Zejna (singer)

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Zejna

| caption =

| birth_name = Zejna Murkić

| alias =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1986|12|28|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Loznica, Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia

| origin =

| genre = {{hlist|Pop|R'n'B}}

| occupation = {{hlist|Singer}}

| instrument =

| years_active = 2009—present

| label =

| associated_acts =

| website =

}}

Zejna Murkić ({{lang-sr-Cyrl|Зејна Муркић}}; born 28 December 1986), known mononymously as Zejna, is a Serbian singer. She was a member of the pop band Luna from 2009 to 2010, after which she went solo.

Early life

Of Romani origin,{{Cite web|url=https://www.sd.rs/vip/urbano/zejna-rumba-pesma-za-evroviziju-intervju-2023-02-11|title="U KRVI NOSIM SRPSKU ENERGIJU!" Zejna multikulturalnom porukom krči put za Liverpul - Nisam za trend, već za brend|date=2023-02-12|website=www.sd.rs|language=sr|access-date=2023-02-27}}{{cite web|title=Zejna Murkić|url=https://www.discogs.com/artist/1782696-Zejna-Murki%C4%87|website=Discogs|accessdate=25 January 2018}} Zejna Murkić was born on 28 December 1986, in Loznica. She has been singing and dancing since early childhood, and she had her first performances when she was only 10 years old. At the age of 16, she began singing professionally and performing throughout the country and abroad.{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/zejnazejna/info|title=Zejna|website=Facebook}}

Career

Zejna began her career in the competition Operacija trijumf, from which she quickly dropped out, but immediately after this TV program she received an invitation from Čeda Čvorak, the founder of the group Luna. From 2009 to 2010, she was a member of Luna, with whom she recorded two albums, Da san ne prestaje and Sex on the Beach. As the lead vocalist in the group, she sang some of the most notable tracks on these albums, such as "Panika", "Vrištim u sebi", "Klela bih" and "Alo, alo".

At the end of 2010, Zejna left the group and decided to devote herself to a solo career. In June 2011, she released her first single in English entitled "Tonight" in collaboration with Dee Monk. In the same year, she also released her first solo single in the Serbian language, called "Najbolja", which she composed and penned by herself. In 2012, she released the single "Drama", which she sang together with Slađa Delibašić and rapper Sha. In the same year, she participated in the Vrnjačka Banja festival, where she won the prize of the newspaper jury. In the meantime, she began writing songs for other artists and also sings backing vocals. In 2013, she released the single "Absinthe".

Zejna sings the song "Ruška" in the scene of the film Toma (2021) as well as the Romani song "Jag".{{Cite web|url=https://loznickenovosti.com/2022/03/06/na-pesmi-za-evroviziju-22-zejna-zado/|title=НА „ПЕСМИ ЗА ЕВРОВИЗИЈУ 22“ – Зејна задовољна уласком у финале – Lozničke novosti|language=en-US|access-date=2022-03-07}}{{Cite web|url=https://nova.rs/zabava/showbiz/ucesnica-na-pesmi-za-evroviziju-pevala-je-u-najemotivnijoj-sceni-filma-toma/|title=Učesnica na "Pesmi za Evroviziju" pevala je u najemotivnijoj sceni filma "Toma"|date=2022-03-21|website=NOVA portal|language=sr-RS|access-date=2023-01-11}}

=''Pesma za Evroviziju''=

Zejna participated in the Pesma za Evroviziju '22 with the song "Nema te" and entered the final of this competition.{{Cite web|url=https://www.dan.co.me/zabava/video-zejna-murkic-pjesmu-nema-te-otpjevala-srcem-5109111|title=ДАН - (ВИДЕО) Зејна Муркић пјесму "Нема те" отпјевала срцем|last=Шаботић|first=Анела|date=2022-03-01|website=www.dan.co.me|access-date=2022-03-04}} The melody was written by Vladimir Maraš and the lyrics by Sanja Perić. Aca Sofronijević played the accordion.{{Cite web|url=https://www.vijesti.me/zabava/muzika/589756/najvaznije-je-da-imamo-dobru-pjesmu|title=Najvažnije je da imamo dobru pjesmu|website=vijesti.me|language=sr|access-date=2022-03-07}} In 2023, she participated in Pesma za Evroviziju '23 with the song "Rumba", which finished seventh place in the final, and was originally made for a musical.

On 21 December 2023, Zejna was announced among the participants of Pesma za Evroviziju '24, the {{esccnty|Serbia|y=2024|t=Serbian national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2024}}, with the song "Najbolja".{{cite web|url=https://eurovision.tv/story/serbia-pesma-za-evroviziju-details-announced|title=Serbia: 'Pesma za Evroviziju' details announced!|work=Eurovision.tv|publisher=European Broadcasting Union|date=December 21, 2023|access-date=December 21, 2023}} The song qualified for the final.{{cite web |last=Marín |first=Marc |title=Pesma za Evroviziju '24: seleccionados los 8 finalistas de la preselección serbia |trans-title=Pesma za Evroviziju '24: the eight finalists of the Serbian preselection have been selected |url=https://www.escplus.es/eurovision/2024/pesma-za-evroviziju-24-seleccionados-los-8-candidatos-que-completan-la-final-de-la-preseleccion-serbia/ |work=ESCplus España |date=1 March 2024 |access-date=1 March 2024 |language=es-ES}}

Discography

= Extended plays =

Nova Rasa (2024)

= Singles =

class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" ! rowspan="2" scope="col" \|Title ! rowspan="2" scope="col" \|Year !Peak chart positions ! rowspan="2" scope="col" \|Album
[https://popnable.com/serbia SRB]
"Absinthe" \|2019 \|— \| rowspan="8" \|Non-album singles
"Osmi dan" \|2020 \|—
"Nema te" \| rowspan="2" \|2022 \|—
"Petak" \|—
"Bez sjaja" \| rowspan="3" \|2023 \|—
"Kriva sam" \|—
"Rumba" \|78
"Najbolja" \|2024 \|88
colspan="4" \|"—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released in that territory. " * " denotes chart did not exist at that time.

class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"

! rowspan="2" scope="col" |Title

! rowspan="2" scope="col" |Year

!Peak chart

positions

! rowspan="2" scope="col" |Album

[https://popnable.com/serbia SRB]

"Absinthe"

|2019

|—

| rowspan="8" |Non-album singles

"Osmi dan"