Zehra Deović (9 December 1938 – 30 October 2015) was a Bosnian sevdalinka-

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

singer and was one of the leading female singers of the 1960s and 1970s in

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, along with Silvana Armenulić, Nada Mamula and Beba Selimović. Deović started working at

Radio Sarajevo Radio Sarajevo is a radio station and magazine that began airing 10 April 1945, four days after the liberation of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina near the end of World War II. It was Bosnia and Herzegovina's first radio station. The first words s ...

in 1960 and released her first album two years later. She lived and worked 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 ...

until her death.

Biography

Deović was born in

Foča Foča ( sr-Cyrl, Фоча, ) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, located in the south-east on the banks of Drina river. As of 2013, the town has a population of 12,234 inhabitants, while the municipality has 1 ...

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

(modern-day

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 ...

), 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 Halim and Abida Deović. Her father was killed in 1941 and she relocated as a

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

refugee to Sarajevo in 1943 with her mom and two siblings. After three years, they returned to Foča. As a child, Deović joined Foča's youth cultural club "Jedinstvo" (''Unity'') and first began performing with them in major cities of

in 1953. During these tours she had the chance to perform alongside the famous folk singers of the time, such as

Vuka Šeherović Vuka Šeherović (; ''née'' Šekerović, ; 1903–1976) was a Bosnian folk singer and sevdalinka interpreter. She was called the "woman with the silver voice." Biography Šeherović was born with the surname Šekerović in the village Kovačići ...

. In 1960, she moved back to Sarajevo for schooling and auditioned for

with the folk song "Dvije su se vode zavadile". She passed and was given a recording contract with the

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 ...

-based label Jugoton. Deović released her debut studio album '' Pjesme iz Bosne'' on 11 December 1962. Through her career she was a frequent participant in the annual music festival in

Ilidža Ilidža ( sr-cyrl, Илиџа, ) is a spa town and a municipality located in Sarajevo Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has a total population of 66,730 with 63,528 in Ilidža itself, and i ...

, in addition to multiple other music festivals in the region. Deović died at age 76 after a long illness on 30 October 2015 in Sarajevo.

Discography

Extended plays

*'' Pjesme iz Bosne'' (1962) *'' Oj Igmane'' (1963) *''Ja prošetah čaršijom'' (1963) *''Oj, Prijedore pun si mi sevdaha / Pšeničice sitno zrno '' (1963) *''Izmamilo sunce'' (1964) *'' Ne znam šta ću majko'' (1966) *''Ni Bajrami više nisu'' (1968) *''Voljela sam'' (1971) *''Rodni grade / Čekanje'' (1971) *''Zovem te ljubavi '' (1973)

Studio albums

*''Dvije su se vode zavadile'' (1976) *''Zehrin sevdah'' (1982) *''Kad procvatu'' (1990)

References

External links

Text about sevdah and sevdalinke with information about popular singers and Zehra Deović
*
Web site of Balkan Fever 2009 festival with information about Zehra Deović
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deovic, Zehra 1938 births 2015 deaths People from Foča Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina 20th-century Bosnia and Herzegovina women singers Yugoslav women singers Sevdalinka