in Serbian: Предузеће за издавачко-пропагандну делатност City Records д.о.о. Београд/''Preduzeće za izdavačko-propagandnu delatnost City Records d.o.o. Beograd'') ...
. During the following years, he collaborated with
Ivana Selakov
Ivana Selakov ( sr-cyr, Ивана Селаков, ; born 8 November 1978) is a Serbian singer. She was a member of the girlband Beauty Queens, which was formed by gathering backing vocalists of Marija Šerifović after victory in the Eurovisio ...
on the singles "Daleko si" (2012), "Omaklo mi se" and "Ljubav u doba kokaina" (2015). In June 2013, Lukas held his biggest solo concert to date at the
Marakana Stadium
The Rajko Mitić Stadium ( sr, / , ), previously known as Red Star Stadium ( sr, / ), also known as Marakana ( sr-Cyrl, Маракана), is a multi-use stadium in Belgrade, Serbia which has been the home ground of Red Star Belgrade since ...
in Belgrade in front of 50,000 people. Between 2013 and 2018, he was a judge on the televised
singing competition ''
Zvezde Granda
''Zvezde Granda'' ( sr-Cyrl, Звезде Гранда; "''Grand Stars''") is a Serbian singing competition show, created by Saša Popović. The show has been airing since 2004 on several networks in the western Balkans, and is considered to b ...
''. In June 2014, he released a duet with
Ceca, called "Ne zanosim se ja". In 2016, Vuksanović made a cameo appearance in the
comedy film
A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...
''
The Samurai in Autumn''. A year later in April, Lukas collaborated with
Mile Kitić
Milojko "Mile" Kitić ( sr-Cyrl, Милојко "Миле" Китић; born 1 January 1952) is a Bosnian-born Serbian folk singer. He rose to prominence as a member of the popular eighties folk collective Južni Vetar with fellow folk singers ...
and
Saša Matić
Aleksandar Matić ( sr-cyr, Александар Матић; born 26 April 1978), better known as Saša Matić is a Bosnian Serb pop-folk singer.
Life and career Early life
Matić was born on 26 April 1978 in Bihać, SFR Yugoslavia. He has a twi ...
on "Da me je ona volela".
In March 2021, Vuksanović released his tenth studio album ''Uspavanka za ozbiljne bebe'' (''Lullaby for Serious Babies'') under City Records, which among other songs included duets "Kidaš me" and "Problem" with
Milica Pavlović
Milica Pavlović ( sr-Cyrl, Милица Павловић, ; born 11 August 1991) is a Swiss-born Serbian singer. She gained fame in 2011/12 as a contestant on the singing competition show '' Zvezde Granda''. Pavlović has released four studio a ...
and
Maya Berović
Maja "Maya" Berović (; born 8 July 1987) is a Bosnian- Serbian singer. Born in Ilijaš, she debuted in 2007 with the album '' Život uživo'', featuring her first hit "Džin i limunada".
It was followed by '' Crno zlato'' (2008) and ''Maya'' ( ...
, respectively. In June the same, Lukas promoted his autobiography, titled "To sam ja" (''That Is Me''), at the
Terazije Theater. The book, which was written in collaboration with journalist
Vanja Bulić
Vanja Bulić (Serbian Cyrillic: Вања Булић; born 17 July 1947) is a Serbian journalist and author.
He has lived in Belgrade since 1952. He was the screenwriter of the acclaimed movie Pretty Village Pretty Flame. He rose to fame with h ...
, saw poor reception from the critical public. In March 2022, Lukas competed at the ''
Pesma za Evroviziju '22
22'' was the first edition of , Serbia's national final organised by Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) to select the Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, Serbian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022. The selection consisted of tw ...
'' music festival with song the "Oksar" to represent Serbia at the
Eurovision Song Contest 2022
The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country's victory at the with the song "" by Måneskin. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and h ...
. In the finale, held on March 5th, he placed fifth out of 18 final entries.
Persona life
Vuksanović was born on November 3, 1968 in
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
, and grew up in the downtown neighborhood of
Karaburma
Karaburma ( sr-cyr, Карабурма) is an urban neighborhood of the municipality of Palilula, Belgrade, Serbia. As of 2002, it has a population of 55,343 inhabitants.
Name
The name, Karaburma, is Turkish for ''black ring'' which is suppo ...
.
He graduated from a high school of music.
He has four children from three different marriages. With his first wife, Svetlana, Lukas has a son and a daughter, named Lazar and Miljana. Lukas was later married to a woman named Nataša, with whom he welcomed his second son, Andrej. In April 2010, Vukasnović married Sonja Višnjić. The following year, they became parents to daughter Viktorija. On September 2, 2017, Lukas was reported for a physical assault by his wife. A day later, after pealding guilty, he was sentenced to 9 months of
suspended sentence and 18 months of restriction order against his wife for
domestic assault
Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...
. Their divorce was finalized in September 2019.
Over the years, there have been reports of his substance abuse and gambling addiction problems. In 2002, Lukas admitted himself to a
rehabilitation
Rehabilitation or Rehab may refer to:
Health
* Rehabilitation (neuropsychology), therapy to regain or improve neurocognitive function that has been lost or diminished
* Rehabilitation (wildlife), treatment of injured wildlife so they can be retur ...
facility in
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
.
In February 2009, he was shot in the right leg in front of his apartment building in
New Belgrade
New Belgrade ( sr, / , ) is a municipality of the city of Belgrade. It is a planned city, built since 1948 in a previously uninhabited area on the left bank of the Sava river, opposite old Belgrade. In recent years, it has become the central bu ...
.
Legal issues
Following the
assassination of Zoran Đinđić
Zoran Đinđić, the sixth Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia, was assassinated on Wednesday 12 March 2003, in Belgrade, Serbia. Đinđić was fatally shot by a sniper while exiting his vehicle outside of the back entrance of the Serbia ...
in 2003, Vuksanović was arrested for illegal gun possession during the police action
Sablja and sentenced to four months of prison.
Human rights organization 'Da Se Zna!' filed a complaint against Vuksanović in August 2020 for
hate speech
Hate speech is defined by the ''Cambridge Dictionary'' as "public speech that expresses hate or encourages violence towards a person or group based on something such as race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation". Hate speech is "usually thoug ...
against
LGBT community
The LGBT community (also known as the LGBTQ+ community, GLBT community, gay community, or queer community) is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay men, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and other queer individuals united by a comm ...
during his television appearance on
Happy TV
Nacionalna Televizija Happy (often shortened to Happy) is a privately owned TV channel in Serbia. Happy has gained a strong reputation for its entertainment programming. The station offers a compilation of international and domestic movies, Ameri ...
in January 2018.
In November 2020, Vukasnović made
misogynistic
Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced f ...
remarks against
N1 journalist Žaklina Tatalović while appearing on a live talk show broadcast by
TV Pink
Pink is a privately owned, national radio station and TV channel in Serbia. Pink is the leading commercial station in the Serbian television broadcast market. Pink's parent company is the Belgrade-based Pink International Company
Pink Internat ...
. Subsequently after receiving public denunciation, he made an apology, which was perceived as insincere by the public. In September 2022, it was reported that Vuksanović was criminally convicted for insults against Tatalović and ordered to pay her 250.000
RSD as well as to cover her court expenses.
After the final of the Serbian selection competition for the
Eurovision Song Contest 2022
The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country's victory at the with the song "" by Måneskin. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and h ...
, ''
Pesma za Evroviziju '22
22'' was the first edition of , Serbia's national final organised by Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) to select the Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, Serbian entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022. The selection consisted of tw ...
'', where Lukas had placed 5th in the final with the song "", he accused Serbian public broadcaster
RTS
RTS may refer to:
Medicine
* Rape trauma syndrome, the psychological trauma experienced by a rape victim
* Revised Trauma Score, a system to evaluate injuries secondary to violent trauma
* Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome, a condition characterized by ...
of irregularities in the voting of the selection, stating he would file a criminal complaint against the head of the Radio Television of Serbia, its editor of entertainment program Olivera Kovačević and general director Dragan Bujošević for "stealing votes".
RTS responded, stating that the SMS votes were counted automatically by software which did not allow interference. The Comtrade System Integration company, which set up the software to count the votes, said it was prepared to hand the votes to the authorities if requested to do so, adding that the same data is available from mobile phone operators.
After the controversy, in April 2022, it was reported that RTS filled a lawsuit against Lukas for false reporting.
Discography
;Studio albums
* ''Ponos i laž'' (1994)
* ''Pesme od bola'' (1996)
* ''Lična karta'' (1998)
* ''Rođendan'' (2000)
* ''Nešto protiv bolova'' (2001)
* ''Istina je da te lažem'' (2003)
* ''Jagnje moje'' (2006)
* ''Lešće'' (2008)
* ''Stil života'' (2012)
* ''Uspavanka za ozbiljne bebe'' (2021)
;Cover albums
* ''Jedno veče u kafani'' (1998)
* ''Drugo veče u kafani'' (1999)
* ''Još sam tu (za drugove)'' (1999)
* ''Zora beli...'' (1999)
* ''Aca Lukas & O.K. Band'' (2000)
;Live albums
* ''Najveća žurka na Balkanu'' (1999)
* ''Žurka'' (2002)
;Compilations
* ''The Best of Aca Lukas'' (2000)
* ''Aca Lukas - Hitovi'' (2008)
* ''Aca Lukas - Stil Zivota'' (2012)
Awards and nominations
See also
*
Music of Serbia
Music of Serbia represents the musical heritage of Serbia, both historical and modern. It has a variety of traditional music styles, which are part of the wider Balkan musical tradition, with its own distinctive sound and characteristics.
Music ...
*
List of singers from Serbia
*
Turbo-folk
Turbo-folk (sometimes referred as pop-folk or popular folk) is subgenre of contemporary pop music with its origins in Serbia, that initially developed during the 1980s and 1990s, with similar music styles in Bulgaria (chalga), Romania (manele ...
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lukas, Aca
1968 births
Living people
Singers from Belgrade
20th-century Serbian male singers
Serbian turbo-folk singers
Serbian folk-pop singers
Serbian folk singers
City Records artists
Grand Production artists
21st-century Serbian male singers