ðə klˈoʊsɪst hiː kˈeɪm tə wˈaɪd mˈeɪnstɹiːm səksˈɛs wʌzɐ ʃlˈeɪdʒɚ "mˈoʊdʒə mˈæɹɪdʒə dʒˈiː dɹˈuːɡɐtʃˌɪdʒə" ðæt bɪkˌeɪm ɐ hˈɪt ɪn bˈɑːsniə dˈʊɹɹɪŋ ðə nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti z ˈæftɚ hiː pɚfˈɔːɹmd ɪɾ æt pˌiːˌɑːɹvˌiːˈaɪ ɐplˈɔːz fˈɛstɪvəl ɪn bˈænjə lˈuːkə, bˌʌt hiː mˈoʊstli ˈɜːnd hɪz lˈɪvɪŋ ɹˈʌnɪŋ ɐ kæfˈeɪ ɪn mˈoʊstɑːɹ, loʊkˈeɪɾᵻd ɪn pɹɑːksˈɪmᵻɾi ʌvðə fˈeɪməs ˈoʊld bɹˈɪdʒ.
The closest he came to wide mainstream success was a schlager "Moja Marija je drugačija" that became a hit in Bosnia during the 1970s after he performed it at Prvi aplauz festival in Banja Luka, but he mostly earned his living running a café in Mostar, located in proximity of the famous Old Bridge.