Croatia was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 by E.N.I.

E.N.I.

E.N.I. is Croatian pop band from Rijeka .Like the Rijeka group Put four years earlier, E.N.I. was created out of Putokazi in order to compete in at the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 with the song Probudi Me....

 with the song "Probudi me

Probudi me

"Probudi me" was the Croatian entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1997, performed in Croatian by E.N.I..The song was performed twenty-third on the night...

". The quartet were the winners of Dora 1997, which selected the fifth Croatian entry for the contest.

Background

Croatia first entered the Eurovision Song Contest in 1993, having previously competed as a part of Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia in the Eurovision Song Contest

Yugoslavia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 27 times, debuting in 1961 and competing every year until its last appearance in 1992, with the exceptions of 1977–1980, and 1985...

 from 1961 to 1991. SR Croatia

Socialist Republic of Croatia

Socialist Republic of Croatia was a sovereign constituent country of the second Yugoslavia. It came to existence during World War II, becoming a socialist state after the war, and was also renamed four times in its existence . It was the second largest republic in Yugoslavia by territory and...

 was the most successful republic of Yugoslavia at Eurovision, with 11 of the 27 entries that won the Yugoslavian selection for the Eurovision Song Contest being Croatian.

Croatia produced over 11 entries in total for Yugoslavia, giving some of the country's best placings in the Contest. Croatia gave Yugoslavia three of the country's Top 5 placings in the contest, with Riva

Riva (band)

Riva was a pop rock band from Zadar, Croatia, then Yugoslavia, in the late 1980s.The group debuted on Zagrebfest 1988. Their song "Rock Me" won the Eurovision Song Contest 1989 in Switzerland, with a score of 137 points. According to author and historian John Kennedy O'Connor in The Eurovision Song...

 winning the 1989 Contest

Eurovision Song Contest 1989

The Eurovision Song Contest 1989 was the 34th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on 6 May 1989 in Lausanne, Switzerland. Switzerland gained the hosting rights after Celine Dion's victory in Dublin the previous year. The presenters were Lolita Morena and Jacques Deschenaux. Riva was the winner of...

 with "Riva", as well as fourth place finishes for both Daniel

Daniel (singer)

Daniel is the stage name of Milan Popović , a Montenegro-born pop singer who made his name in Croatia...

 and Novi fosili

Novi fosili

Novi fosili was a Croatian pop band, one of the most popular music acts in former Yugoslavia.The group was formed in Zagreb in 1969. Their first successes came in 1976 when the composer Rajko Dujmić joined the band. That same year Novi Fosili played at the Split Festival, where their song...

.

1997 marked Croatia's fifth appearance at the contest as an independent nation. Previous results for the independent Croatia were mixed, with their first two entries gaining 15th and 16th position. However Croatia's entries from 1995 and 1996 both placed within the top 10, with Magazin

Magazin

Magazin is a Croatian pop band from Split.Founded in the 1970s under the name Dalmatinski magazin , the band quickly began to make a mark on local pop music festivals with its songs influenced by Dalmatian folk music...

 & Lidija

Lidija Horvat-Dunjko

Lidija Horvat-Dunjko is a soprano from Croatia and a Docent at the Zagreb Academy of Music. She was awarded the highest Croatian national decoration for her achievement in culture, the Order of Danica Hrvatska with the image of Marko Marulić.She graduated in the class of professor Zdenka...

 and Maja Blagdan

Maja Blagdan

Maja Blagdan is a Croatian pop singer.She began her singing career in a rock band, Stijene, in 1986.Later she had a solo career. Her first solo album was released in 1993....

 placing 6th and 4th respectively.

Dora 1997

Hrvatska radiotelevizija

Croatian Radiotelevision

Croatian Radiotelevision is a Croatian public broadcasting company. It operates several radio and television channels, over a domestic transmitter network as well as satellite...

 (HRT), the Croatian broadcaster, held a national final to select the Croatian entry for Eurovision 1997, held in Dublin, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...

. Dora 1997 was held at the Crystal Ballroom of Hotel Kvarner in Opatija

Opatija

Opatija is a town in western Croatia, just southwest of Rijeka on the Adriatic coast. , the town proper had a population of 7,850, with the municipality having a total 12,719 inhabitants.-Geography:...

 on 9 March, hosted by Ljudevit Grguric-Grga. 20 entries competed, and the winner was decided by 20 regional juries.

style="font-size: bigger;" | Dora 1997 - 9 March, 1997

Draw	Artist	Song	Composer – Lyricist	Points	Place
1	Tajana Tajana Tajana is a village, situated in Bahawalnagar District, Punjab, Pakistan. It consists 500 homes. The most common profession of the people is agriculture. 70% of the total agricultural land depends on rain water. There are no other sources of the water there....	"Povedi me"	Ivan Mikulić Ivan Mikulic Ivan Mikulić is a Bosnian Croat singer, best known outside his country for having represented Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004, singing "You Are The Only One"...  – Fayo	0	19
2	Ksenija Sobotinčić	"Nemamo to pravo"	Andrej Babić Andrej Babic Andrej Babić is a Croatian songwriter who has written many Eurovision songs since 2003. He is one of the few songwriters who has written for four countries, having written entries for Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Portugal....	6	17
3	Oliver Dragojević Oliver Dragojevic Oliver Dragojević is one of the most popular Croatian pop singers. A native of Vela Luka from the island of Korčula, he emerged onto the music scene in the 1970s thanks to the popular Split Festival, one of several musical annual events which began in the former Yugoslavia and still is being held...	"Lucija"	Zdenko Runjić Zdenko Runjic Zdenko Runjić was Croatian songwriter based in Split....  - Ivana Runjić, Vedrana Runjić	62	8
4	Bay Bis	"Boje ljubavi"	Zrinko Tutić	0	19
5	Branka B.	"Nasoj ljubavi"	Zlatan Stipišić Gibonni Zlatan Stipišic Gibonni Zlatan Stipišić Gibonni is a Croatian singer, musician and composer from Split.Born in a family with a strong musical tradition , Zlatan Stipišić, who later embraced the nickname Gibonni, began his career in 1980s with the heavy metal band Osmi putnik.Gibonni started his solo career in 1990s with...  - Zlatan Stipišić Gibonni Zlatan Stipišic Gibonni Zlatan Stipišić Gibonni is a Croatian singer, musician and composer from Split.Born in a family with a strong musical tradition , Zlatan Stipišić, who later embraced the nickname Gibonni, began his career in 1980s with the heavy metal band Osmi putnik.Gibonni started his solo career in 1990s with... , Nenad Ninčević	4	18
6	Magazin Magazin Magazin is a Croatian pop band from Split.Founded in the 1970s under the name Dalmatinski magazin , the band quickly began to make a mark on local pop music festivals with its songs influenced by Dalmatian folk music...	"Opium"	Tonći Huljić - Vjekoslava Huljić	64	7
7	Ivana Plechinger	"Zora"	Ivana Plechinger - Bruno Kovačić Bruno Kovacic - Biography :His career began in the 80's when he formed the band called D-Day. Afterwards he worked with all the important musicians and singers in and around Croatia as a musician, composer or an arranger...	52	9
8	E.N.I. E.N.I. E.N.I. is Croatian pop band from Rijeka .Like the Rijeka group Put four years earlier, E.N.I. was created out of Putokazi in order to compete in at the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 with the song Probudi Me....	"Probudi me"	Davor Tolja – Alida Sarar	170	1
9	Dona Ares	"Zadnja noć"	Guido Mineo - Ivana Mavrin, Robert Pilepić	48	12
10	Petar Grašo Petar Grašo Petar Grašo is a Croatian pop singer and songwriter. Born in Zagreb to parents hailing from Dalmatia, he gained prominence when Oliver Dragojević performed one of his first songs "Boginja" on the Dora contest in 1995...	"Idi"	Petar Grašo	161	2
11	Lidija Bajuk Lidija Bajuk Lidija Bajuk is a Croatian singer-songwriter and poet. She performs traditional Croatian folk songs, mostly from her native region of Međimurje, and writes songs inspired by traditional folk music...	"Zora djevojka"	Lidija Bajuk Lidija Bajuk Lidija Bajuk is a Croatian singer-songwriter and poet. She performs traditional Croatian folk songs, mostly from her native region of Međimurje, and writes songs inspired by traditional folk music...	79	5
12	Lana Cenčić	"Ti si super, ti si mrak"	Lana Cenčić – Fayo	7	16
13	Brešković Brothers	"Voljet ću te vječno"	Tonći Brešković, Nikola Brešković - Marko Brešković	52	9
14	Novi fosili Novi fosili Novi fosili was a Croatian pop band, one of the most popular music acts in former Yugoslavia.The group was formed in Zagreb in 1969. Their first successes came in 1976 when the composer Rajko Dujmić joined the band. That same year Novi Fosili played at the Split Festival, where their song...	"Vrijeme"	Rajko Dujmi - Fayo	52	9
15	Minea Renata Koncic Renata Končić is a Croatian pop singer who uses the stage name Minea.-Albums:* Vrapci i komarci * E, pa neka * Mimo zakona * Kad smo... ono, znaš...	"Magla"	Fedor Boic - Vjekoslava Huljić	27	14
16	Maja Blagdan Maja Blagdan Maja Blagdan is a Croatian pop singer.She began her singing career in a rock band, Stijene, in 1986.Later she had a solo career. Her first solo album was released in 1993....	"Za nas"	Nenad Ninčević	134	3
17	Leo LEO LEO as an initialism may refer to:* Low Earth orbit, a satellite path* Law enforcement officer, an official* Louisville Eccentric Observer, a newspaper* LEO , an electronic device* LEO , a lunar mission...	"Moje nebo"	Đorđe Novković - Štefanija Soldan, Eduard Matešić	66	6
18	Dražen Žanko	"Zamantan"	Dražen Žanko	23	15
19	Ivan Mikulić Ivan Mikulic Ivan Mikulić is a Bosnian Croat singer, best known outside his country for having represented Croatia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2004, singing "You Are The Only One"...	"Proljeće"	Miro Buljan - Fayo	36	16
20	Alen Nižetić	"Ti"	Nenad Ninčević	117	4

At Eurovision

E.N.I. performed 23st on the night of the contest, following France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 and preceding the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. The group received 24 points, placing 17th of the 25 competing countries.

External links

• Croatian National Final 1997 Hrvatsko natjecanje za pjesmu Eurovizije Dora '97 HRT