After seven years of internal selections, and a couple of years of taking a break from Eurovision, Montenegro is organizing Montevizija where their participant for Lisbon is going to be selected. One of the five finalists of this selection is Ivana Popovic Martinovic, who will try and win the hearts of the public with her song “Poljupci” next Saturday, in order to fly the Montenegrin flag in Lisbon.

We had a great pleasure to chat with Ivana Popovic Martinovic, and in between other things, she spoke to us about her career so far, the “birth” of her Montevizija entry, and gave us a hint of what type of a song we can expect. Check out everything she told us in this interview right here:

Hello Ivana! Thank you for taking your time out for talking to us. For the start of this interview, what can you tell us about yourself and your career so far?

I started my music career in the first “Pop Idol” of Serbia and Montenegro back in 2004, where I was one of the finalists. Afterwards I took part in a similar competition in Montenegro, called “Intro – karaoke” which I won, and thus entered the music festival “Suncane Skale”. I won the first show with the song “Odlazim”, and qualified for the final. This year full of victories was fantastic for me. The following year I was a finalist in Montevizija with the song “U oku tvom”, which is still being played even today in the radios, and people ask me to sing it whenever I perform somewhere. All the songs that followed up, all the festivals and competitions are the continuation of my huge passion and love for this job. Even though I had a couple of short breaks in my career due to giving birth to two children, I still perform with even more appetite and creativity, new ideas and new songs.

How did you decide to enter Montevizija again this year?

I recorded two new songs last summer, and I was getting ready to promote them during autumn. But the official announcement that Montevizija will be held again triggered my curiosity, and I put all my plans aside. I submitted both of these songs and this is the result – one of them made it to the top five, which made me super happy.

What was your first reaction when you found out that your song has made it?

The whole story of Eurovision in Lisbon has one of my private backgrounds, and a lot of internal jokes regarding traveling to Portugal, even from before last year’s Eurovision. All this distracted me from the real possibility to qualify for the competition. So I was a bit surprised, and I wasn’t expecting so much to qualify. Still, it all turned out fantastic! I’m now looking forward to the new, and now slightly different preparations for the song “Poljupci”.

What can you tell us about “Poljupci”? What type of a song can we expect, and who is in the team behind it?

I can’t say too much. It will be performed for the very first time on the 17th of February, and it would be weird if I had to describe the song. What I can say shortly is that it’s a slow song, it’s full of good feelings, and inspired by love and tenderness.

Is this the first time you worked together with Slavko Milovanovic, who wrote “Poljupci”?

Slavko is a friend of mine from the “Intro – karaoke” competition. A few years after this competition when he moved to Belgrade, that is when this melody was born and he sent it to me. My husband wrote the lyrics for the song even back then, and the meaning of the whole thing hasn’t changed even today. It was only adjusted to the sensibility of my vocals right now.

Do you already have some ideas how everything is going to be during your performance in Montevizija?

Of course I do, but let’s just keep it a secret for now. I have various plans, and there’s still time for both small and big changes, so I don’t want to say much in advance.

What would it mean to you to represent Montenegro in Eurovision in Portugal?

It would be an amazing and beautiful journey for me. An experience we all desire, and that is a professional performance on a huge stage. It would mean a lot in the sense of trust that my public would show me for picking me, as the public will be the only judge in Montevizija. I would also be very proud of myself. I do this job with full honesty, and without giving up, and that would mean that a sincere emotion won people’s hearts in the same way.

Why should you be the one to win Montevizija?

I can’t say that I absolutely must win, but I would love to have that moment in my career. Without a doubt, it would be amazing, and I am well up to the task to represent my country, my song, and myself as well to the European audience.

What inspires you mainly?

I’m inspired by people, their relationship between each other, delicate situations in these relationships, but also my children. New people, new places, travels… Life, in every sense. I love nature, as nature gives me a good recovery from the crowded city and not so regular sleep due to the nature of my job.

What sort of music do you normally listen to in your free time?

I love discovering and researching new and not so well-known artists, so there’s a lot of less known musicians, instrumentalists, exotic, ethnic, experimental music in my playlist. Of course, I also follow what happens in the world music scene, also on the local one, but there has to be some sort of a counterweight in order to keep the balance in music.

When you are not performing, what do you like to be doing?

I love the contact I have with my audience. I have a feeling that I can see everyone separately. I love to look for this kind of contact, even if it’s just an eye-contact. I love to relax, and occasionally spontaneously start dancing.

Did you watch Eurovision in the last couple of years, and have you got your own favorite Eurovision song?

I wasn’t really watching it as closely as I used to, as I used to also write down my own points as well in the past, so I don’t actually have one favorite song. There were lots of songs in the past that I really love even today, but I can’t even narrow it down to a couple of songs, and definitely not to just one single song 🙂

Thank you very much for your time Ivana, and we wish you the best of luck in Montevizija!

Thank you so much for your time and for interviewing me.

To keep up with all the latest news on Ivana Popovic Martinovic, make sure you follow her on Facebook. Whilst we are waiting to her “Poljupci”, you can check out her entry from the last Montevizija – “U oku tvom”, right here: