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Release Date: 14 November 2025
Label: CPL Music
Packaging Type: Digipak
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 4251329500788
Genres: World Music World Music
Description
An album like a radio show - a homage to Sevdah, Sarajevo and love. Divanhana hail from Sarajevo - that fascinating city where East and West have met for centuries. For 15 years, the band has been one of the leading ambassadors of Sevdah, the deeply emotional musical tradition of Bosnia and Herzegovina, often filled with longing, lost love, and nostalgia - a close relative of Fado or Morna.
With their sixth studio album Radio Sevdah, Divanhana pay tribute to a cultural institution: Radio Sarajevo. From the 1940s through the 1980s, the station produced the most important Sevdah recordings; it was both an archive and a meeting place for legendary artists. "We have always drawn inspiration from these recordings. That's why we conceived Radio Sevdah like a small radio broadcast and dedicated the album to this unique institution," explains bandleader Neven Tunjic.
The album unfolds like a radio program, with jingles, commentary, and musical interludes linking past and present. Traditional Sevdalinkas appear alongside new original compositions, which Divanhana enrich with their signature mix of jazz, classical, folk, pop, and electronic influences.
The band's new singer, Selma Droce, plays a defining role on this album. With a voice that moves between tenderness and passion, she interprets both classics and new pieces - from the melancholic opener "Biglisu slavuji" to the playful "Rijekama" and the hymn-like "Domovina." On "Sa Igmana pogledat je lijepo," Divanhana weave tradition and modernity with particular finesse: archival recordings merge with rap passages and jazz-inspired harmonies.
Humor and social commentary also have their place: "Primitivo" parodies the turbofolk genre, while "Palo kamlipe" is the first Romani song that Divanhana have ever composed themselves. Previous albums did include Romani songs, but these were written by other authors. The song is dedicated to the marginalized Roma community. Guest musicians such as Cypriot multi-instrumentalist Antonis Antoniou and Israeli jazz bassist Adam Ben Ezra add further brilliance.
With Radio Sevdah, Divanhana demonstrate why they are considered one of the most exciting voices of the Balkan music scene. They bring Sevdah into new soundscapes without losing its soul - telling stories of love, homeland, and memory that resonate far beyond Bosnia.
In recent years, the band has performed at major European festivals such as the Paleo Festival in Nyon, the Rudolstadt Festival, and Bardentreffen in Nuremberg. Radio Sevdah continues this international success story - an album between tradition and modernity, between Sarajevo and the world.
Their previous album achieved:
Tracklisting
The Henry Girls
The Baltic Sisters
Otava Yo
Otava Yo
Divanhana
Divanhana
Divanhana
