"I've got no interest in making records for a few people in their bedrooms to prove to their mates how cool they are. I can't understand that ghetto mentality: you spend all that time working in a studio, and dealing with record companies and publishers, and you still want to remain underground at the end of it!" (Jacques Lu Cont)
Milan Stanković a.k.a. SevdahBABY : Biography
How it all began…
Behind the pseudonym SevdahBABY is an artist that through his work explores the use of elements of Balkan musical traditions in the context of contemporary electronic music, from broken beat and cosmic disco experiments to clean club beats and electro-pop songs. He is not afraid of mixing different musical cultures, not afraid of being accused of heresy from neither audience: for example, from the mainstream or folk music on one hand and representatives of the urban club culture on the other hand. He strongly believes that music is universal, and the Balkan Sevdah is equal to American blues, or Brazilian tristessa.
The Local Popularity
From the moment that the first song appeared in Serbian language on YouTube from the performers SevdahBABY (Srdjan Jul's "Koketa" remix) great interest was created about this artist's work. After the appearance of "3 Poljupca", the question was raised "who is SevdahBABY"? Is that the guy with the disco folk hat? Or is it the whole band with couple of beautiful ladies behind the microphones? Are they from Serbia, or from Bosnia (because of Sevdah)? Or from Croatia because of the emphasis in the song "3 Poljupca"? the dilemma is partly solved with the album "Ganc novi FUNK!", which was initially introduced to the internet audience in June 2010 through the website galamagalama.com. So, behind the name SevdahBABY is Milan Stankovic, a music producer and DJ, while SevdahBABY LIVE is collective of people that Milan works with for the songs and performances. This collective consists of: Lou Benny, Sobaja, Andreja Jovanovic, DJ Prema, as well as young Djixx.
Experience in music production
-Milan Stankovic as SevdahBABY composed most of the soundtrack for the Slovenian feature film "Tu pa tam" that was directed in 2004 by young Slovenian director Mitja Okorn. That year "Tu pa tam" was on the top of domestic movies.
-He published numerous digital and CD releases as SevdahBABY
-He composed and produced music for over 200 fourty-minute TV-series episodes (Croatian AVA production) and numerous commercials and student films
-Participated in three international remix contests,l of which the two won under the pseudonym Brut Van Daal. (Bear Who? – Beatbox Remix Contest 2007 and Olav Basoski Remix Contest 2008)
-Participated in Beovizija 2009 with the song "Previse Reci". Guest vocal on that song was Miki Element (ex Fifth Element)
-Milan Stankovic in June 2010 in cooperation with SevdahBABY LIVE collective published the first official SevdahBABY album "Ganc Novi FUNK!" on the galamagalama.com web site. The album "Ganc Novi FUNK!" is a product of desires of the producer Milan Stankovic a.k.a. SevdahBABY to introduce to the Balkan audience, but also a product of enormous creative energy of all the people who participated in it. This album is primarily a story about a party, one night in Belgrade on a typical urban party.
SevdahBABY performances
SevdahBABY performs live in four different formations: DJ set, LIVE PA w / Djixx, LIVE PA and LIVE.
SevdahBABY DJ set is the basic form of performance. As SevdahBABY DJ Milan Stankovic appears since 2007. He has performed in many clubs Belgrade (including the most popular among them, such as Plastic, Exile,Apartman, Tube, Batler), all over Serbia and the former Yugoslavia. He has performed at the prestigious EXIT festival in Novi Sad in 2007, 2009 and 2010 at the dance arena. Since the end of 2009 SevdahBABY is also a member of Selected DJs organization.
SevdahBABY LIVE PA w/Djixx is one-hour set of SevdahBABY songs spiced with few bold works on current club hits. The role of MC in this display takes Djixx that emerged as the main female vocalist SevdahBABY Live collective. In this formation Milan is a DJ, talkboxer and percussionist.
SevdahBABY LIVE PA is a performance similar of the above mentioned with addition of two unique male vocalists: Lou Benny and Sobaja. Both give their specific charm of this set in their own way. SevdahBABY LIVE is the complete setup representing to the fullest the idea of combining the best of both worlds: the power of digital programmed music as matrices on one hand, and the beauty of live performance of experienced instrumentalists on the other hand.
SevdahBABY LIVE band performs with the following members:
– Djixx – female vocal
– Milan Stankovic – vocal, guitar, talkbox
– Lou Benny – MC
– Sobaja – disco singer
– Andrea Jovanovic – drums
– Dj Prema – scratch, matrices, effects
SevdahBABY : Discography
As SevdahBABY:
1. Tu Pa Tam soundtrack, 2005. Dallas Records, Slovenia
2. Various Assets, 2005. Red Bull Music Academy
3. VA Balkan Beats Vol.2, 2006. Eastblok Music, Berlin
4. VA 2911 EP, 2006. Home Made Electronica, Croatia
5. Various Artists – Beovizija 2009, PGP-RTS, Srbija
6. Ganc novi FUNK! 2010. galamagalama.com, Srbija
As Brutt Van Daal:
1. 2 semitones, please EP, 2007. Strike Recordings, Colombia
2. BearWho?-Beatbox remix contest, 2007. Dust Traxx, Chicago
