Edin Osmić (born 22 December 1978), better known by his stage name Edo Maajka, is a Bosnian

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...

, record producer and songwriter. His popularity brought his group Disciplinska Komisija to the mainstream. He lives in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

, with his wife and children.

Biography

Early life

Edin Osmić was born to

Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

parents Azemina and Fehim, and raised in

Brčko Brčko ) is a city and the administrative seat of Brčko District, in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lies on the banks of Sava river across from Croatia. As of 2013, it has a population of 39,893 inhabitants. De jure, the Brčko District b ...

(at the time

SR Bosnia and Herzegovina The Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Bosna i Hercegovina, Социјалистичка Pепублика Босна и Херцеговина), commonly referred to as Socia ...

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

) where he finished elementary school. In 1992, when the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

started, he left

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 ...

and went to

, the capital of

, where he began attending high

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

school.Documentary film "Edo Maajka - Sevdah o rodama"; screenwriter and director: Silvio Mirošničenko, Croatia, 2007 After the war, he returned to

Bosnia 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 ...

to study criminal law in

Tuzla Tuzla (, , ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, third-largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the administrative center of Tuzla Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 110,979 inha ...

, but never graduated. He took an interest in hip-hop when he was in high school and began to do rap battling at the age of fifteen. He also recorded a few demo tracks, creating his own instrumentals by

beatboxing Beatboxing (also, and sometimes, called beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum machines (usually a Roland TR-808, TR-808), using one's mouth, lips, tongue, and voice.Tuzla Tuzla (, , ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, third-largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the administrative center of Tuzla Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 110,979 inha ...

and became a member of the hardcore rap group Diskord, later named Odbrana (Defence in Bosnian). The group became one of the best in the city of Tuzla and all of Bosnia. Their demo single "Odbrana '99" (Defence '99) was the hit of the year on the "Radio Hit" station in

. After a year of studying, he left school due to financial problems and returned to Zagreb to meet a friend (from the group

Elemental An elemental is a mythic supernatural being that is described in occult and alchemy, alchemical works from around the time of the European Renaissance, and particularly elaborated in the 16th century works of Paracelsus. According to Paracelsu ...

) and recorded his first single "Minimalni rizik" (Minimum Risk) and, a month later, "Mahir i Alma". The songs were top hits on the Zagreb "Radio 101" station's show "Blackout" and the response was enthusiastic. The demo, "Mahir i Alma", became Kameleon's hit of 2001.

Career

Debut album (2001-04)

Osmić announced his debut album with the single Znaš me. He released his debut album,

Slušaj mater Slušaj mater (English language, English: "Listen to your mother") was Edo Maajka's debut album, released in 2002. It achieved significant popularity, especially in Bosnia, and was the first rap album to win the Davorin (award), Davorin music aw ...

, in the spring of 2002 under the Menart and Fmjam label. He released two more singles, Jesmo'l sami (Are we alone) at the end of 2002 and Prikaze (Spectres) at the beginning in 2003, which officially closed the album. He was featured by other artists, such as in "Teško je ful biti kul" by Hladno Pivo, "Rat" by Pioniri among others.

Second album (2004-06)

In April 2004, he released his second album No Sikiriki. On day one, the album sold 5,000 copies. He toured until the end of the year to promote his second album. In 2005, Osmić toured the US and Canada, visiting cities including Toronto, St. Louis, New York, Atlanta and Detroit, first time a Bosnian hip hop star has toured North America.

Third album (2006-08)

Recording of songs for the third studio album Stig'o Ćumur (Coal's Arrived) started in August 2005, and the album was released in March 2006. The first single was " To mora da je ljubav" (It Must Be Love) featuring Remi from

), for which he shot the music video 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 ...

. He started the promotion of his third album at the end of March, the day his album was released. In January 2007, Osmić 's single "Bomba" was featured in an episode of the TV series

Sleeper Cell A clandestine cell system is a method for organizing a group of people, such as resistance fighters, spies, mercenaries, organized crime members, or terrorists, to make it harder for police, military or other hostile groups to catch them. In ...

. In the summer of 2007, Maajka and his band decided to part, but remained good friends.

Fourth album (2008-12)

His fourth album was released on 25 March 2008. The album's name was changed from ''Sjeti Se'' to ''Idemo Dalje''. In December 2008 the album received the name

Balkansko a naše ''Balkansko a naše'' (roughly translated as ''From the Balkans, But Ours'') is the fourth solo, studio album by Bosnian rapper Edo Maajka, released on 25 March 2008. The whole album was produced by Koolade,TRNOKOP and the band premiered at the Rokajfest. At the end of 2008, "Balkansko a Nase" came at number 36 of the year's top albums. In June 2010, he released his best off album Spomen ploča 2002-2009, but he redid the album with his newly formed band, where they would use band instruments as the music and softer vocals. Osmić was also featured as a judge and performer in the first Red Bull MC Battle that was held in Sarajevo, Bosnia on 23 April 2010. The next year, he was the host for the Bosnian Red Bull MC Battle 2011.

Fifth album (2012-18)

Osmić's fifth studio album, ''

Štrajk mozga ''Štrajk mozga'' (Mind on strike) is the fifth studio album by Bosnian hip-hop star Edo Maajka, released on April 21, 2012. Edo explained in an interview that the title refers to the escape from "norms, media, parents, religion and everything else ...

'', was released in April 2012. The first single was ''Imaš li ti šta para'', followed by the first music video and second single ''Panika'', released on 26 December 2011. The third single was ''Džigera beat'', followed by the fourth single and second music video "Facebook", released on 19 November 2012. The director Filip Filkovic Philatz, who directed both music videos, described the video being a sequel to "Panika" because it is set in the same universe, and is second part of the music video trilogy from the "Štrajk Mozga" album.

Artistry

Influences and rapping technique

Osmić has named several artists that have influenced him, including

Rambo Amadeus Antonije Pušić (; born 14 June 1963), known professionally as Rambo Amadeus (), is an author and performer. A self-titled "musician, poet, and media manipulator", he is a noted artist across the countries of former Yugoslavia. His songs com ...

, TBF,

Safet Isović Safet Isović (8 January 1936 – 2 September 2007) was a Bosnian singer who performed the Bosnian traditional music sevdalinka. Early life and family Isović was born into a Bosniak family in Bileća, located in the Herzegovina region of mode ...

Miladin Šobić Miladin Šobić (, born 7 January 1956) is a Montenegrin poet, singer and songwriter. He was an active performer during the late 1970s and early 1980s in SFR Yugoslavia where his prominence had a regional character with popularity across Yugosl ...

, Azra,

Zabranjeno Pušenje Zabranjeno Pušenje () is a Bosnian Rock music, rock band formed in Sarajevo in 1980. The group's musical style primarily consists of a distinctive garage rock sound with Bosnian folk music, folk influences, often featuring innovative production a ...

Disciplina Kičme Disciplin A Kitschme, originally known as Disciplina Kičme ( sr-Cyrl, Дисциплина Кичме, transl. ''Backbone Discipline''), was a Serbian and SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslav and, for a period of time, Great Britain, British Rock music, r ...

Atomsko Sklonište Atomsko Sklonište (transl. ''Fallout shelter, Atomic Shelter'') is a Croatian and SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslav hard rock band, formed in Pula in 1977. Known for their early anti-war concept, as well as their later hit songs, Atomsko Sklonište were o ...

, Majke, Rupa u Zidu among others. His rapping technique is described as having a perfect flow, also his varied subject matter, connecting with his audience, carrying a concept over a series of albums and got most praised for his ability to write brilliant lyrics. His lyrics have also been described as a variation in connecting emotionally to the viewer. As

Anur Hadžiomerspahić Anur Hadžiomerspahić (2 June 1971 – 29 November 2017), also known as Anur, was an artist and graphic designer from Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was notable for being the first Bosnian artist to show their work in the central pavilion at the Ven ...

says "once you start listening to a Edo Maajka song, when you first start listening it hits you, gives you goosebumps and grabs you by the throat, then the very next verse makes you laugh".

Alter ego

Osmić has an alter ego or pseudonym that he names MC Berbo. He is described as a man who loves drugs, alcohol, fast and expensive cars, women and pop music. Osmić stated that the character of Berbo is the complete opposite of himself and that it is more of a joke than taken seriously.

Themes and lyrical content

Osmić started his career with storytelling songs with the demo songs of "Minimalni rizik" (small risk) and the storytelling/love songs "Mahir i Alma". He is known for his brilliant storytelling ability.

Personal life

Business ventures

In September 2006, Osmić opened up a cafe bar called "No sikiriki", named after his second album. Along with beverages, the cafe also serves his favorite food,

ćevapi Ćevapi (, ) or ćevapčići (formal: diminutive; , ) is a grilled dish of minced meat found traditionally in the countries of southeast Europe (the Balkans). It is considered a national dish of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, with Bosnia and ...

. Along with the cafe bar, he also plans to publish a weekly magazine which will only focus on positive things that are happening in everyday life and the music scene.

Legal issues

Osmić released his first single and music video for his third album, named '' To mora da je ljubav'', before his album came out, in which his producer

Koolade Matko Šašek, also known as Koolade is a Croatian hip-hop, electronic, and urban music producer. Born in Zagreb in the late 1970s, he began his music career in the late 1990s. Along with other members of the Blackout family he played a major ...

used the song "

Cissy Strut "Cissy Strut" is a 1969 funk instrumental by the Meters. Released as a single from their eponymous debut album, it reached No. 4 on the R&B chart and No. 23 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The tune was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 201 ...

" from 1969 by

The Meters The Meters (later The Funky Meters) are an American funk band formed in 1965 in New Orleans by Zigaboo Modeliste (drums), George Porter Jr. (bass), Leo Nocentelli (guitar) and Art Neville (keyboards). The band performed and recorded their o ...

. Some media outlets have criticized him for plagiarizing the music in the song. Osmić answered back by saying "Sampling is not stealing. In hip hop you sample music, you take someones beat and rap on that beat. My album was postponed 1 week just because of that reason, while we waited for the authorization to use that song. The fact is that sometimes this waiting for authorization can be as long as one year, we redid the beat a little, gave credit to the author and not on us. You can see that the credit goes to the author on the inside cover of the album. Hip hop is made up of sampling, that is normal. On this particular track, Koolade is not named as the beat maker, but the author is. Remi, who is featured on the song, also gave a comment on the issue, saying that "That is not stealing, we are dealing with sampling of a already made song. You take one part of a song and combine it with your text. People who are not in hip hop don't usually know that this is a practice in this type of music.

Sports Hall Incident

Osmić held a concert in the Sports Hall (

Dom sportova Dom sportova (), is a multi-purpose indoor sports arena located in Zagreb, Croatia. The venue was built in 1972 in the Trešnjevka neighborhood, in the western part of the city. It has 32,000 m2 of floorspace, and it features six halls. The se ...

) in 2005. The sponsor for the concert was T-mobile Croatia. Osmić held a press conference before the concert where he criticized his sponsors for the firing of workers after they changed their "brand". He also explained his decision to work with a telecommunications monopoly by saying that he wanted his ticket for his concert to be 45 kuna or less. He added "you can only do that with a compromise, no one is criticizing Hladno Pivo that they sold out because their sponsor for the tour was Ozujsko beer, whose owners are also foreigners".

Concert in Serbia controversy

Bassivity (music label that released Osmić's album in Serbia) promoted Osmić's concert, which he was unaware of. When Osmić was asked about this in an interview for Svet magazine, he replied "I don't know where this idea that I will promote my album in Belgrade came from? "Bassivity" did that promotion on their own. I don't plan to go to Serbia, at least in the coming months. I don't want to go to a country that promotes the burning of mosques, and yet thousands of young people are howling on the streets. If I come to Serbia for an album promotion, which I promised to do, I am sure that it will not be for a while." Svet also tried to bring some of Osmić mistakes from the past to light, in which they stated that he was supposed to have concert with

Mile Kitić Milojko "Mile" Kitić ( sr-Cyrl, Милојко "Миле" Китић; born 1 January 1952, is a Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian-born Serbian folk singer. He rose to prominence as a member of the popular eighties Folk music, folk colle ...

, but they never revealed the source for that. In the same interview, Svet made some untrue and false accusations against Osmić and his family, saying that his brother and sister "live from black marketing in Northern Bosnia" and that his close family live of pirate sales from his own albums.

UNICEF's Education Action in Bosnia

Osmić was one of three artists that was featured in UNICEF's education program in Bosnia against

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

Refusal to air music video

At the end of November 2005, a month after Osmić premiered his video for the single ''Mater Vam Jebem'' on MTV Adria, HTV and Nova TV refused to air that video spot based on the name of the song and some theorized because the song's lyrics were critical of the countries leaders and the media.

Discography

Studio albums

*''

'' (2002) *'' No sikiriki'' (2004) *''

Stig'o ćumur ''Stig'o ćumur'' is the third studio album of Bosnian rapper Edo Maajka Edin Osmić (born 22 December 1978), better known by his stage name Edo Maajka, is a Bosnian rapper, record producer and songwriter. His popularity brought his group Disc ...

'' (2006) *''

Balkansko a naše ''Balkansko a naše'' (roughly translated as ''From the Balkans, But Ours'') is the fourth solo, studio album by Bosnian rapper Edo Maajka, released on 25 March 2008. The whole album was produced by Koolade,Štrajk mozga ''Štrajk mozga'' (Mind on strike) is the fifth studio album by Bosnian hip-hop star Edo Maajka, released on April 21, 2012. Edo explained in an interview that the title refers to the escape from "norms, media, parents, religion and everything else ...

'' (2012) *'' Put u plus'' (2018) *'' Moćno'' (2022)

Compilation albums

*'' Spomen ploča 2002-2009'' (2010)

Singles

*'' Znaš me'' (2001) *'' Jesmo'l sami'' (2002) *'' Prikaze'' (2003) *'' Zlatna dolina'' (2003) *'' No sikiriki'' (2004) *'' Pržiiiii'' (2004) *''Obećana riječ'' (2005) *'' Ne-mo-žeš'' (2005) *'' Mater vam jebem'' (2005) *'' To mora da je ljubav'' (2006) *'' Bomba'' (2006) *'' To što se traži'' (2006) *'' Rek'o sam joj'' (2007) *'' Gansi'' (2008) *'' Svi su ošli na more'' (2008) *'' Sve prolazi'' (2008) *'' Ove godine'' (2010) *'' Fotelja'' (2011) *'' Imaš li ti šta para'' (2011) *''

Panika The Panika are a Hindu community found in the Indian states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh. Traditionally they are weaver. They are also known as Panka and Panikar. Etymology They used to made Pankha(fan). ...

'' (2011) *'' Džigera beat'' (2012) *''

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

'' (2012) *'' Ojojoj'' (2014) *'' Ne mogu disat'' (2017) *'' Bolje je Bolje'' (2018) *''

Kreator Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current line-up consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Mille Petrozza, Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jürgen Reil, Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli- ...

'' (2020) *'' I like to dance'' (2021) *'' Moćno'' (2022) *'' Zlatni koker'' (2022) *'' Svaki čovjek'' (2022) *'' Letimo iznad'' (2022)

Filmography

Documentaries

Several documentaries were made on Osmić's life and career.

Croatian Radiotelevision ''Hrvatska radiotelevizija'' ( HRT), or Croatian Radiotelevision, is a Croatian public broadcasting company. It operates several radio and television channels, over a domestic transmitter network as well as satellite. HRT is divided into three ...

's documentary '' Edo Maajka - Sevdah o Rodama'' premiered 27 July 2007 at the

Motovun Film Festival The Motovun Film Festival is an annual film festival established in 1999 and held in the small town of Motovun, Croatia until 2023, when it moved to a new location, Petehovac in Gorski Kotar. It usually takes place over five or six days in late ...

Movies

Animated

Awards

Davorin/Indexi Awards Porin Awards Zlatna Koogla Awards Crni Mačak Awards

References

External links

Official website

Fmjam

Official Myspace

Reuters article about Balkan hip hop
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maajka, Edo 1978 births Living people Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina rappers Croatian rappers Naturalized citizens of Croatia People from Brčko District Hayat Production artists Indexi Award winners Bosniaks of Croatia