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| Interview Aleksanda Kovac, musician |
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 The Music I BreatheThis summer we found Aleksandra Kovac on a wonderful beach in Greece. Maybe it would have been easier talking to her in Belgrade these days, but what you have in front of you are replies given from a seaside frame of mind. By Marina Paunović What is the most important thing for the public to know about your music? My music is the most important thing in my life, as essential as the air I breathe. I couldn’t picture a single second of my life without it. I’ve been writing songs since I was 13, and have been singing ever since I became aware of my existence. It is really strange but beautiful at the same time when as a little child you are aware of the thing that gives your life a complete meaning – even back then I was incredibly thankful for that. I grew up listening to quality foreign pop music, so, by the age of 13, I already knew the construction of a pop song, i.e. the way it is made. I also learned about melody, harmony and lyrics and their relationship to each other, essential when you compose. I listened to Whitney Houston, George Michael, Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, the Police, while Rickie Lee Jones was one of my favourite singers at that time. I can sing her album, Chuck E.’s in Love, by heart even if you wake me up in the middle of the night. Only later did I get to know soul and R&B of the 1960s and 1970s, and I started to absorb every single phrase of the legendary Aretha Frenklin, Curtis Mayfield, Etta James, Al Green and many other top performers. All of this shaped my own composing and singing style, but the most important things are my personal story and emotions. Of course, what I had experienced while living in London was also significant for my development like singing and playing with Errol Brown, the singer of Hot Chocolate, and working with the world famous producers like Rod Argent, Peter Van Hooke, Derek Bramble and John David. As your first solo project, how is this album different to the previous albums you made with your sister? The album Milk and Honey is my anthem to love and life. What I did was to remind people of those gentle and subtle feelings which we all forget about because we are living in difficult and turbulent times. I wrote and recorded it just several months before a family tragedy struck me. The album was like a cure to me, a way for expressing the love, sorrow, joy and everything that I felt through each of the songs. I worked on this album together with my inseparable music partner Roman Gorsek, with whom I founded a production company, RAProduction ten or so years ago. We worked together on other performers’ albums, mostly in Croatia and Bosnia, as well as on the music for TV series, theatre and TV ads. In 2001, just after the political upheaval in Serbia, we wanted to show the world that Belgrade can be a formidable player when it comes to the global music, and we produced and released by ourselves a maxi single with four songs, as well as a video for the song entitled For Better or Worse. In certain respects this was an introduction to my solo album, which I released five years later. We produced it ourselves, just like all my video spots and the tour. We had control of everything concerning my album and myself. This is the only way to ensure that everything will be just as you want it to be. How would you describe your sound? Is it fair to say that it is a mixture of RnB, soul and pop? I have never put music into categories. I say that there is good and bad music and I don’t bother with styles. Three tracks from your last album were in English, which borrowed heavily in terms of influence from black music. Why did you choose this style? Songs like “C’Mon Boy”, “Love Operator” and A.K.’s “Black Balls” were written in English and I wanted them to stay that way. Roman and I have been exploring soul and funk for years, and this is the music that is closest to my sensibility. By the way, that is highly complex music when it comes to singing or composing. It demands top knowledge and feelings. Is your music more accessible to an international audience than to your fans in Serbia? That’s the same audience, I don’t view it as domestic or international. What is emerging here at the moment is a young and advanced generation, hungry for changes, normal life and the opportunity to travel, meet new cultures and expand their horizons. My music and everything that I do gives me hope that with a lot of work, effort and invested energy, all of that is possible. Is it possible for music to be popular and commercial, as well as be of high quality? Most popular music is exactly like that. It is commercial and of good quality at the same time. Only in Serbia do we have this specific atmosphere where commercial music is immediately thought of as not being good, which is just the result of the disrupted morals and values that’ve had during the last twenty years. Some explanations of this subject could be found in Roman Gorsek’s book entitled ‘Serbia: My Case’ (released by the British Council).  Is the music scene in Serbia similar to the international music scene? In what ways does it differ?I think that it mostly differs in terms of copyright protection and the way in which the music industry is organized, which is something that is lacking in this country. Also, the system and the way in which this business is organized here is directly detrimental to the musicians. These are all the subjects that Roman and I wrote about in the aforementioned book. Our essay is made of two parts and it talks about the music industry in Serbia. I write about my career in England, Spain, the former Yugoslavia and Serbia. I talk about copy and performance rights; I compare music systems here and abroad while Roman Gorsek talks about the management, production and problems that our music scene had to deal with in the previous period. Of course, in the end, we offer certain system solutions, but the question is whether all of that reaches the people in the state establishment, since they are the ones that can change things. This subject is too complex to discuss it in detail. There are similarities and there are differences. Do you expect similar popularity with the next or younger generation of music lovers? My audience is made of different generations of people, so I am really surprised when I see 12-year-olds at my concert, along with young couples, families with children and older ladies who know the lyrics of all my songs! What is your favourite track written by your father? “April in Belgrade”, “Lunch for Two”, “You are in My Blood”…. How has your life changed after your MTV award, and becoming a Serbian icon? Serbia is specific in a sense that getting an international award only makes things harder for you. I have not been given any form of support from any state institution, so I manage by just like before. People are the ones that give me support and they are my biggest hope for me that things are going to change. Anthem to love The album Milk and Honey is my anthem to love and life. What I did was to remind people of those gentle and subtle feelings which we all forget about because we are living in difficult and turbulent times. I wrote and recorded it just several months before a family tragedy struck me. London What I had experienced while living in London was significant for my development like singing and playing with Errol Brown, the singer of Hot Chocolate, and working with the world famous producers like Rod Argent, Peter Van Hooke, Derek Bramble and John David. MTV award Serbia is specific in a sense that getting an international award only makes things harder for you. I have not been given any form of support from any state institution, so I manage by just like before. People are the ones that give me support and they are my biggest hope |