The Day Davorin Popović Passed Away

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Davorin Popović, a musician from BiH and singer of the famous band Indexi, died on this day, June 18, 2001.

To his friends, he was ‘Dačo’, ‘Pimpek’, and ‘The Singer’. He was loved and especially respected by his fellow Sarajevans.

Dačo studied at the Faculty of Political Science in Sarajevo. He was an exceptional talent in basketball. Captain of Mlada Bosna, later Željezničar, he was a regular first-team player and played over 500 games.

He joined Indexi in 1964 and remained with the group until his death in 2001. The group also included greats such as Ismet Arnautalić, Ranko Rihtman, Đorđe Novković… In 1969, Slobodan Bodo Kovačević composed the song “Plima” which became a top hit for Indexi. After that, to the lyrics by Želimir Altarac Čičak, Bodo Kovačević composed the music for the song “Negdje na kraju u zatišju”. Following that came the megahits “Sanjam”, “Balada”, “Da sam ja netko”…

He spent the entire war in besieged Sarajevo, sharing the fate of his fellow citizens.

He sang the song "Žute dunje" for the film ‘Kuduz’, and once performed at Eurovision in 1995, while the aggression was still ongoing, when he represented Bosnia and Herzegovina with the song "21. vijek".

As a member of Indexi, he received the Šestoaprilska nagrada (April 6th Award) of the City of Sarajevo. An annual music award in BiH, established in 2002 in his honor, was named ‘Davorin’. He is buried in the Alley of Greats, along with his friends, band member, lead guitarist, and virtuoso of "Indexi" Slobodan Bodo Kovačević, as well as the legend of Bosnian basketball Mirza Delibašić.