Колония: История хорватской Eurodance-группы

Croatian dance music duo

Colonia is a Croatian dance music duo from Vinkovci, Croatia. The band has released thirteen albums and over 35 singles to date with various songs and albums gaining platinum status. They are known for winning the first ever Eurodance competition in 2001 and their various hits throughout the years.

Colonia was founded in 1996 by Boris Đurđević and Tomislav Jelić, two DJs from Vinkovci, Croatia. As the two of them did not sing, they later hired Indira "Ira" Vladić (from Županja) to become their vocalist. The name of the group comes from the ancient Latin name of Vinkovci, which was "Colonia Aurelia Cibalae". The first commercial release by the group was "Nek' vatre gore sve" in 1996. The song was sent to radio stations all over Croatia and enjoyed moderate success. The next single released was "Sve oko mene je grijeh" which charted on the Croatian national charts and became a hit. Colonia soon signed with the record company Crno bijeli svijet (CBS), which facilitated the release of their 1997 debut album Vatra i led which sold over 40,000 copies. The album was later re released as a thank you to fans as an LP with the original songs and new remixes.

In 2002, Colonia released their fifth album Izgubljeni svijet which features 13 new tracks and a DVD with their biography, discography, and music videos. The single "Oduzimaš mi dah" won the Croatian Radio Festival and became their second single in a row to become the most played song of the year in 2002. A few months later, The Best of, Volume 1 was released which included all of the hits and singles by the group. It features 13 new tracks including the hits "Najbolje od svega" and "Tako Sexy" along with remixes of both "Nema nade" and "Time". The album was also released in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. The tour started on July 19, 2006, in Umag, Croatia and ended on October 15, 2006, in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Colonia's last album with Croatia Records was Gold Edition, a compilation album containing their popular hits from their career at Croatia Records such as "Za tvoje snene oči", "Oduzimaš mi dah" and "Plamen od ljubavi". The album also includes 13 previously unreleased remixes.

On December 5, 2006, Colonia released their eighth studio album Do kraja, a modern dance album with Balkan and Croatian elements, after signing with Menart Records. Colonia performed on the show on October 19, 2007, as promotion for both the song and album. The song was also entered in "Eurodance 2007" where it placed 16th out of 41. The single "Pogledom me skini" was released with three remixes and music video. The song competed in the Croatian national selection for the OGAE Song Contest 2007, coming in fourth with 32 points. The contest is similar to the Eurovision Song Contest, but run by OGAE, the official fan club. Colonia released the last single "Fjaka" from the album and it reached number two on the Croatian charts becoming a summer hit and then on July 3, 2007, the group released a limited edition of Do kraja with a second disc featuring eight new remixes. Following the release of the last single, Colonia went on tour throughout Croatia and its bordering countries performing 17 concerts from June 6 to August 25, 2007. With the release of "Do kraja", Colonia renewed their contract with Serbian label City Records and HAYAT Records of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

On October 3, 2007, "Pod sretnom zvijezdom" was released to radio stations throughout Croatia as the first single from the upcoming album Pod sretnom zvijezdom and as a theme song for 2007 season of Big Brother (Croatia). The second single from the album, "Mirno more", was released on May 17, 2008, where it was performed at the "CMC Awards". On June 23, 2008, Colonia released its ninth studio album titled Pod sretnom zvijezdom which features 12 new tracks and a remix of "Sexy Body". It was soon re released as Pod sretnom zvijezdom: Limited Edition on December 8, 2008, and included a second disk with the single "Avantura zove me" from Big Brother and two remixes of it, along with ten remixes of other album songs. Đurđević also wrote the Hrvatski Idol winner's single "Treba mi snage za kraj" (I Need Strength For The End).

Between 2008 and 2017, the band has remained active, and they have released 3 more albums. X (Ten) in 2010, Tvrđava (Fortress) in 2013, and Fenix (Phoenix) in 2015. After 2015, the band was a little less active than in previous years. On May 31, 2017, popular Croatian newspapers Večernji list has announced that Indira Levak has left the band. At that time, it was still speculated whether the band will announce a new singer, or will completely cease to exist. On June 14, 2017, Croatian news portal Direktno has published an article, stating that the Boris Đurđević has announced a new singer, a 25 years old student of electronics, Ivana Lovrić. Following the announcement, the band has released their first single with a new singer on July 27, 2017: Que sera. It was followed by the second single Zadnja suza on March 6, 2018. Colonia's new album Nova Era (New Era) was announced on June 5, 2018.

Boris Đurđević became a DJ in Vinkovci in the early 1990s. Other than his involvement in Colonia, he was later the author of theme songs for the Croatian version of Big Brother reality show and as the songwriter for the Hrvatski Idol winner's single "Treba mi snage za kraj" (I Need Strength For The End). Tomislav Jelić is known as DJ Kameny, and had previously worked at the local hit radio station VFM in Vinkovci. Indira Vladić attended a music school as a child, and played clarinet in the local tin band. In 1993 she took the job in County General Administration Office and spent four years there until being approached by Boris Đurđević and offered a job in Colonia. She was married to Narcis Mujkić. They divorced in 2010, after nine years of marriage. Ivana Lovrić joined the band in mid 2017. She was first noticed by Luka Nižetić with whom she also recorded a duet song.