Jovana and Dunja have the honour of representing Serbia this year with their powerful ballad "Oči deteta" ("Children's Eyes"). Here is all the information you need on Jovana and Dunja and their song!
Who are Dunja and Jovana?
Dunja and Jovana are from the Serbian city Novi Sad, which has been designated as the European Capital of Culture for 2022, and they describe their hometown as “somewhere everyone can find something wonderful for themselves.”
Dunja is 11 years old and has been a performer from a very young age. She just took first place in a regional school music competition. Jovana is ten years old and has always had a passion for music and dancing. She is currently practicing her skills on the piano and attends several festivals.
How did they get selected?
The duo was selected by a jury at RTS from a total of seven submissions received for the contest in Paris. They have been among the four acts that were selected to go through to a super final, the other three finalists were:
- Tara Šujeranović – ‘Osmeh’
- Sara Simić & Tomislav Božović – ‘Dete od snova’
- Veljko Kovačević – ‘U dobru i u zlu’
Tell us about the song!
The song has been written and composed by the pianist Ana Frlin and will be performed by Jovana and Dunja. It is a beautiful ballad about seeing the world through children’s eyes. The emotional and powerful song contains a positive message and spreads good energy (“A grain of hope germinated in children’s eyes like a warm word fed by the sun”).
Scroll down to vote for your favourite song from Junior Eurovision 2021...
Sing along to 'Children's Eyes': Lyrics
Serbian
U suzi dečje tuge sva su mora sveta.
U uplašenom oku celo nebo stane.
A u zrnu nade, u sredini cveta, Suncu šire ruke oči deteta.
U njima je pesma ko more duboka.
O beskrajnom nebu, o Suncu što greje.
O svetu u kome je sve baš kako treba kad se dete voli, kad se dete smeje.
Očima deteta sve se vidi, sve se zna I sva mora su u maloj suzi protkana.
U očima deteta zrno nade proklija Kao topla reč Suncem hranjena.
Oči deteta.
Oči deteta svu lepotu sveta najlepšom čuvaju.
U njima vile, vilenjaci, lutke i pajaci najlepše, najlepše snivaju.
I kad Sunce igri prepusti dane i ko neku čigru zavrti naš svet u ritmu svih planeta neka bolje svane da radosne se bude oči deteta.
Očima deteta sve se vidi, sve se zna I sva mora su u maloj suzi protkana.
U očima deteta zrno nade proklija Kao topla reč Suncem hranjena.
Oči deteta.
Očima deteta sve se vidi, sve se zna I sva mora su u maloj suzi protkana.
U očima deteta zrno nade proklija Kao topla reč Suncem hranjena.
Oči deteta.
English translation
In the tears of a child’s sorrow are all the seas of the world
In a frightened eye the whole sky stands.
And in a grain of hope, in the center of a flower, the children’s eyes open the arms to the sun.
There is a song in them deep like the sea.
About the endless sky, about the sun that heats.
About a world where everything is just as it should be when a child is loved, when a child laughs.
Children‘s eyes can see and know everything and all the seas are interwoven in a tiny tear.
A grain of hope germinated in children’s eyes like a warm word fed by the sun.
Children’s eyes.
All the beauty of the world is cherished as such in children‘s eyes.
In them fairies, elves, dolls, and clowns dream the most beautiful dreams.
And when the Sun makes room for play every day and like a spinning top spins our world in the rhythm of all the planets may it dawn better to joyfully awaken the children‘s eyes.
Children‘s eyes can see and know everything and all the seas are interwoven in a tiny tear.
A grain of hope germinated in children’s eyes like a warm word fed by the sun.
Children’s eyes.
Children‘s eyes can see and know everything and all the seas are interwoven in a tiny tear.
A grain of hope germinated in children’s eyes like a warm word fed by the sun.
Children’s eyes.
Serbia at Junior Eurovision
Serbia’s participation in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest began in Bucharest, Romania in 2006, after previously competing in 2005 as part of Serbia and Montenegro. Radio Television of Serbia (RTS), a member of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), is in charge of the selection procedure. For its participation in the contests between 2006 and 2010, Serbia adopted for the national selection format, broadcasting a show called Izbor za deju pesmu Evrovizije (Serbian Cyrillic: ор а дeиу есму вровиие).
Nevena Bozovic, who later went on to represent Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 as part of her band, Moje 3 and again in 2019 as a soloist, represented the country in 2007. Serbia’s greatest results were in both 2007 and 2010, when it placed third in both contests. Between 2011 and 2013, there were only three absences from the competition.
Serbia returned to the competition in 2014, represented by Emilija Đonin, who was chosen internally by the national broadcaster RTS.
It is one of three nations (along with Belarus and Kazakhstan) to have made their debut in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest without having previously competed in the adult version.
POLL: Which is your favourite song from Junior Eurovision 2021?
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