Esma Redzepova

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Esma Redepova-Teodosievska (8 August 1943 – September 11, 2016) was a Macedonian singer, songwriter, and Romani ethnic phileshism.

She began performing in the 1950s and has continued to perform for hundreds of songs, as well as her contributions to Roma culture and its promotion.

Stevo Teodosievski, a composer, arranger, and producer of a musical ensemble, was instrumental in her musical success. Ansambl Teosievski, composer, arranger, and director of a musical ensemble.

He performed many of her songs and effectively controlled her career from 1997 to 1997.

Traditional Roma and Macedonian music influenced her musical style.

Pop music is also present, as shown by these influences.

Esma Redepova began her career in Yugoslavia, where Romani music was greatly denigrated, and Roma people deemed it offensive for women to perform in public.

Redepova was one of the first artists to perform in Romani language on radio and television. She was known for her dynamic and emotional presence.

By NPR, a major American media company, she was cited as one of the world's top voices in 2010.

Redepova was also praised for her extravagant outfits and turbans, as well as the use she made of common stereotypes of Roma women, such as sensuality and happiness.

Macedonian President Gjorgje Ivanov granted the Macedonian Order of Merit in 2010 and the Republic of Macedonia's National Artist of the Republic of Macedonia in 2013. She raised 47 children and received numerous awards for her charitable work.

She advocated Roma and female rights, and was also active in local politics in Skopje, Croatia. Redepova performed Macedonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 in Malmö, Sweden, alongside Vlatko Lozanoski.

Early life and background

Redepova was born in Skopje, at a time when Bulgarians annexed the kingdom of Bulgaria, but the region was restored to Yugoslavia in 1944. She was the second youngest of six children in a Romani family. While her mother was a Muslim Romani from uto Orizari, her paternal grandfather was a Catholic Romani and her grandmother an Iraqi Jew. However, other reports said she was born in Toopane, a poor Xoraxane Muslim Roma family.

Ibrahim, who had lost a leg in a German bombing in Skopje in 1941, served as a porter, circus strongman, and shoe shiner. He sang and played drums, and he's often appeared at weddings. All of Redepova's children accompanied him. Her mother, who was a seamstress, was a seamstress.

Redepova was introduced by one of her brothers to a local Romani music group, where she was able to quickly learn complicated rhythms at age nine. Redepova and her brother joined their school's folklore group after her mother encouraged her musical abilities. Her parents insisted that their children finish primary school. However, they had orthodox views and wished Esma to marry in her teens and become a housewife. Nonetheless, their daughter was emancipated and would wear fashionable dresses instead of dimije, the traditional Romani girl dress of the time.

Personal life

In 1968, Esma Redepova married Stevo Teodosievski, her boss. He was 19 years older than her mother when she was born in 1924. He died in 1997. They never had children of their own, but 47 children were abandoned or homeless, and 47 were denied. They raised 5 of them under their roof and made sure the others were safe and educated.

Esma Redepova was known for her chic style. She wore heavy jewelry and colorful turbans often. She had a collection of over 300 turbans.

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Music career

In 1956, Redepova's head teacher suggested that she participate in a school talent competition for Radio Skopje. She went without informing her parents, who did not want her to go on following her older sister's footsteps, who began performing in cafes at age 17. Such a profession was seen as ineffective or shameful for an unmarried girl among Romani people.

Redepova performed "A bre babi sokerd'an," a Macedonian Romani traditional song. It was the first time a song in Romani had been broadcast on the radio. Redepova dominated the competition, defeating 57 other colleges and winning 9,000 dinars. When Redepova's parents heard about her triumph, they were angry and reluctant to allow her to pursue a musical career. At that time, Romani singers were still working in cafes and restaurants.

Stevo Teodosievski, a Macedonian singer and band frontman, was captivated by Red's appearance at the competition and wished she could join his musical group. Teodosievski, a self-taught man who came from a poor background, was the founder of Ansambl Teodosievski's huge folk musical troupe. He served with Radio Skopje and was a member of Macedonia's League of Communists.

Teodosievski, who was part of a local establishment, was somewhat of a visionary in the belief that Romani music would be respected and popular among non-Romani people one day. Romani music in Yugoslavia at the time was disregarded and not suitable for radio or television. Moreover, bigotry against Romani people in Macedonia and throughout Yugoslavia was common in Macedonia and beyond, and even Romani civilians had a negative opinion of Romani singers, especially female ones. Romani singers rarely sang in Romani on radio or television and hid their roots, which is why they became popular in Romani before Redepova. Even before meeting Redepova and being chastised for his efforts, Teodosievski had been supporting Romani music, and had been chastised in the media for it. However, Redepova did help him achieve his aspirations and perhaps become one of the country's most popular artists. He begged Redepova's parents to let her go with him and join his ensemble.

Teodosievski was not entirely satisfied with Redepova's voice when they met in Skopje. She was encouraged to work for long hours and enroll at the Academy of Music in Belgrade, where she studied for two years.

She joined the Ansambl Teodosievski team after Redepova left the Academy of Music in Belgrade, Serbia, and began touring. The Ansambl first traveled to Zagreb, Croatia, in 1961, beating Redepova's first record. It was released by Juvenion and included "A bre babi" as well as "Chaje Shukarije," a song Redepova wrote herself. The song, which was sung in Romani, became a huge hit in Yugoslavia.

The 1960s and 1970s were particularly fruitful for the couple. They produced several albums and EPs, as well as being featured on radio and TV shows. The bulk of the songs performed by Redepova at the time were traditional Romani songs or songs influenced by Romani music. However, several of them had a strong Western presence. "Makedo" is influenced by cha-chá, "Kod Kodak" has heavy pop influences, and "Pesma Sarajevu" makes use of psychedelic organs. Redepova has performed several songs relating to ethnic Macedonian music that have no connection to Romani music. Some of these songs are duets performed with Macedonian singers, such as "Blagujno Dej," "Biljana platno belemo," and "Zo majko rodila."

Romani people were officially recognized as a national minority in Josip Broz Tito's Yugoslavia and were granted linguistic and cultural rights. Redepova, however, was one of a select group of Romani artists in Yugoslavia to have achieved widespread and lasting fame as well as public acclaim, with Serbian Romani vocalist aban Bajramovi.

Despite her success, Redepova was the object of bigotry and gossip. People in Skopje considered her dishonorable for the community, and they were highly critical of her friendship with Teodosievski, a "gadjo." It was unthinkable for Macedonians and Roma to marry in mixed marriages at the time, and both groups strongly condemned them. Redepova was mocked by Roma because she had an emancipated lifestyle, appeared on stage, sleeping in hotels, and working with guys. On the other hand, some organizations, such as Radio Skopje and the League of Communists of Macedonia, were extremely critical of Teodosievski, and they chastised him for working with "Gypsies." Redepova and Teodosievski migrated to Belgrade, Yugoslavia's capital, in the 1960s to escape the tense atmosphere. They married in 1968.

Redepova's career was largely due to racial ineligibility. She was often described as hot blooded, happy and easy going, and genetically gifted, according to media: she was portrayed as a hot blooded, joyful, easygoing, and genetically gifted woman. Her dark skin had been criticized often. Teodosievski promoted the singer by using some positive stereotypes as long as they presented a pleasing picture of her.

Redepova and Teodosievski founded a music academy in the 1960s, most likely Romani boys. The majority of the musicians in Ansambl Teodosievski were educated in the academy, and some of them have gone on to become well-known. The school had 48 boys in total.

Redepova and Teodosievski formed a circle around them by encouraging other Macedonian Romani musicians. Muharem Serbezovski, Usnija Redepova, and Enver Rasimov, as well as clarinetist Medo un, were among the most influential figures.

Yugoslavia was part of the Non-Aligned Movement, and the Yugoslav cultural scene was exposed to a variety of world influences. Redepova performed many songs in foreign languages, including Greek, Turkish, Hebrew, and Hindi. In the Middle Ages, the Romani people went from India to Europe. Because their culture and history were officially improved, Tito's connection with Jawaharlal Nehru and India was extremely important for Yugoslav Gypsies. In 1969, 1976, and 1983, Redepova and Teodosievski visited India three times. They have crowned the King and Queen of Romani Music at the first Romani Music Festival in Chandigarh on their second trip. Redepova sang in front of Indira Gandhi in 1983.

Redepova has appeared onstage for Indira Gandhi, Reza Pahlavi, and Muammar Gaddafi. She appeared in several countries, including the United States, the Soviet Union, Mexico, Australia, and Canada, along with her husband's orchestra. She was the first Yugoslav artist to appear at the Olympia in Paris in 1962.

Redepova's career reached its peak in the 1980s. She and her husband moved to Skopje in 1989. Macedonia's Republic went through difficult times after independence in 1991. Stevo Teodosievski died in 1997 at the age of 72. She toured the United States a year after, appearing at a number of charity benefit concerts. In 1994, she unveiled a collection of duets with Usnija Redepova.

The 2000s were extremely fruitful, with just a small change in the singer's career. She gained a more modern appearance in Macedonia and former Yugoslavia, and reimagined herself as a worldbeat artist. For example, she appeared in numerous collaborations with young pop singers. She performed a duet with Macedonian singer Toe Proeski in 2002. In 2005, she performed a song with the Bosnian band Crno Vino, and in 2010, she began a collaboration with Kiril Dajkovski. She contributed to the establishment of Romani music as a non-mass market success, appealing an urban and cultural elite. However, many of her latest albums were not widely embraced by Western audiences because they did not fit their Romani music's aspirations. For instance, some songs featured the synthesizer, an instrument that is not commonly used in classical Roma music. She was booed at a concert in Spain, but she defended herself by saying that Romani music has always adaptied itself and borrowed external elements.

"Chaje Shukarije," her best-known song on the 2006 Borat movie soundtrack, has been used without her permission. Naat Veliov of Kosani Orkestar has sued the film's designers for €800,000 ($1,000,000). Redepova received a €26,000 payout after it was discovered that Sacha Baron Cohen obtained permission from her production house to perform the song, which she hadn't heard about. She was particularly furious because her song was used to represent backwardness, something she had never fought against. Borat, on the other hand, contributed to the international success of her name.

She was selected by Vlatko Lozanoski and others to represent Macedonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2013. Their song, "Imperija," was first released in March 2013, but it sparked controversy in the region when its clip featured several monuments of the controversial project Skopje 2014, which included many monuments. The song was also regarded as a nationalist performance. The singers were invited by Macedonian Radio Television to write a new song. "Pred da se razdeni" was finally released a month later. On May 16, the group failed to qualify from the second semi-finals of the competition, earning 16th out of a field of 17 songs, with 28 points.

Redepova died in Skopje on the morning of 11 December 2016 after being sick, she was 73 years old. She had been admitted to the hospital on Sunday and was now in a critical situation. On December 12, her funeral service took place in the Skopje City Council, where several officials, including the Mayor of Skopje and Gjorge Ivanov, paid tribute to her. She was buried in Butel Cemetery later that day.

Film career

Esma Redepova appeared in numerous films, both fictional and documentary, in addition to numerous video clips. She made her debut as an actress in Krst Rakoc, a Yugoslav film released in 1962 starring Bata ivojinovi in the main role. Four songs were included in the album. She appeared in Zapej Makedonijo in 1968, a film for which she also recorded songs.

Redepova revived her film career in the 2000s. She appeared in four documentary films in the decade, beginning with the German Im Herzen des Lichts – Die Nacht der Primadonnen in 2002. When the Road Bends... Tales of a Gypsy Caravan in 2006, a film about five Romani music acts on their tour through the United States, was followed by Tales of a Gypsy Caravan. She was, however, extremely dissatisfied with this film and the message it gave about her neighborhood. She predicted that the audience would believe that all Romani people live in squalid conditions, despite the fact that there are middle-class Roma, just like herself. Esma is the guide to the true origins of Romani people in Kannauj, Uttar Pradesh, by Romani linguist Marcel Courthiade, in the film Rromani Soul, which was released the year after and directed by Louis Mouchet. Balkan Soul & Gypsy Blues, her second German documentary film, appeared in 2009.

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Awards and recognition

• 1976 – Queen of World Gipsy music
• 1992 – 13 November Award of Skopje
• 1995 – Award prima donna of European singing
• 2005 – Norwegian Academy of Literature and Freedom of Expression
• 2010 – Order of Merit for Macedonia
• 2013 – National Artist of Macedonia