Željko Joksimović ( sr-Cyrl, Жељко Јоксимовић, ; born 20 April 1972) is a Serbian vocalist, composer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. He plays 12 different musical instruments including

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

and

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

. Joksimović is multi-lingual, being fluent in

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

, English, Russian, Polish and French as well as his native Serbian. A singer-songwriter, Joksimović has been successful composing for other artists throughout the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

. He has written five ballads that have represented their respective countries at the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

: " Lane moje", " Lejla", " Oro", " Nije ljubav stvar" and " Adio". He also composes music for films, television series, and theater shows. He represented

Serbia and Montenegro The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 with the song "Lane moje", placing second. He also represented

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

in the

Eurovision Song Contest 2012 The Eurovision Song Contest 2012 was the 57th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, following the country's victory at the with the song "Running Scared (Ell & Nikki song), Running Scared" by Ell & Nikki, El ...

with the song "Nije ljubav stvar", placing third. During 2013, 2014 and

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, he was a judge on '' X Factor Adria'', the Western Balkan edition of ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

''.

Career

Early beginnings

Željko Joksimović was born on 20 April 1972 in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

and grew up in the city of

Valjevo Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the city itself has a population of 56,145 while the city admini ...

. Joksimović's first international success came at the age of 12 when he won the title of ''First Accordion of Europe'' at the prestigious music festival in Paris. He graduated music at the

University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...

and launched his professional music career in 1997. In 1998 he won a contest at the Pjesma Mediterana festival with the song "Pesma Sirena", which led to opportunities to perform at more prestigious festivals in

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. The Serbian musician won the "Grand Prix" award at two festivals in that country.

1999–2003: ''Amajlija'', ''Rintam'' and ''111''

The young singer was promoted as a folk and pop artist. His first studio album, titled '' Amajlija'', included "Pesma Sirena" along with seven other tracks. His first big success was with the single "7 godina", written by himself and Leontina Vukomanović. The song went to No. 1 on the Serbian pop music charts and became very popular in other former Yugoslav countries. In 1999 he won his first big prize when becoming the Grand Prix winner of the International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Vitsyebsk (, ; , ; ) is a city in northern Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Vitebsk Region and Vitebsk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has 358,927 inhabitants, m ...

. In 2001, Joksimović released his second studio album '' Vreteno'' named after a song on the album. Other tracks on the album included "Rintam", "Balada", "Gadura" and the duet with Haris Džinović "Šta će meni više od toga". Three music videos were produced for songs on this album. ''111'' was released in 2002, soaring to No.1 on the pop charts of Serbia and other countries of the region. Some of the songs included were "Varnice", "Zaboravljaš" and "Karavan". In 2003, Joksimović wrote the song "Čija si" for Macedonian music singer Toše Proeski which led him to win Beovizija.

2004: Eurovision Song Contest 2004

, sending an entrant for the first time to 2004 Eurovision Song Contest, decided on their representative through Evropesma 2004, a music festival and contest in Serbia and Montenegro. Joksimović won the contest with " Lane Moje", composed by Željko himself, along with lyricist Leontina Vukomanović. In the semi-final, Joksimović placed first. However, in the final, he placed second behind Ukrainian singer Ruslana, but received the "Marcel Bezencon Press Award" (Best Composer Award). "Lane Moje" was the best-selling single in Serbia and Montenegro. The song has become popular amongst many Eurovision fans and it is often rated as one of the best non-winning songs.

2004–2007: After first Eurovision, ''IV'' and ''Platinum Collection''

After the success in the Contest, the same year, Joksimović founded ''MINACORD PRODUCTION''. Since then, he has worked and composed in his studio. In 2007 he composed and released the single "Ledja o Ledja" which gained a large popularity in the countries where Željko usually performs. In 2005, he once again composed a song for Serbia and Montenegro's national pre-selection for Eurovision called Beovizija. Željko composed the ballad "Jutro" (Morning) which was performed by Jelena Tomašević. In October 2005, he composed and performed a duet with Austrian singer Tamee Harrison. The song was titled ''I Live My Life For You"'' which was a success throughout Europe. Around this time, Željko wrote his first film score. In cooperation with ''Cobra Production'', he composed music for the movie ''Ivkova slava'' (Ivko's fame). The same year he released his fourth studio album ''" IV"'' or ''"Ima nešto u tom što me nećeš"''. In this album, he changed the music style that was typical of him. The songs in the album are Pop

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

s with some ethnic Serbian folk elements. In 2006, he composed the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 song ''Lejla'' for

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

, performed by Hari Mata Hari. The song finished in third place, making it Bosnia's best performance in the contest. He also won the prestigious Best Composer Award (COMPOSERAWARD 2006), assigned to Željko by all composers who participated in that festival. In 2007, he released his second greatest hits compilation called '' Platinum Collection'' which included two new singles "Devojka" and "Nije do mene". He also composed the music for the TV series "Ranjeni orao" and "Ono nase sto nekad bejase". The same year, in front of 18,000 people Joksimović made a concert where he sang all of his hits in the

Belgrade Arena The Belgrade Arena ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Београдска арена, Beogradska arena, separator=" / ") is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Belgrade, Serbia. It is designed as a universal hall for sports, cultural events and other programs. ...

released in the DVD titled "Koncert Beogradska Arena".

2008–2011: Eurovision hosting and ''Ljubavi''

ESC 2008 - Presenters at the 1st semifinal

In early 2008, Željko Joksimović composed a song that was performed by Jelena Tomašević in the Serbian national final for the Eurovision song selection,

Beovizija 2008 Serbia was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with the song "", written by Željko Joksimović and Dejan Ivanović, and performed by Jelena Tomašević featuring Bora Dugić. The Serbian participating broadcaster, (RTS), organised ...

, called " Oro". The song is a folk ballad with traditional folk Serbian elements. Because the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 has been won by Serbia, the contest that year came in the country. On 24 March 2008 it was announced by the 2008 Eurovision organizers RTS that together with Jovana Janković he would host the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade, giving him two roles in the contest. Tomašević's song finished in the 6th place in over 25 countries in the final. The song came six with 160 points, with OGAE Greece ranking it their favorite of the year. After a year of a music pause, he released his fifth studio album named '' Ljubavi'' (2009) by the production of Minacord and City Records. " Ljubavi" is the name of the pilot single of the album too. The single has a large success in Serbia and the neighboring countries. In early 2010 he released the second single from the album called "Žena Za Sva Vremena". On 12 June 2010, he performed his biggest concert yet. It was held on the Asim Ferhatović Hase Stadium in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

, which can seat 37,500, though attendance for concerts can be expanded to reach about 80,000, in front of over 40,000 persons. Zeljko Joksimovic in Varazdin

2012: Eurovision return

Joksimović represented Serbia in the

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

, Azerbaijan. The song was called "Nije ljubav stvar" composed and performed by Joksimović. The lyrics are by Marina Tucaković and Miloš Roganović. The English version of the song called "Synonym" by Ljilja Jorgovanović. Željko Joksimović and Alek Alekov did the arrangements of both versions. James Cruz, an award-winning audio-mastering engineer in his New York studio, did the postproduction and mastering. The song was a great success, finishing in third place. He married Jovana Janković in January 2012.

2015: Eurovision Song Contest 2015

Željko Joksimović was invited by

RTCG Radio and Television of Montenegro ( cnr-Cyrl-Latn, Радио и Телевизија Црне Горе, Radio i Televizija Crne Gore; abbr. /) is the public service broadcaster of Montenegro. A state-owned company with its headquarters in Podgor ...

to compose song for Knez who represented Montenegro in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. Joksimović composed the song ''Adio'' and the song has three versions, in Serbian, French, and

English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...

. Serbian lyrics are written by Marina Tucaković and Dejan Ivanović, while English version is signed by Swedish songwriters Nicole Rodriguez, Tami Rodriguez, and Serbian Milica Fajgelj and Dunja Vujadinović.

Recent concerts

In November 2018, Željko Joksimović had a concert in Arena Zenica – after eight-year break. He gave another concert entitled "Dva sveta" (Two worlds) in Sava Centar a month later. On 9 August, Joksimović closed Zenica summer fest 2019 by free public two-hour performance on

Zenica Zenica ( ; ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna (river), Bosna river valley, about north of Sarajevo. The ...

city square.

Discography

Studio albums

* 1999 '' Amajlija'' ity Records* 2001 '' Rintam'' ity Records* 2002 '' 111'' ity Records* 2005 '' Ima nešto u tom što me nećeš'' ity Records* 2009 '' Ljubavi'' inacord* 2015 '' Zvezda'' inacord

Live albums

* 200

'' Koncert Beogradska Arena, Beogradska Arena Live'' inacord Records* 201

''Dva Sveta - Koncert Sava Centar'' (Live) inacord Records

Compilations

* 2003 '' The Best Of Željko Joksimović'' * 2007 '' Platinum Collection'' * 2010 ''Ultimate Collection''

Singles

* 2004 ''Leđa o leđa'' ity Records* 2004 ''Lane moje'' CD+DVD GP RTS* 2004 ''Lane moje/Goodbye'' (maxi-single) arner Music Group* 2005 ''I live my life for you'' (with Tamee Harrison) arner Music* 2007 ''Devojka'' inacord* 2007 ''Nije do mene'' inacord* 2008 ''Ono naše što nekad bejaše'' inacord* 2010 ''Dođi sutra'' inacord* 2012 '' Nije ljubav stvar'' inacord* 2013 ''Ludak kao ja'' inacord* 2015 ''Ranjena zver'' inacord* 2017 ''Milimetar'' inacord* 2018 ''Ponelo me'' inacord* 2018 ''Menjaj pesmu'' inacord* 2019 ''Možda je to ljubav'' inacord* 2024 ''1000 žena'' inacord* 2024 ''Ella'' inacord* 2024 ''Ella Greek Version'' inacord

Duets

* 2001 Haris Džinović – ''Šta će meni više od toga'' * 2004

Dino Merlin Edin Dervišhalidović (born 12 September 1962), known professionally as Dino Merlin, is a Bosnian singer-songwriter and record producer. Born in Sarajevo, he founded and led the band Merlin (Yugoslav band), Merlin, one of the best-selling Rock b ...

�
''Supermen''
* 2005 Tamee Harrison �
''I Live My Life For You''
* 2012 Samuel Cuenda
Su amor me venció
* 2009 Miligram - ''Libero'' * 2014 Daniel Kajmakoski – ''Skoplje - Beograd'' * 2014 Toni Cetinski – ''Zabluda'' * 2018 Emina Jahović – ''Dva aviona'' * 2024 Ceca Ražnatović – ''Više Od Sreće''

Soundtracks

* 2005 "Ivkova slava", (Željko Joksimović, Jelena Tomašević & Nikola Kojo) inacord – City Records* 200
"Ranjeni Orao"
inacord – City Records

Other works

* 2003 Toše Proeski – Song: ''Cija Si'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: '' Den Za Nas/ Dan Za Nas'' * 2005 Nava Medina – Song: ''Malah Shomer'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović * 2005 Jelena Tomasevic – Song: ''Jutro'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: ''Oro'' GP -RTS* 2006 Hari Mata Hari – Song: ''Lejla'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: ''Lejla'' iH* 2009

Halid Bešlić Halid Bešlić (; born 20 November 1953) is a Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian folk music, folk singer and musician who has been performing professionally since 1979. Bešlić's singing career was one of the most successful in SFR Yugoslavia, Yugo ...

– Song: "Miljacka" – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: ''Halid 08 Bešlić'' * 2008 Jelena Tomasevic – Song: ''Oro'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: ''Oro'' GP -RTS* 2008 Eleftheria Arvanitaki – Song: ''To Telos mas Des'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: ''Mirame''

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum ...

* 2008 Melina Aslanidou – Song: ''Poso'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović, Album: ''Best of – Sto dromo''

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

*2008 Song:

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla (;"Tesla"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; 10 July 1856 – 7 ...

(Instrumental)"Nikola Tesla" – Zeljko Joksimovic
YouTube (25 June 2008). Retrieved on 2012-08-29. – Composer: Željko Joksimović feat. Jelena Tomašević Album
balkan Routes vol.1:Nikola Tesla
Protasis] * 2011 Lepa Brena – Song: ''Biber'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović * 2011 Lepa Brena – Song: ''Ne bih bila ja'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović * 2013 Saša Kapor – Song: ''Hotel Jugoslavija'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović * 2014 Knez – Song: ''Adio'' – Composer: Željko Joksimović

Eurovision Song Contest entries

Entries in Beovizija

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

- "Čija si" (Чија си) by Toše Proeski - 1st *

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

- "Zamisli" (Замисли) by Leontina Vukomanović - 3rd *

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

- "Jutro" (Јутро) by Jelena Tomašević - 1st *

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

- " Oro" (Оро) by Jelena Tomašević - 1st

Entries in Evropesma / Europjesma

- "Lane moje" (Лане моје) by Željko Joksimović - 1st *

- "Zamisli" (Замисли) by Leontina Vukomanović - 12th *

- "Jutro" (Јутро) by Jelena Tomašević - 2nd

References

External links

Željko Joksimović's Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joksimovic, Zeljko 1972 births Living people Serbian composers English-language singers from Serbia Musicians from Valjevo Singers from Belgrade 21st-century Serbian male singers Serbian folk-pop singers Serbian pop singers Serbian singer-songwriters Serbian male singer-songwriters Hayat Production artists Serbian multi-instrumentalists 21st-century multi-instrumentalists Balkan Music Awards winners Slavianski Bazaar winners 20th-century Serbian male singers French-language singers of Serbia Eurovision Song Contest entrants