Sara Jo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sara Jo
Jovanović performing at the 2021 Belgrade Pride
Background information
Native name	Сара Јо
Birth name	Sara Jovanović
Born	(1993-10-29) 29 October 1993 (age 31) Rome, Italy
Origin	Belgrade, Serbia
Genres	Pop R&B dance-pop
Occupation(s)	Singer model actress
Years active	2011–present
Labels	IDJTunes Bassivity Digital
Associated acts	Moje 3 Coby Bojana Vunturišević Edita Franka

Sara Jovanović, known as Sara Jo, is a singer, songwriter, model, and actress from Serbia. She was born on October 29, 1993. Sara Jo was born in Rome, Italy. She became famous after competing in a singing show called Prvi glas Srbije (meaning 'The First Voice of Serbia') in 2012, where she came in 3rd place.

Later, she joined a girl group called Moje 3. With Moje 3, Sara Jo represented Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013. This big music competition was held in Malmö, Sweden. Their song was "Ljubav je svuda". They finished 11th in the semi-final, which meant they did not make it to the grand final.

Her first solo song, "Ko je ovde ko", came out in 2014. After that, she released many other popular songs. These include "Nemam vremena za to" (2017), "Mili mili" (2019), and "Muškarčina" (2022). Her first music album, Bez kontrole, was released in June 2023. It included the songs "Divlja" (2021) and "Zar ne" (2022).

Besides singing, Sara Jo also acted in the first season of Tvoje lice zvuči poznato. This show is like 'Your Face Sounds Familiar'. She has also acted in plays, on TV, and done voice acting. She has also worked as a model for fashion brands. She has worked with Adidas in Serbia for a long time.

Early Life and Interests

Sara Jovanović was born in Rome, Italy, on October 29, 1993. She grew up speaking both Serbian and Italian. She is the only child of Jasna, a kindergarten teacher, and Saša Jovanović, who worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In 2009, her family moved to Belgrade, Serbia, for good. Sara finished high school there at the Third Grammar School. After that, she studied the Italian language at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philology. From a young age, Sara loved music and performing. She practiced ballet and hip-hop dance. She has said that singers from the late 1990s and early 2000s inspired her. These include Britney Spears, TLC, Jennifer Lopez, and Destiny's Child.

Music Career

Starting Out and Eurovision

Moje 3, with Jovanović on the right, performing at a dress rehearsal of the 2013 Eurovision

Sara Jo won an amateur singing contest. This contest was held by a Serbian magazine called Story. She had been posting her song covers on YouTube. Because she won, she got to record her first song and music video, called "Zauvek". In October 2011, she performed "Zauvek" on the TV show Veče sa Ivanom Ivanovićem. The next year, she also sang on four songs by the rapper MCN. These songs were on his first album.

In 2012, Sara Jo tried out for the second season of the singing show Prvi glas Srbije. Her mentor was Aleksandra Radović. Sara Jo made it to the show's grand final and finished in third place. People really noticed her amazing stage presence during the live shows. The Serbian Cosmopolitan magazine called her "the new energy on the music scene."

The next year, the producers of Prvi glas Srbije created a girl group. It was called Moje 3. The group included Sara Jo and two other finalists, Mirna Radulović and Nevena Božović. They were formed to compete in the national contest to pick Serbia's song for the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest. On March 2, Moje 3 were chosen to represent Serbia at Eurovision 2013. The contest was held in Malmö, Sweden. Their song was "Ljubav je svuda". They won by getting 42.5% of the public votes. On May 14, they performed in the first semi-final of Eurovision. They finished 11th with 46 points. This meant they did not get to the grand final. Moje 3 also won the Barbara Dex Award for the worst-dressed act.

After Eurovision, Sara Jo worked with singer Marko Mandić on the song "Ujutru". It was released in June 2013. In September, Sara Jo joined the first season of the reality show Tvoje lice zvuči poznato. She finished as the runner-up to singer Ana Kokić. In June of the next year, Sara Jo released her first official solo song, "Ko je ovde ko". It was released under IDJTunes. She also sang a cover of "Provokacija" by Boban Rajović for the 2014 movie Little Buddho. Later, Sara Jo released the songs "Mahovina" in December 2014 and "Probaj" in July 2016. In 2016, she also sang with Mandić again. They covered "Troje" by Moby Dick for the film The Samurai in Autumn. On December 25, 2016, Sara Jo performed in her first play at Sava Centar. She played Cinderella in a musical play. This play later went on tour around Serbia.

New Music and Success

In May 2017, Sara Jo released the song "Nemam vremena za to". It was produced by Coby and released under a new music label called Bassivity Digital. This song's music video was her first to get over ten million views on YouTube. In the same year, she worked with Tuborg GreenFest on the song "Samo ti". This song used parts of Major Lazer's "Tuborg Beat". "Samo ti" was released through Universal Music Group. After that, the song "Lava" was released in May 2018.

Then came "Bez sna" and "Mili, mili" in January and June 2019. During her summer tour in 2019, Sara Jo performed for the first time at the Exit music festival. She performed with other artists from Bassivity. In the same year, she had a role in the TV series Sinđelići. Sara Jo also helped guide singers in a contest by Coca-Cola, called Discovered by Coke. Her contestant, Predrag Simić, won the competition. They also released a song together called "Kao nikad pre".

On January 27, 2020, Sara Jo performed a mix of her hit songs at the 2020 Music Awards Ceremony. This event was held in the Belgrade Arena. In April, she released "Kaži mi". The next July, Sara Jo worked with Edita Aradinović on the song "Varalica". She performed with Marija Šerifović and Jelena Karleuša at the 2022 New Year's Eve concert. This concert was held in front of the House of the National Assembly in Belgrade.

In February 2022, it was announced that Sara Jo would compete in the national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022. The show was called Pesma za Evroviziju '22. Her song was "Muškarčina". Based on how many views it got on YouTube, Sara Jo was thought to be a favorite to win. She came in first place in the second semi-final on March 4. But in the final on March 5, she finished as the runner-up. Konstrakta and her song "In corpore sano" won. "Muškarčina" reached number 12 on Billboard's Croatia Songs chart.

Debut Album and Future

On June 21, 2023, Sara Jovanović released her first album, Bez kontrole. It was released under Bassivity Digital. Before the album, she had released the songs "Divlja" (2022) and "Zar ne?" (2022).

Activism and Charity

Sara Jo is known for supporting LGBT rights in Serbia. In 2019, she was given the title of "Godmother" of the Belgrade Pride event. In August 2021, she also performed at the closing event of WorldPride in Copenhagen.

In November 2013, Sara Jo, along with Tropico Band and Dženan Lončarević, sang on a charity song called "Milio sam anđele". This song helped raise money for a young woman who had a serious illness. In October 2020, she spoke at the TEDxMasarikova conference in Zenica. There, she talked about her personal challenges with being famous. In 2021, Sara Jo also became an ambassador for the Council of Europe. She works with them to fight against hate speech.

Personal Life

Sara Jovanović was in a relationship with volleyball player Aleksandar Atanasijević for about a year. They broke up in May 2014. In February 2015, it was reported that she was dating Serbian actor Viktor Savić [sr]. They broke up the next year. Between 2016 and 2018, she was in a relationship with rapper and writer Marčelo.

She is currently in a relationship with Žiga Sotlar, a choreographer from Slovenia.

Discography

Studio Albums

Singles

As lead artist

Promotional singles

Other Appearances

Film and Television

Film Roles

Television Appearances

Awards and Nominations