In cooperation with our partners songfestival.web-log.nl, we present to you a different 2006 Eurovision Song Contest participant each day. Today: Bosnia & Herzegovina!
Semifinal, spot 22 in the running order
Performer: Hari Mata Hari
Song: Lejla
Lyrics: Fahrudin Pecikoza en Dejan Ivanovic
Music: �eljko Joksimovic
Official website: hari-mata-hari.20m.com
Best result: : 7th in 1999
Broadcaster: PBS BiH
Multimedia: video / audio
Bosnia & Herzegovina and the Eurovision Song Contest
Bosnia & Herzegovina began participating as an independent nation at the contest in 1993, after winning one of the three places for the Millstreet event in a special newcomer nations preselection in Ljubljana. Since then, its Eurovision Song Contest entries have been somewhat poor cousins to neighbouring Croatia's collection of high placings, although twice – in 1999 and 2004 – has the country broken into the top ten.
This year, the Bosnian broadcaster opted to select the song internally, and both the performer and writing team already have a Eurovision connection. The group Hari Mata Hari was lined up to sing Starac i more at the 1999 contest in Jerusalem, before the song was disqualified following accusations of plagiarism. The composer of Hari Mata Hari's 2006 entry is none other than �eljko Joksimovic, who sang Serbia & Montenegro to a debut second placing at the 2004 contest.
Hari Mata Hari
Hari Vare�anovic is the voice behind Hari Mata Hari, celebrated as the nightingale of Sarajevo after his home town, where he was born in 1961. Hari was a member of Ambasadori, who represented Yugolsavia in 1976, although his stint with the band was long after the Eurovision Song Contest performance. It was the group Baobab and his membership of it that led to the creation of Hari Mata Hari after the Nove nadae, nove snage festival of 1985. The band changed its name to the current one, and Hari Mata Hari was born.
Lejla
Niz polje vjetar miri�e
I bol me prati kao sjena
Dal negdje za mnom uzdi�e�
Gdje si od mene sakrivena
U kosu stavi ruzmarin
I jedan cvijet kraj �adrvana
Lejla
Zar bi mogla ti drugog voljeti
Golube, moj golube
nosi joj suze mjesto pjesme
Ako te sutra zaprose
Znaj tamo neæu biti ja
Lako se tuge oproste
Al samo ljubav nikada
Zar bi mogla ti drugog voljeti
Golube, moj golube
nosi joj suze mjesto pjesme
Ja odlazim ko da sam kriv
�to voljeh onu koju ne smijem
Golube, moj golube
Nosi joj suze mjesto pjesme
Odlazim ko da sam kriv
�to voljeh tebe koju ne smijem
�to voljeh tebe
Lejla
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