Zana Messia
Michelle Sangalli
About Zana Messia
An established performer across the Balkans, Zana Messia, has gained a solid reputation as a singer-songwriter, appearing regularly on screen, stage and radio. Her voice embodies the spirit and emotion of Balkan Roma music and flirts with r&b, soul and jazz. The result is a pure cross-cultural blend of the traditional and contemporary, with influences that stay true to her rich Balkan roots and her passion for jazz standards. Her music has been referred to as "Balkan Soul” or "World Soul". A typical set list might include Zana's original material, jazz standards and a few gypsy standards in Roma language. Zana has recently placed her music in domestic and internationally released films including her song "If You're Wondering", featured in the movie "The Lightkeepers", which was submitted to AMPAS for consideration as "Best Original Song" in the 2010 Academy Awards. Zana’s band"The Balkan Soul Orchestra" has had notable performances at well known venues including: The Mint, House Of Blues, The Pasadena Music Festival, The Walk Of Fame festival. Zana's background alone is a whirlwind ride. She spent her early childhood in Mostar in the former Yugoslavia, learning to play piano and winning local dance contests. But her musical sensibilities were quickly curtailed at the age of 11 - war broke out in Bosnia/Herzegovina. Her family was forced to sell their possessions in exchange for bus tickets, and flee as refugees to Sweden. Despite the upheaval, Zana resumed her music studies, and her talent soon came to the attention of world-renowned jazz pianist and vocal coach, Steven A. Garrick (worked with Frank Sinatra, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin). He took the precocious singer under his wing, tutoring her until his untimely passing, when Zana was just 13. Undeterred by the loss of her mentor, she recorded her first demo at the age of 15, and immediately landed a record offer with Sony Music Sweden. By 16, the rising star had performed in front of a television audience of 20,000 in Sarajevo. In 2006, Zana moved back to her war-shattered hometown Mostar to work as the "Musical Director" at United World College. Zana's two EPs, Gotta Stop and Talk to me, released by Universal Music Sweden have drawn attention of major magazines and radio stations. After a live gig on Swedish national television, the Swedish newspaper "Metro" wrote that "Balkan is the new Jamaica" and another, well known daily magazine Aftonbladet called Zana's music "a different kind of soul". Her videos, Gotta Stop, Never Loved This Way, Teces mi u venama (in Bosnian) have been in heavy rotation on Balkan music channels, while live performances have included appearances at festivals and venues in Scandinavia, The Balkans and US. She has written with and for many notable producers as well as artists. Her songs have so far been released on Universal, Sony BMG and Virgin EMI. Her band, The Balkan Soul Orchestra are working on their debut album and a video shoot for the single "My Invention Of You" is forthcoming.
Taken from Last.fm
131 listeners · 214 plays via Last.fm