Eugen Stjepan Višić is a young Croatian actor from Trogir, among the other roles he acted in a Netflix film and attended musical workshops in London. For his music career he goes as eugen and it is his first time competing at Dora, he will be performing the song “tišine”

Hello eugen, you are an actor and a singer can you tell us how were your musical beginnings and when did it all start?
Ever since my childhood I was interested in all kinds of arts. My parents often say that I showed a love for music from very young age so my beginnings, even musical ones, are children’s festivals where I performed and won awards like Split Music Fest.

What inspired you to take part at this year’s edition of Dora?
I like to live in the moment, that’s my philosophy. At a moment not so long ago we (my team and I) realized that we have a good thing, a good song. We felt it was the right moment and decided to do something about it. I believe that entering the Dora competition shows how good the song actually is, considering that I had never released a single until that point.

Can you tell us a bit about ‘tišine’ how did it came to life and what does the song mean for you?
The lyrics were created a few years ago out of an inner need to express myself after a stressful event. ‘tišine’ (silence) was sitting in a drawer with other songs. One evening after hanging out, my friend Anya G asked me to show her the lyrics I had. She then came across “tišine” and immediately said that she needed peace and silence to write music because those words instantly awakened her creative process.

When we showed the song to a small circle of friends, among whom was the very known Croatian producer and arranger Mihovil Šoštarić Lockroom, their reactions told us more than words. We realized we had a good thing that we wanted everyone to hear. When we started working in the studio, we were led by the idea of our song being on the big stage of the Eurovision Song Contest!

What can we expect from your performance at Dora 2024 given the fact that you will be cooperating with Jasmin Cvišić, the man behind the performances of Konstrakta and Luke Black?
First of all, I hope that the audience will like the song and the overall visual story that we are preparing for the performance. I am surrounded by professionals and colleagues who turn my visions and ideas into reality. For now, I can reveal that it will be a dim and emotional performance.

‘tišine’ has entered the Croatian top 40 chart at #3 how seeing that made you feel?
The feeling when you see that a song you believe in resonated so well with the audience and on Croatian radios is indescribable. Such feedback gives me encouragement and motivation for an even better live performance.

Given the fact that some fans see you among the favourites to win Dora 2024 do you feel pressured by that? What would it mean for you to win and represent Croatia at Eurovision 2024?
I am most honored seeing the audience considers my song ‘tišine’ to be one of the best songs on Dora this year. It’s honestly hard to believe, because I’ve had no direct touch with the music industry prior to this for a while now. This kind of pressure is a positive motivation to achieve the best possible result. Representing Croatia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden would be a privilege for me, and also to share that big stage with artist from Europe whom I’d much like to meet.

What do you find easier, being a young actor or a young singer in Croatia? Do you prefer acting or singing?
I love music and acting equally. Art is a calling and I live my life to the fullest with that thought. Right now I want to focus on my music career, but I don’t want to neglect acting either. Everything will be as it should be, so I believe.

Do you watch Eurovision regularly, what is your favourite song from the contest?
I watch Eurovision regularly every year. I also watch San Remo, so my favorite musicians are the Italians, who conquer audiences all over Europe with their sophisticated minimalism and excellent music. I think that the best songs live long after Eurovision or any other festival or contest.

If you could chose a musician to record a duet with who would it be and which style of the song would the two of you perform?
This is a difficult question… I appreciate a lot of artists and performers and I think that everyone is special in their own way. If I had to choose someone, one musician to record a duet with, it would be Mahmood. He seems like a cool guy and I love his music.

What do you do when you are not acting, creating music and singing? Any hobbies?
Although I don’t have much of it, I like to spend my free time with my friends. Whether we are on some kind of road trip, excursion or at someone’s house with board games I love spend time with them because they bring me so much joy. Also, I am passionate about tennis and cooking so that are my two hobbies, if ‘cooking’ can be called hobby. As I have a very busy schedule, I enjoy my free time and sometimes try not to do anything at all. It seems to me that people have forgotten about the beauty of boredom which can stimulate creativity and imagination, at least in my case.

What are your plans after Dora 2024?
I have a lot of plans after Dora. I plan to focus on new songs, but I also have theater performances and new roles waiting for me. There’s gonna be a lot of shows during next spring and summer. This year is going to be very busy, and to be honest, I love the look of the work and performance that I’ll have to put in.

Thank you so much for your time Eugen. We wish you the best of luck at Dora 2024. Do you want to share something else or you maybe have a message for readers of escbubble?
Thank you for your time and interest to do an interview with me. I’m grateful to share my story and music with escbubble readers. To everyone who is reading this interview I want to say only one thing: Believe in your dreams because we can only make them true through our belief.

eugen will perform as 6th act of the first semi-final which is set to take place on Thursday 22nd of February. You can watch the official music video of “tišine” below