OK Fest confirms its status as one of the most important music destinations in the region

OK Fest, whose eleventh edition ended last night in NP Sutjeska, has once again confirmed its status as one of the region's favorite festival destinations, a place where people gather who not only love music, but also love socializing. With a carefully designed all-day program lasting four days, this festival provides an experience that exceeds expectations year after year, and this year was no exception.

The daily program on the last day of the festival began in the OK Book zone with the promotion of the novel Rage by Zoran Marinković, while at the same time, on the opposite side of the camp, on the OK Summer stage, Shipe and Inner Sense warmed up the audience.

On the OK Stage, one of the key stages in the heart of the festival camp, the program continued with a performance by the Split band TBF. Their distinctive blend of hip hop, funk and Mediterranean spirit showed the audience why they have been synonymous with a good time for decades.

The audience was then taken over by Z++, a representative of the new generation of the regional music scene, who created a strong connection with the audience with his emotional lyrics and contemporary trap-pop sound. He was visibly moved by the ambiance, energy and people, and he highlighted this festival appearance as one of the most special in his career so far.

The program on the OK Stage was rounded out by the band Jelusick. Led by Dino Jelusić, an exceptional vocalist who was once a member of the legendary band Whitesnake, they brought world-class sound to the stage in the middle of the festival camp. Their energetic and technically flawless performance confirmed the band's status as one of the strongest live attractions in this area.

Marko Louis had the opportunity to meet the OK Fest audience again, this time opening the program on the Mastercard Main Stage. He also used the concert at Tjentište to promote new songs from his current album 25, the fourth part of which was recently released, but he also reminded the audience of older hits such as "Ćutaću" and "Cvijeće cafnalo". The repertoire also included songs from his previous albums in English, with which he once again showed the breadth of his expression.

Marko proved that he is an artist who lives music together with the people he creates it for, with a gesture that delighted everyone present. Namely, he was the only performer from the festival to go down into the audience and perform a song there, completely erasing the line between the stage and the audience. During his performance, the audience repeatedly shouted in unison "pump!", and as expected, this powerful, emotional concert at Tjentište closed with the song "Svjetlo u mraku", which served as a perfect emotional conclusion to the evening.

"I think it's been 10 years since I last played here. It was the zero festival and we played on a smaller stage in the camp and then it rained and it was a question of whether we were going to play or not and in the end we did. And it was unforgettable. There weren't as many people as there are now, but it was muddy, sweaty and great. Now I'm on the Mainstage of one of the most beautiful festivals in the Balkans. I'm honored to play for these people, I'm honored to be a part of all this," Louis said after the performance.

After his performance, a funk explosion and Nik West. Charismatic, powerful and uncompromising on stage. From the first to the last note, she held the audience in her musical spell. She also won over those who came out of curiosity, because after this performance she has a new army of fans throughout the Balkans.

"It's hard to describe what happens on stage when you connect with the audience, a special energy is created and when I feel that people give it to me, I can give it to them even more. My band says that this is one of their favorite shows in the last few weeks because the audience gave them so much energy and because we had such a good time!" said Nik after the performance and stayed with the band to hear Zoster, and for more than half of the concert she stood on the corner of the stage and danced, delighted not only by the sound but also by the energy of one of the most popular bands from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Although this is their third consecutive appearance at OK Fest, this festival is perhaps the most visible manifestation of Zoster's regional rise. They used to perform in slots reserved for support acts, and today they occupy prime slots for a reason – because audiences often buy tickets precisely for them. Their music, which has grown into a movement over the years, is recognized for its strong messages, simplicity and sincerity, which has made them one of the most popular bands in this region.

The audience sang along to almost every song from their previous albums, and it was especially impressive when, despite the fact that only a month or two had passed since the release of the new track "Ne otrečam se, tata", it was accepted as if it were an old festival anthem. Singing together with Mario Knezović created a family atmosphere, and it is no wonder that he repeated several times during the performance: "Zoster group, your group".

"This is why we exist. We could not have imagined that one day our concerts would be like this, but as kids we certainly dreamed of hanging out with the audience, of being recognized, of being loved. We are truly embarrassed by the audience's reaction because we need to return that," Mario told Vijesti after the concert. The program on the Mastercard Main Stage was closed by the legendary Psihomodo Pop, bringing their recognizable energy, charming impudence and uncompromising rock'n'roll spirit. To the delight of the audience and their own, they returned to Tjentište for the third time, obviously enjoying every moment. Once again, they showed why the same passionate audience has followed them for decades, while their hits and stage performances do not lose their power.

"We returned for the third time, aware that the audience always expects more, and we give them even more. This place is special because our history is here. I remember the first time I was at Tjentište as an elementary school student. They took us on an excursion, and what I remembered from what I heard at the time was that there was a big fight at this very place. The next time I visited Tjentište was when I came to OK Fest for the first time," said Davor Gobac, frontman of Prihomodo pop.

The party continued at the After Party on the OK stage in the camp with the rhythms of German techno diva Anja Schneider. Although a power outage interrupted the music for almost two hours, the most persistent did not give up, patiently waiting for the continuation of the program. The festival was officially closed by Inner Sense.

Afterwards, a group of visitors sang ex-Yu rock hits with guitars and voices, welcoming the dawn and confirming that the spirit of OK Fest lives on even after the official closing.