Aklea Neon

Aklea Neon
Birth nameDorotea Zovko
Born (1990-12-28) 28 December 1990 (age 33)
Osijek, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia
GenresWorld music
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • looping artist
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • loop
Years active2017–present
LabelsAquarius Records

Dorotea Zovko (born 28 December 1990), known professionally as Aklea Neon, is a travelling musician from Croatia, one woman band and eco-conscious activist.

Music career

Aklea Neon began her professional career as one of the vocalist in the Osijek-based vocal ensemble Brevis.[1] Aklea's debut single "Da mi je" was released on 21 January 2019 through Aquarius Records.[2] On 23 December 2019, Aklea was announced as one of the 16 participants in Dora 2020, the national contest in Croatia to select the country's Eurovision Song Contest 2020 entry, with the song "Zovi ju mama".[3]

In the final, held on 29 February 2020, she came seventh in the televote and fourth in the jury vote, placing fourth with 23 points.[4] On 17 January 2020, AKlea Neon was nominated for three Rock&Off Awards including Public's Choice and Best New Artist.[5] Through 2020 Aklea released two more singles, "Riba u kadi" and "Shika Shika", from her upcoming debut studio album. On 19 January 2021, Aklea Neon was announced as the winner in the Singer-songwriter of the Year category of Hrvatska radiotelevizija's Music Pub Awards.[6] On 24 February 2022, Aklea released her debut studio album Dođi na joji.[7] "Na dah" was released on the same day as the album's lead single.[8]

Artistry

Influences

Aklea cites Erykah Badu and Kaya Project as her biggest musical influences.[9] She has also been influenced by folk soul artists like Ibeyi and Fémina.[9]

Musical style and songwriting

Aklea uses her life experiences she gained from traveling as an inspiration in her work.[10]

Discography

Albums

Title Details
Dođi na joji

Singles

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
CRO
"Pola puta" 2019 — Non-album singles
"Da mi je" — Dođi na joji
"What I Want" —
"Zovi ju mama" 2020 —[A]
"Riba iz kade" — Non-album singles
"Shika Shika" — Dođi na joji
"Ljudnjak" 2021 —
"Na dah" 2022 —
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Nominee / work Result Ref.
2020 Rock&Off Awards Best New Artist Aklea Neon Nominated [5]
Best Electronic Artist Nominated
Public's Choice Nominated
2021 Music Pub Singer-songwriter of the Year Won [6]

Notes

  1. ^ "Zovi ju mama" did not enter the HR Top 40, but peaked at number 28 on the regional HR Top 100 (Istra i Primorje) chart.[11]

References

  1. ^ Drvodelić, Katarina (11 November 2019). "Aklea Neon novo je ime na sceni. Pjeva ritmični reggae, a nova pjesma uključivat će zvukove biljaka" (in Croatian). Super1. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  2. ^ Čelig, Goran (9 April 2019). "Osječka kantautorica Aklea Neon objavila prvi singl i spot za pjesmu "Da mi je"" (in Croatian). Novosti. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  3. ^ Herbert, Emily (23 December 2019). "Croatia: Dora 2020 Finalists Revealed". eurovoix. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  4. ^ Farren, Neil (29 February 2020). "Croatia: Damir Kedžo to Eurovision". eurovoix. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  5. ^ a b Kvorka, Tanja (17 January 2020). "Aklea Neon dobila 3 nominacije, a natječe se i Kandžijin album" (in Croatian). Glas Slavonije. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  6. ^ a b Komunikacije HRT-a (19 January 2021). "Na Hrvatskom radiju dodijeljen drugi dio glazbenih nagrada Music pub" (in Croatian). Hrvatska radiotelevizija. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  7. ^ "Aklea Neon objavila album prvijenac Dođi na joji" (in Croatian). Ravno Do Dna. 24 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  8. ^ "Aklea Neon predstavlja Dođi na joji - iščekivani album prvijenac" (in Croatian). tportal. 24 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  9. ^ a b Smojver, Magda (9 February 2019). "Inspirira me jutro i fina kava s prijateljicama kada niti jedna ne žuri i nova glazba, a najviše kad me grli netko koga volim". fashion.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  10. ^ Trstenjak, Maja (13 December 2019). "Aklea Neon - Tko je putujuća glazbenica koja je osvojila domaću glazbenu scenu". Sound Check (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  11. ^ "HR Top 100 10. tjedan 2020 (Istra i Primorje)". top-lista. Archived from the original on 24 January 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.