Baby Doll (singer)

Dragana Todorović ( , / ; born 2 October 1962), better known under the stage name Bebi Dol (), is a Serbian singer and songwriter. Born in Belgrade, she made her debut in 1981 with the single "Mustafa". Bebi Dol rose to further prominence by representing SFR Yugoslavia at the 1991 Eurovision Song Contest with "Brazil". She has released four studio albums to date: ''Ruže i krv'' (1983), ''Ritam srca'' (1995), ''Ljuta sam...'' (2002) and ''Čovek rado izvan sebe živi'' (2006).

Early life

Dragana Šarić was born on 2 October 1964 in Belgrade, FPR Yugoslavia, to mother Magdalena, who worked for Television Belgrade and father Milisav, a military jazz musician. Three months after she had been born, the family relocated to Copenhagen, Denmark, and later continued moving across Europe because of her father's job, who performed in American military bases. When Šarić turned seven, they eventually moved back to Belgrade so she can attend school there. She was a student at the Mokranjac Music School.

After graduating from the 14th Grammar School in Belgrade, Šarić started studying anthropology at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy.

Career

1980s and 1990s

In the late 1970s, Šarić made her first professional attempt as a singer alongside fellow-music school students as members of a band called Tarkus. Together they won a competition organized by Radio Belgrade and received an offer to make studio recordings. Šarić also served as a guest vocalist on the 1980 album ''Vrt svetlosti'' by Igra Staklenih Perli.

The following year, she formed short-lived band Annoda Rouge with her boyfriend Goran Vejvoda and guitarist Ivan Vdović. In 1981, Šarić also made her solo debut with "Mustafa", released under PGP RTB. The 7-inch single, which had been recorded two years prior in collaboration with Saša Habić, included the Oriental music-inspired title track and "Na planeti uzdaha". She released it under the stage name Bebi Dol, which was given to her by the members of the band Idoli. By the end of the year, Yugoslav music magazine ''Džuboks'' declared "Mustafa" the record of the year.

In March 1983, Bebi Dol and Lepa Brena were chosen by Radio Television Belgrade to compete at the Jugovizija music festival in Novi Sad in order to represent Yugoslavia at the Eurovision Song Contest 1983 in Munich, West Germany. Her entry "Rudi", which referred to Rudolph Valentino, eventually placed sixth. The song was later that year released as a 12-inch single along with the cover of "Baby Love" by The Supremes. Her first solo concert was announced for June 13, 1983 at Atelje 212 theater. Subsequently, Bebi Dol joined Zdravko Čolić on his national tour and then moved to Egypt, where she spent several years performing at the Sheraton Hotel in Cairo. During her time in Egypt, Bebi's debut album ''Ruže i krv'' was eventually released in late 1983 through PGP-RTB to critical acclaim.

After relocating back to Yugoslavia, Šarić provided singing voiceover for the character of Sonja Savić in the 1985 movie ''Život je lep''. In the following years, she had award-winning performances at the International Music Fair (MESAM) with "Inšalah", "Slatke suze ljubavi" and "Kad sreća odlazi" in 1986, 1988 and 1989, respectively. She also portrayed Ophelia in ''Hamlet'', played during 1987 at Titograd National Theatre. In 1989, Bebi Dol also performed at the Gold Malaysian Festival in Kuala Lumpur and collaborated with Neil Rolnick.

She made her return to Jugovizija in Sarajevo, March 1991. There, she ended up winning the contest with "Brazil", which was written by herself and Zoran Vračević. On 4 May, Bebi Dol represented Yugoslavia at the Eurovision Song Contest 1991 held in Rome, Italy, where she received only one point from Malta and thus placed second to last. She was also the last official Eurovision entry from Yugoslavia, as the country ''de facto'' ceased to exist later that year. Šarić stated that after Eurovision she lived in Paris where she signed a two year recording contract, but ultimately decided to move back to Serbia due to political instability in her country. In 1995, Bebi Dol released her second studio album ''Ritam srca'', which included popular songs like the previously released "Brazil" and "Hajde da...". Bebi Dol performed "Ruža", alongside other musicians from around the world, at the 1999 "Tomorrow's Children" charity concert organized by UNICEF in Helsinki, Finland.

2000s-present: Later career in music and television

In 2002, Bebi Dol released her comeback album ''Ljuta sam...'' under PGP-RTS, dedicated to all the people she lost in her life. A year later in April, she entered the Beovizija 2003 festival with "Tvrdoglava", placing 10th. Same year, she began hosting her own talk show ''Bla Bla Bebi'' on TV Art. In late 2006, Bebi released a cover album in English, entitled ''Čovek rado izvan sebe živi'', through Mascom Records. The following year she released a live album from her concert held at the Terazije Theatre in February 2007. It featured covers from Lenny Kravitz, Simon & Garfunkel, Pink Floyd, Louis Armstrong and Michael Jackson as well as the songs from her previous release. In 2008, Bebi Dol released a compilation album, titled ''...Pokloni se...'', and performed in the Belgrade's Sava Centar in November.

Since 2009, Šarić has competed in several reality television shows, including '' Farma'', ''Dvor'' and ''Zadruga''. During 2017, Bebi Dol was also a contestant on the fourth Serbian season of ''Your Face Sounds Familiar'', winning the first episode as Emeli Sandé. In 2020, Šarić made a cameo appearance in the series ''Tajkun'', directed by Dragan Bjelogrlić, as a folk singer named Martina, performing "Rano je za tugu" by Haris Džinović.

Personal life

During the 1980s, Šarić dated Croatian singer Massimo Savić, with whom she recorded duet "Sunce sja, trava miriše".

On 27 September 2014, she married Los Angeles-born Serbian professor of Russian language and literature, Aleks Todorović, after four years of dating. It was also reported that she has changed her name to Danica Todorović.

Discography

;Studio albums
* ''Ruže i krv'' (1983)
* ''Ritam srca'' (1995)
* ''Ljuta sam...'' (2002)
* ''Čovek rado izvan sebe živi'' (2006)

;Live albums
* ''Veče u pozorištu'' (2007)

;Compilations
* ''...Pokloni se...'' (2008)

;Singles
* "Mustafa" / "Na planeti uzdaha" (1981)
* "Rudi" (12-inch single; 1983)
* "Inšalah" / "Ruža na dlanu" (split single with Zana Nimani; 1986)
* "Prove To All" / "How Good Not To Love" (1986)
* "Brazil" (1991)

Filmography

See also

*Popular music in Yugoslavia
*Music of Serbia
* List of musicians from Serbia

References

Sources

* Janjatović, Petar (2007). '' EX YU ROCK enciklopedija 1960–2006''. Belgrade: self-released. .

External links

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{{Authority control

1962 births
Living people
Singers from Belgrade
Serbian rock singers
Serbian pop singers
Serbian singer-songwriters
20th-century Serbian women singers
Yugoslav rock singers
Yugoslav women singers
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Yugoslavia
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1991
21st-century Serbian women singers