When Gina Picinic was a
senior at North Bergen High
School a few years ago, she was
already a recording star in her
native land of Croatia. Just 17,
Picinic was like the Croatian
version of Celine Dion, earning
the local title "The Croatian
Sensation."
Now 21 years old, Picinic is
trying to live down the nickname
she received four years ago. But
she's even more of a pop
recording star in her homeland,
and has a new nickname.
"They call me 'The It Factor,' "
Picinic said. "I don't know what
that means."
Last month, Picinic participated
in an 11-day tour of Croatia,
called "Melodie Istre i
Kvarnera," or "MIK," which
was like Croatia's version of
"American Idol."
"It's the only traveling music
festival in Croatia," Picinic
explained. "Only the biggest
singers in Croatia participate
in it. There's a competition
each night where judges and fans
vote on who was the best, and I
took first place most of the
nights."
The final concert on the tour
was televised live on Croatian
television network HRT, and
Picinic was the grand prize
winner. Each of the concerts was
attended by 3,000 or more avid
music fans.
"I prefer singing in front of
crowds like that instead of
singing in front of like five
people," Picinic said.
Croatian song of the year
Picinic is also enjoying her
success on the Croatian pop
charts as well. Her latest
single, "Barka Lipog Imena,"
which translates in English to
"Beautifully Named Boat," is
currently No. 1 on the Croatian
pop charts and was recently
named the Croatian Song of the
Year, the equivalent of the
Croatian Grammy.
"It's really a big hit now,"
Picinic said. "I'm very proud of
the song."
However, when Picinic first
recorded the song in a Long
Island recording studio last
year, she didn't care for it.
"In the beginning, I really
didn't like the song," Picinic
said. "Maybe my mind wasn't in
the right place when I first
sang it, but I didn't like it.
My mother [Blacenka] talked to
me and told me about the
importance of the song. She
opened my eyes. I realized just
how emotional of a song it
really is. It's beautiful."
Although the song has a bizarre
title when translated into
English, Picinic said that it is
a romantic song about a
beautiful home that was left
deserted on an island and
everyone had to leave the home
on a boat. The boat came and
saved the family from despair.
"It reminds me a lot of my own
story," Picinic said. "We had a
home on an island and we had to
leave it to come to the United
States. So the song means a lot
to me."
The song was written and
composed by Andrej Basa, perhaps
the most known pop composer in
Picinic's homeland, like the
Quincy Jones of Croatia.
All over the world
Picinic says that she is drawing
fans from all over the world,
from places like Italy, Germany
and Switzerland, even though her
songs are sung in Croatian.
"They tell me that they just
love my voice and they come to
Croatia just to hear me,"
Picinic said. After the MIK
Festival was completed, Picinic
returned to the place of her
birth, an island called Susak,
which Picinic had not visited in
four years.
"They had a big homecoming party
for me and it was a big
surprise," Picinic said. "It was
so beautiful. The girls dressed
in native clothing. They had a
doll made of me. It was
breathtaking. It caught me
totally by surprise. I was
crying and I never cry in front
of people. There were so many
people there. The place was
packed."
However, in her new hometown of
North Bergen, Gina Picinic is
just like anyone else. She's a
college student, entering her
junior year at New Jersey City
University, where she has a
double major in English and
education and a minor in music
performance. She is studying
classical voice at NJCU with Dr.
Donna Connolly and was among a
handful of NJCU students who
performed at Carnegie Hall last
semester.
"It's actually a good mix,
singing classical in school and
singing pop songs in Croatian,"
Picinic said. "I like singing
American songs. Dr. Connolly
helped me to prepare for the
recording on Long Island of my
latest hit in Croatia." So in
Croatia, she's mobbed like a pop
star. In North Bergen, she
blends in just nicely.
"I don't go around bragging
about myself," Picinic said.
"When people ask me how my trip
to Croatia was, I just say it
was nice. But it was very
stressful, going from place to
place every night. I got like
one and a half hours sleep each
night. I enjoy being with
people, especially when I sing,
but when they attack you and
want to touch you, that gets a
little scary."
Added Picinic, "Even though I
might be famous over there, I
like coming home and being
treated like everyone else. I
really do like my privacy."
But there's no denying where
Picinic is from now.
"North Bergen is my home," said
Picinic, who has lived in the
township with her mother since
1994. "I've been here for so
many years that it is my home
now and I look forward to coming
back. It's different to go back
to Croatia and see the different
lifestyles."
Hits in America?
Picinic has a new goal in mind,
to become more mainstreamed,
becoming a crossover hit, much
like Dion went from singing in
French to appealing to the
American audiences more than a
decade ago.
"My goal is to be a crossover
artist in the United States, but
it's so hard," Picinic said. "My
goal is to meet David Foster
[the famed composer and producer
who has worked with everyone
from John Lennon to Josh
Groban]. If I can't get to
California to meet him, maybe he
can come to New York. That's my
goal, to be discovered here." In
the meantime, Picinic will
continue to take classes here.
Picinic is proud of the fact
that she is keeping a 3.8 grade
point average at NJCU, and is a
two-time member of the Dean's
list at the school.
Her next Croatian single is
already lined up and ready for a
spring debut in 2008. Entitled
"Prijatelja Imam Ja,"
translated it means, "I Have a
Friend," it will feature a
chorus that Picinic will sing in
English.
"It's another song that is
inspired by my real life story,"
Picinic said. "It's about
friends across the ocean,
touching hands at the other side
of the world. It's a ballad
right now. It might turn out
nice."
Picinic will also return to
Europe next year for the
Eurovision 2008 tour, where she
has performed twice before to
rave reviews.
"For now, I have my priorities:
school and family," Picinic
said.
Jim Hague can be reached via
e-mail at either OGSMAR@aol.com
or jhague@hudsonreporter.com
|
