With his voice and the love he spreads at all his concerts, the Bosnian Prince Sevdah has conquered the audience throughout the region. As he himself says, people with pure hearts come to his concerts, and they will enjoy tonight and tomorrow evening in the Great Hall of KIC "Budo Tomović". Despite the numerous concerts he has around the world, God's Sack does not forget the audience in the capital of Montenegro, and traditionally hangs out with them in November. Two concerts for which tickets were sold out in record time, will remind you of all those beautiful sevdah stories, which Vrećo has been "talking" for years with his voice and through demanding melodies.
And this time, Božo will feel every sigh, tear, smile, he will respond to every applause with a song... and he confirms for "Vijesti" that he can't wait to sing again in Podgorica....
Božo, hardly a year goes by that you don't perform in Podgorica, and there are always two concerts for which tickets are sold out for a glass. But every time the magic you perform is different and you always try to bring something new. What have you prepared for this two-day gathering?
In a world of hatred and pain, sadness and lack of empathy, I always bring Love. Love that ennobles, changes each of us individually, completes and thus becomes a part of the changes in that dark world. If there were no torchbearers of love and light, we would live in complete darkness of aggression and anarchy. That is why every concert of mine is an ode to kindness, a eulogy of love and gratitude to God to whom I owe everything.
Today, how do you view places like Podgorica, where you come often and where you know that the audience will always welcome you?
The most important thing is that when a person matures spiritually, he does not expect anything at all, but surrenders to the moment that is and is coming. My energy and love are reflected on the people who come to me wherever I perform in the world, and the same is the case with Podgorica. People who don't like me, who are evil and who think the worst of others will certainly not come to my concert. My concerts are attended by people with a pure heart, generosity and life wisdom and warmth. I am honored by such and such a blessing with which God always shines on me, that is why I return again and again to Dukleja.
You have been carefully choosing your repertoire since the period when you performed alone and in a cappella. However, the judgment of the audience is very important to you and the fact that they are there for you and that each of them has a song that they want you to sing for them. Unlike most of your colleagues, you are happy to meet them. How often can the demands of the audience change the course of a concert?
There are always some songs left unsung, but that's why there is always a momentum of surprise, and that is the magic of the so-called "1001 nights" to spontaneously develop that thread of connection and narrative between me and the audience until we become one being. I feel them and I hear and see their every sigh and tear and smile and scream. They lead me further through the repertoire, if in those moments one of the songs just shines from my heart, then I sing it without thinking about it. The moment of letting go and giving and giving away the emotion unmistakably knows the path of the song, that's what I'm guided by.
In addition to the numerous Montenegrin songs you sang, the track "Po ladu po zalada" only became popular after you recorded it and made a video on Skadar lake. Many will say that Montenegrin traditional music is simple, with three tones, but how demanding is it sometimes to sing melodies that apparently sound simple and bring those three tones in your own way?
It is a challenge because people are too used to something established, so when that used to change, put on new clothes and breathe new life, then it really has to be great and unusual. I think that the performance and the whole concept of that song, as I brought and presented it archaeologically-archivistically-mythologically and traditionally, is a myth in itself. I'm sure that this is just a prelude to my recomposition of the original melos and of course a great wealth of knowledge that I have in me that I can pass on to others. My doctorate is based on the polyphonic and monophonic music of the Balkans, hence all this fascination with antiquity and stories from stone, from a Herzegovinian father and a Montenegrin mother, for me, stone is not only a sound and sign, but also a hearth, a child and a metaphor of a heart that loves without that it is loved.
In recent years, you have focused more on original music, which you create yourself with the help of collaborators. Is Montenegrin traditional music inspiring to you, given that you often find some historical stories interesting enough to cover them in a song?
Certainly, on the seventh singer-songwriter album "Sevdahology", in addition to my recordings of lyrics and melodies, there will also be one epic song that I turned into a lyrical tragedy, for which I am shooting a music video in January. Everything is important and interesting to me, sometimes I create a whole song from the details, and sometimes the chorus unravels the longing and cry of that heart that yearns for someone. I research and read a lot, write and take notes, hence the talent that follows and colors all of this with a lyrical voice so that everything then becomes a compact whole and something that reflects my work, completely authentic, incomparable and unique.
Bonus video:
