Dubioza Kolektiv

Dubioza Kolektiv, often simply called Dubioza, is a Bosnian band known for a crossover sound that draws on dub and reggae, ska, hip hop, rock, punk, electronic music and Balkan music, and for socially and politically aware lyrics sung in several languages. In 2015 they were referred to as the most popular musical act in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The band was formed in 2003 by Brano Jakubović, Vedran Mujagić, Almir Hasanbegović and Adis Zvekić, who merged two groups, Ornament and Gluho doba; its roots are in Zenica and Sarajevo. Zvekić has said that he set up a forerunner of the band in 1993, at 13, when during the war the musicians met for jam sessions in the dark because there was no electricity. An early female voice, Adisa Zvekić, later left for a solo career.

Their self-titled debut album came out in April 2004, followed the same year by the Open Wide EP, with guest appearances by the English dub poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Mush Khan of Fun-Da-Mental. After Dubnamite (2006) came Firma ilegal (2008), their first album written entirely in Bosnian, about corruption and privatisation in the Balkans. 5 do 12 (2010) was given away online and featured Saša Lošić of Plavi orkestar and the Macedonian ska punk band Superhiks.

Wild Wild East (2011) was their first album aimed at an international audience, with "Euro Song", "Making Money" and "USA". Apsurdistan (2013) and Happy Machine (2015) followed, the latter with lyrics in English, Spanish, Punjabi and Italian and songs such as "No Escape (from Balkan)" and "Free.mp3 (The Pirate Bay Song)". The band played Glastonbury in 2015 and made its US debut at South by Southwest in 2016. Pjesmice za djecu i odrasle (2017) brought "Himna generacije", "Treba mi zraka" and "Rijaliti", and #fakenews (2020) and Agrikultura (2022) came next.

Dubioza write, record and produce their music in their own studio, design their own covers and make most of their videos themselves, and they have made their recent albums free to download. Their awards include Davorin awards for musical innovation and for the debut album of the year (2005), Indexi awards for Firma ilegal and 5 do 12, and the MTV Europe Music Award for Best Adria Act in 2011.

In 2026 the 2011 song "USA", a satire on emigration and the American dream, was taken up by supporters of the Bosnian national football team during the World Cup qualifiers. The band answered with a new version, "I Am from Bosnia - Take Me to America", filmed on a mobile phone in a Sarajevo neighbourhood, which passed five million plays on YouTube by July 2026 and drew attention around the world.