Milan Stanković (Serbian Cyrillic: Милан Станковић; born 9 September 1987) is a Serbian singer-songwriter. He rose to prominence as a finalist on Zvezde Granda in 2007. Moreover, Stanković acquired wider fame by representing Serbia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo, Norway with "Ovo je Balkan", finishing in 13th place.
Additionally to his recording career, he served as a judge on the children's singing competition Pinkove Zvezdice (2014–2018).
Early life
Stanković was born on September 9, 1987, in Obrenovac, SFR Yugoslavia and was raised by a single mother. According to Stanković, his father, who was arrested for homicide when Milan was five months old, died after five years in prison under unexplained circumstances.[1] He has a sister from his mother's second marriage.[2] Stanković graduated from a secondary medical school.
Career
2007–2010: Career beginnings and Eurovision
Stanković gained initial fame as a contestant on the third season of the singing competitionZvezde Granda in 2007, where he placed 4th.[3] Recognized for performing mostly songs by Zdravko Čolić, he received widespread public attention due to his k-pop influenced appearance and relationship with fellow-contestant Rada Manojlović. Two years following the competition, Stanković released his debut album Solo under Grand Production, which sold 50,000 copies.[3]
2011–2020: Milan and collaboration with Jala & Buba
After Eurovision, Stanković was dropped from Grand Production due to breech of contract, according to its then CEO and owner Saša Popović.[9][10] This situation, along with his breakup with Rada Manojlović, led Milan to take a brief hiatus from public performance.[11] In September 2013, Stanković released the single "Od mene se odvikavaj". He than participated in the Pink Music Festival 2014 with "Luda ženo", where he received three awards.[12] In September 2014, he also became a judge on the children's singing competition Pinkove Zvezdice, on which he continued appearing for four non-consecutive seasons. On 3 March 2015, Stanković announced his sophomore album by releasing two singles – "Mašina" and "Nisi mu ti žena".[13] In July, he collaborated with Serbian rapper Mimi Mercedez and turbo-folk singer Mile Kitić on the single "Gadure".[14] In September, he released his eponymous EP under City Records, which featured previously released singles and three new songs.
In February 2017, Milan released single "Ego" featuring Bosnianhip hop duo Jala Brat and Buba Corelli.[15] As of May 2022, the music video has collected over eighty million views on YouTube, making it his biggest song on this platform.[16] Between 2018 and 2019, he released three more singles – "Trans", "Kripton" (2018) and "Brane mi te" (2019), as a part of his so-called "Tokyo trilogy". Stanković worked with Jala Brat and Buba Corelli once again on the single "Pablo", released in July 2020.[17]
Personal life
Stanković was in an on-again, off-again relationship with fellow-Zvezde Granda contestant Rada Manojlović between 2008 and 2012.[18]