Bebi Dol | |
|---|---|
 Bebi Dol in 1991 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Dana Todorović |
| Born | Dragana Šarić (1962-10-02)2 October 1962 (age 63) |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
|
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Labels | |
Spouse | |
Dana[1] Todorović[a] (née Šarić;[b]Serbian Cyrillic:Драгана Тодоровић,née Шарић; born 2 October 1962), better known under the stage nameBebi Dol[c] (Serbian Cyrillic:Беби Дол,lit. 'Baby Doll'), is aSerbian andYugoslav singer and songwriter. Born inBelgrade, she made her solo debut in 1981 with the successful single "Mustafa". She rose to further prominence and nationwide popularity with her 1983 debut albumRuže i krv. Bebi Dol representedYugoslavia at theEurovision Song Contest 1991 with "Brazil". She has released four studio albums and a live album to date, had a number of hit songs in Serbia and former Yugoslavia and had collaborated with a number of prominent acts of the Serbian and Yugoslav music scenes.
Dana Šarić was born on 2 October 1962 inBelgrade,FPR Yugoslavia, to mother Magdalena, who worked forTelevision Belgrade and father Milisav, ajazz musician.[2] Three months after she had been born, the family relocated toCopenhagen,Denmark, and later continued moving across Europe because of her father's job, who performed inAmericanmilitary bases.[3] When Šarić turned seven, they eventually moved back to Belgrade so she could attend school there.[3] She was a student at theMokranjac Music School.[3]
After graduating from the 14th Grammar School in Belgrade, Šarić started studyinganthropology at theUniversity of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy.[3]
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.[4] Together they won a competition organized byRadio Belgrade and received an offer to make studio recordings.[3] In 1979, Šarić served as a backing vocalist on the albumSamo napred... (Go Ahead...) by theprogressive andhard rock bandYU Grupa, which was her debut appearance on a record, and in 1980 appeared as a guest vocalist on the 1980 albumVrt svetlosti (Garden of Light) by the progressive andpsychedelic rock bandIgra Staklenih Perli.[5] The following year, she formed short-lived band Annoda Rouge with her boyfriend-at-the-timeGoran Vejvoda (guitar), Slobodan Trbojević (bass guitar) andIvan Vdović (drums).[4]
In 1981, Šarić made her solo debut with the single "Mustafa" ("Mustapha"), released underPGP-RTB.[4] Bebi Dol found inspiration for theOriental music-influenced song inLawrence Durrell'stetralogyThe Alexandria Quartet,[4] and co-wrote it with musician and music producerSaša Habić.[4] The song featured a recording of the voice of Slobodan Konjović from the bandKozmetika, who also co-produced the single.[4] The single was released with the song "Na planeti uzdaha" ("On the Planet of Sighs") as theB-side.[6] Šarić released the single under the stage name Bebi Dol, a nickname for her coined by the members of the bandIdoli.[3] By the end of the year, Yugoslavmusic magazineDžuboks declared "Mustafa" the record of the year.[3][7]
After the release of the single, Bebi Dol started working on her debut album,Ruže i krv (Roses and Blood), released in 1983 to critical acclaim.[7] The songs for the album were composed by herself, with the exception of thetraditional song "Sinu Sunca i bratu Meseca" ("To the Son of the Sun and Brother of the Moon"), dating from the 17th century, Šarić's version featuring samples of dialogues byHumphrey Bogart andIngrid Bergman from the filmCasablanca, and the song "Lapis lazuli", which was a cover of a song byAngelo Branduardi.[4] The album was produced by Saša Habić, who also played bass guitar and keyboards on the recording, and featured appearances by Goran Vejvoda (on guitar),Du Du A members Dejan Kostić (on guitar and bass guitar) and Zoran Zagorčić (on synthesizer),Beograd member Dejan Stanisavljević (on keyboards), Bebi Dol's father Milisav Šarić (on saxophone), Slobodan Marković (on keyboards), Zoran Konjović (on guitar) andRadio Television Belgrade String Ensemble.[4] In March 1983, Bebi Dol was, alongsideLepa Brena, chosen by Radio Television Belgrade to compete at theJugovizija 1983 music festival inNovi Sad, the competition for theYugoslav representative at theEurovision Song Contest 1983 inMunich,West Germany. Her entry "Rudi", which referred toRudolph Valentino, eventually placed sixth.[8] The song was later that year released on a12-inch single along with the cover of "Baby Love" bythe Supremes.[4] Her first solo concert was held on 13 June 1983 atAtelje 212 theatre in Belgrade.[9] Subsequently, she joinedZdravko Čolić on his national tour and then moved toEgypt, where she spent two years performing at theSheraton Hotel inCairo.[4]
After relocating back to Yugoslavia in 1986, she released themaxi single "Prove to All", featuring two songs she had co-written with Saša Habić.[4] In the following years, she had the award-winning performances at the International Music Fair (MESAM) festival with "Inšalah" ("Inshallah"), "Slatke suze ljubavi" ("Sweet Tears of Love") and "Kad sreća odlazi" ("When Happiness Leaves") in 1986, 1988 and 1989, respectively.[3] For "Inšalah" she was awarded the First Award by the Jury, and for "Kad sreća odlazi" she was awarded the Special Award by the Jury.[6] In 1989, Bebi Dol also performed at the Gold Malaysian Festival inKuala Lumpur.[10]
She made her return to Jugovizija festival on theJugovizija 1991, held inSarajevo in March.[11] There, she ended up winning the contest with "Brazil", which was written by herself and Zoran Vračević.[11] On 4 May, Bebi Dol represented Yugoslavia at theEurovision Song Contest 1991 held inRome,Italy, where she received only one point fromMalta and thus placed second to last.[12][13] She was also the last official Eurovision entry from Yugoslavia, as the countryde factoceased to exist later that year. Šarić stated that after Eurovision she lived inParis where she signed a two year recording contract, but ultimately decided to move back toSerbia due to political instability in her country.[3]
In 1995, Bebi Dol released her second studio albumRitam srca (Rhythm of the Heart).[4] She recorded the album with guitarist Mario Šeparović of the band Psihopolis, with keyboardistLaza Ristovski making a guest appearance on the record.[4] The album featured songs written by Bebi Dol and Zoran Vračević, as well asSerbian language covers ofMadonna's "Take a Bow" (entitled "Pokloni se") andJudy Garland's "Over the Rainbow" (entitled "Iznad duge").[4] The album also included new versions of "Brazil", "Slatke suze ljubavi" and "Rudi".[4] In 1999, Bebi Dol recorded the song "Ti si moj svet" ("You Are My World") for the various artists albumProleće na trgu – Moj Beograd srce ima (A Spring at the Square – My Belgrade Has a Heart), featuringprotest songs againstNATO bombing of Yugoslavia.[6] At the 1999 Tomorrow's Children charity concert organized byUNICEF inHelsinki,Finland, Bebi Dol performed the song "Ruža" ("Rose"), composed by Zoran Zagorčić on the lyrics of poetNina Živančević, and performed as a member of the choir consisting of musicians from around the world.[6]
In 2002, Bebi Dol released her comeback albumLjuta sam... (I'm Angry...), produced by Vlada Marković, underPGP-RTS.[4] The album was, as she stated, dedicated to all the people she had lost in her life. Most of the songs on the album were authored by Bebi Dol herself.[6] The album featured Zoran Zagorčić's old song "Cilj" ("Goal"), which was previously unrecorded, and the song "Pesma o Simi" ("Song About Sima"), which featured amusical quotation from the 1981 hit "Mustafa".[6] A year later in April, she entered theBeovizija 2003 festival with "Tvrdoglava" ("Stubborn"), placing 10th.[6]
In late 2006, Bebi Dol released anEnglish languagecover album entitledČovek rado izvan sebe živi (One Gladly Lives Out of Himself), through Mascom Records.[6] She recorded the album with Jelena Glišić (backing vocals, musical arrangements), Bata Božanić (bass), Petar Radmilović (drums) and Goran Potić (guitar).[6] The following year, she released the live albumVeče u pozorištu (A Night at the Theatre) from her concert held at theTerazije Theatre on 16 February 2007, when she was accompanied by Bata Božanić and his band.[6] The album featured covers fromLenny Kravitz,Simon & Garfunkel,Pink Floyd,Louis Armstrong andMichael Jackson, as well as the songs from her previous release. In 2008, Bebi Dol released the compilation album...Pokloni se... (...Take a Bow...).[6]
During her career, Bebi Dol made a number of guest appearances. She appeared on albums byYU Grupa,Igra Staklenih Perli,KIM,Kozmetika,Leb i Sol,Idoli,Bulevar,Du Du A,Zona B,Bajaga i Instruktori,Oliver Mandić andMassimo Savić.[6] In 1983, she briefly collaborated in Germany withBritish singer and songwriterHoward Devoto,[6] and in 1989 she briefly worked with Americanavant-garde composerNeil Rolnick.[6] She has written lyrics for YU Grupa,Cactus Jack,Generacija 5 and other acts.[14]
In 1985, Šarić provided singing voiceover for the character of Ana, played bySonja Savić, inBoro Drašković's movieLife Is Beautiful.[6] She starred inŽika Mitrović's 1986 filmProtestni album (Protest Album).[6] In 1987, she portrayedOphelia inTitograd National Theatre's production ofHamlet.[6] In 2020, she made a cameo appearance in the seriesTajkun (Tycoon), directed byDragan Bjelogrlić, as a folk singer named Martina, performing "Rano je za tugu" ("It's Early to Be Sad"), originally performed byHaris Džinović.[15] She had also madecameo appearances in the TV seriesBolji život (A Better Life) andLisice (Vixens).[16]
In 2003, Šarić hosted her own talk showBla Bla Bebi on TV Art.[6] Since 2009, Šarić has competed in severalreality television shows, includingFarma,Dvor andZadruga.[17] During 2017, she was also a contestant on thefourth Serbian season ofYour Face Sounds Familiar, winning the first episode asEmeli Sandé.[18]
In the late 1970s and early 1980s Šarić dated guitaristGoran Vejvoda,[19] and during the 1980s, she dated singerMassimo Savić, with whom she recorded duet "Sunce sja, trava miriše" ("The Sun Is Shining, the Smell of Grass Is in the Air").[20]
On 27 September 2014, she marriedLos Angeles-born Serbian professor ofRussian language andliterature, Aleks Todorović, after four years of dating.[21][22] It was also reported that she has changed her name to Dragana Todorović.[21]
In 2006, the song "Rudi" was ranked No. 43 on theB92 Top 100 Domestic Songs list.[23]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Protestni album | Flora | |
| 2017 | Malesh | Oldest daughter | Short film |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Bolji život | Singer in the bar | One episode |
| 2003 | Lisice | Herself | One episode |
| 2009 | Farma | Season 1, Eliminated | |
| 2010 | Dvor | Season 1, Eliminated | |
| 2013 | Farma | Season 4, Eliminated | |
| 2015 | Season 6, Eliminated | ||
| 2017 | Tvoje lice zvuči poznato | Season 4, 10th place | |
| 2017-2018 | Zadruga | Season 1, Eliminated | |
| 2020 | Tajkun | Martina | Two episodes |
| 2022 | Prvi bend Srbije | Herself | Judge |
| Preceded by | Yugoslavia in the Eurovision Song Contest 1991 | Succeeded by Extra Nena forFR Yugoslavia |
| International | |
|---|---|
| Artists | |
