Mate Mišo Kovač, one of the most famous and popular singers of the Croatian music scene, died at the age of 85, the Index.hr portal announced, citing sources close to the singer. During almost five decades of his career, he sold more than 20 million records and marked the music scene of the former Yugoslavia.
He was born on July 16, 1941 in Šibenik, where he spent his childhood. He started his musical journey as a sixteen-year-old, and achieved his first significant success in 1961, when he shared first place at the First Voice of Šibenik competition.
He soon moved to Zagreb, where in 1964 he signed a contract with the record label Jugoton. The song “Više se nećeš postrić”, published in 1969, brought him great success, after which he became one of the best-selling singers of the then Yugoslavia.
Songs that marked generations
By winning the Split Festival in 1971 with the song “Proplakat će zora”, he further strengthened his status as a great musical star. Decades of success and songs that became part of the region’s musical heritage followed, including “Ostala si alway same”, “If you leave me”, “Sutra mi sude”, “You are the song of my soul” and “Others untangle her hair, and I love her”.
His distinctive appearance, mustache, glasses and performances in front of tens of thousands of people made him a unique phenomenon on the music scene. He was named singer of the year five times, and in 1989 he was named person of the year in Yugoslavia.
Personal tragedies and a return to the stage
The 1990s were marked by severe family tragedies. In 1992, he lost his sixteen-year-old son Edi, who died in Zagreb under unexplained circumstances. After his death, he held the “Night of Candles” concert in Split’s Poljud, in front of about 50,000 people, and announced his retirement from the stage.
In January 1999, after a long period of struggle with depression, he attempted suicide by shooting himself in the chest. He survived, and then returned to music, continued recording albums and performing.
In 2012, he was awarded Porina for his lifetime achievement.
A musical legacy that endures
Mišo Kovač will be remembered for the songs that gathered audiences for decades, but also for the unique relationship he had with his listeners. His concerts were marked by moments when he would put down the microphone, while thousands of people would sing his songs.
He leaves behind a discographic legacy that has rarely been achieved by anyone on the Croatian music scene, with songs that have long outgrown the time frame in which they were created.
