Primavera Sound (or simply Primavera) is an annual music festival with the main location in Parc del Fòrum, a park situated directly at the Mediterranean seafront in Barcelona, Spain. The festival takes place between the end of May and the beginning of June, every year since 2001.

The 2025 edition of Primavera Sound has been an edition of superlatives: maximum attendance with 293,000 visitors and more than 900 journalists from around the world (me included 🌟), people from 136 countries and 311 performances.

As many of the listeners of Gimme a Beat know, I've been following Primavera Sound for a while now, for several reasons. Not only that Primavera always have an impressive line-up, and it is happening in Barcelona, one of my favourite European towns, but this festival has been a leader in the gender-balanced line-up, and the role model for inclusion and diversity, not just in Europe but worldwide. 

And this, by default, makes Primavera Sound a perfect festival for Gimme A Beat.

But it took me a while to start reviewing Primavera. After reviewing the festival in 2023, I decided to go back this year.

Everything worked perfectly: superb organisation, collaborative weather: sunny but not too warm with a continuous sea breeze; great food, easy-to-move-around festival layout, and perfect location. All of this, combined with friendly and energetic festival-goers, local and international crowds excited to be there, created a unique, unforgettable atmosphere. 

The Primavera Sound 2025 achieved a unique milestone: their Three Headliners were three women under the age of 35: Charli XCX, Sabrina Carpenter, and Chapell Roan. This is where the Powerpuff Girls reference is coming from as well, which I thought was a brilliant move, also from the perspective of merch, and this huge Powerpuff Girls statue near the merch stand.

With this and an impressive, carefully curated line-up, exploring the *female factor* of Primavera Sound with my Gimme A Beat lenses (or better said sunglasses) was easy. And I returned with enough materials for two shows!

Didn't I just write that THIS is a perfect festival for Gimme A Beat?!

I've seen many great gigs, but thanks to Instagram being able to host 20 videos per post, I was able to create one post per day, and here they are for day 1, day 2, and day 3. You can also see my reviews via the Gimme a Beat Facebook search.

Two weeks before the festival, I reached out to Marta Pallarès, Head of Press and Corporate Relations at Primavera Sound. I usually only interview female artists – I've never done something like this before. But given Marta's role at Primavera Sound, a festival that continuously "walks the talk" when it comes to inclusion and diversity, and the impeccable press strategy that shows others how to do it right, I really wanted to speak to her and include her in my Primavera Sound coverage.

Honestly, I didn't think that she would say yes, but she did 🎉! 

And THIS made my Primavera Sound experience super special even before the festival even began.

I learnt a lot in this conversation, from what it means to lead Press and Corporate Relations at Primavera Sound, to how their deep, authentic commitment to diversity drives both artistic credibility and serious business results. (With the impressive line-up, also including 3 female headliners, they were sold out before Xmas 2024). 

I also realized something bigger: the magic of Primavera’s strategy and communication approach — where walking the talk isn’t just a slogan — is something we can apply anywhere. Even in industries like tech, where I work too.

Tune in to Gimme A Beat tonight (16.06.2025) to hear my impressions of Primavera Sound Barcelona 2025, an interview with Marta Pallarès, Head of Press and Corporate Relations, and a selection of songs from female artists who performed at the festival and were my highlights

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ playlist.

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For the full review, go here.

In the October 2024, February 2025, and March 2025 editions of Gimme a Beat, I reviewed the 20th edition of Zurich Film Festival.

As many of the listeners of Gimme a Beat know, I have been exploring the female factor of the Zurich Film Festival for several years now. In 2024, similar to 2023, I had a chance to get together with so many female filmmakers and actresses that I decided to (again) breakdown my review of the ZFF into several shows. Since I am adapting the timing of the shows to Swiss(-German) screenings of movies, and most of them are happening this year, more shows are coming.

I saw almost 35 movies, but I wasn't able to review all of them. Instead, I focused on the highlights only. To find them, you should follow the search with the following hashtags: #zff #zff2024 #highlight #gimmeabeat.

In tonight's Gimme A Beat, I will be focusing on Bergers/Shepherds, the movie directed and co-written by Sophie Deraspe. The movie is already playing in the Swiss-French cinemas (Since April 9th), and it is coming to Swiss-German cinemas Arthouse Le Paris from May 23rd and RiffRaff/Houdini from May 29th.

I had the pleasure of getting together with Sophie at the festival a few days after watching the movie. We talked about beautiful, rewarding, and sometimes challenging parts of bringing this story to life, the phenomenal casting (all 3000 sheep included 🐑), and the movie’s message that reaches far beyond the story itself. In addition to sharing her experience as a director, Sophie talked about her role as a Zurich Film Festival and the Oscars judge, and what being honored with awards means to her.
Tune in to Gimme A Beat (19.05.2025) tonight to hear my impressions of Bergers/Shepherds, and my interview with Sophie, combined with music by female artists from a variety of movies I have seen at Zurich Film Festival, and The Assessment soundtrack, created by Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch.

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ playlist.

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for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠previous entries

In the October 2024 and February 2025 editions of Gimme a Beat, I reviewed the 20th edition of Zurich Film Festival.

As many of the listeners of Gimme a Beat know, I have been exploring the female factor of the Zurich Film Festival for several years now. In 2024, similar to 2023, I had a chance to get together with so many female filmmakers and actresses that I decided to (again) breakdown my review of the ZFF into several shows. Since I am adapting the timing of the shows to Swiss(-German) screenings of movies, and most of them are happening this year, more shows are coming.

I saw almost 35 movies, so I will not be able to review all of them, instead, I am focusing on the highlights only. To find them, you should follow the search with the following hashtags: #zff #zff2024 #highlight #gimmeabeat.

In tonight's Gimme A Beat, I will be focusing on Majka Mara / Mother Mara, the movie directed and co-written by Mirjana Karanović, who also plays the lead role.

The movie will have its official Swiss release on March 20 in several Swiss cinemas across the Swiss-German part of Switzerland. For Zurich, you can check RiffRaff/Houdini for screening times. Starting March 27, it will also be available in Swiss-French cinemas. The movie already had its pre-premiere in Zurich on March 10 at RiffRaff/Houdini and in Bern on March 11 at Rex.

As listeners of Gimme a Beat know, I grew up in Novi Sad, ex-Yugoslavia, now Serbia, but what many may not know, I grew up watching Mirjana Karanović movies. The incredible talent of her generation and the high quality of Yugoslavian cinema, along with the variety of international films - both mainstream and alternative - that I was exposed to, is why I the movies.

Growing up in Yugoslavia, I was also surrounded by strong women, inside and outside of my family, who carried themselves with grace, integrity, with a powerful, but kind attitude, and complexity, which only people who led a life with challenges have. Those were and still are my role models.

Mirjana Karanović represented women like that, both on and off-screen.
Tune in to Gimme A Beat (17.03.2025) tonight to hear my impressions of Majka Mara / Mother Mara, and my interview with Mirjana, combined with female-sung ex-Yugoslavian music I grew up with. The show will also feature a soundtrack from one of my favorite Serbian TV Series Jutro će promeniti Sve / Morning Changes Everything (This and That Production) created by Janja Lončar.

Tonight's show will also highlight student-led anti-corruption protests, currently taking place in Serbia - a powerful example of democracy in action ✊ and a cause very close to my heart 💙. You can read more about them here and join us in Zürich, across Switzerland, or anywhere in the world to support the protests.

For this reason, I will open the music segment of tonight’s show with a live interpretation of the song *Dosta, Dosta, Dosta* by the all-female band Boye from my hometown, Novi Sad. Pop Choir Radio from Novi Sad, led by Dušica Stojković, performed this song at the protest in Novi Sad on February 1st ✊

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ playlist.

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for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠previous entries

In October's Gimme a Beat, I reviewed the 20th edition of Zurich Film Festival.

As many of the listeners of Gimme a Beat know, I have been exploring the female factor of the Zurich Film Festival for several years now. In 2024, similar to 2023, I had a chance to get together with so many female filmmakers and actresses that I decided to (again) breakdown my review of the ZFF into several shows. Since I am adapting the timing of the shows to Swiss(-German) screenings of movies, and most of them are happening this year, more shows are coming.

I saw almost 35 movies, so I will not be able to review all of them, instead, I am focusing on the highlights only. To find them, you should follow the search with the following hashtags: #zff #zff2024 #highlight #gimmeabeat.

In tonight's Gimme A Beat, I will be focusing on Les Courageux / The Courageous, the movie directed and co-written by Jasmin Gordon. The movie is already playing in the Swiss-French cinemas, and it is coming to Swiss-German cinemas (RiffRaff/Houdini) on March 9th, with a special screening.

I had the pleasure of getting together with Jasmin a few months after I saw the movie. We talked about what compelled her to tell this story, its unexpected impact on audiences, and the challenges and rewards of bringing it to life. We also discussed what it means for an artist like Jasmin, who lives and breathes her craft, to receive awards as recognition.
Tune in to Gimme A Beat (17.02.2025) tonight to hear my impressions of Les Courageux / The Courageous, Zurich Film Festival, and my interview with Jasmin, combined with music by female artists selected by her and music from the powerful soundtrack, created by Mirjam Skal.

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ playlist.

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for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠previous entries

It's Xmas time 🎄🎄and I am back again with my favouriteNPR Tiny Desk concerts!

There were so many awesomeTiny Desk this year, that, afterObsessed with Tiny Desk 2024, I couldn't resist doing one more before the year wraps up - for my special Xmas Gimme a Beat.

This session will feel like you have been invited into my home to celebrate Xmas with me. Some moments will be cozy and warm, others bursting with energy, and some might inspire you to reflect on the year and the times we are living in.

Hopefully, you will enjoy these sessions as much as I do and maybe even discover some of your new favorite artists! I will be featuring several female artists I discovered withNPR Music's Tiny Desk.

Grab a warm drink, get cozy, and join me in celebrating Xmas with some incredible music 🎄🎄

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Tune in tonight to Gimme A Beat (16.12.2024) forObsessed with Tiny Desk - Xmas 2024 🎄🎄 and my selection ofNPR Tiny Desk Concerts featuring Doechii, Billie Eilish, Shaé Universe, Chelsea Wolfe, Cinder Well, Anita Tijoux, Carrtoons, Kelela, and Thandiswa Mazwai. For NPR, you can donatehere.

npr tiny desk on youtube with videos of the sessions.
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for the info about old shows please go to previous entries

2024 was an even more successful year for Zurich Film Festival than its organizers expected.

It was an important year as the Zurich Film Festival festival celebrated its 20th year. The dates moved to the beginning of October, but that didn't stop the visitors. This year the festival attracted 140’000 visitors (even more than the previous year). A total of 107 films were shown, including 17 world premieres, 8 international premieres, and 11 European premieres – every 3rd film is a world, international, or European premiere.

First held in 2005, Zurich Film Festival established itself very quickly on the national and international film festival scene.

Looking at all these years I have been visiting or reviewing (since 2017) Zurich Film Festival. The way I like to explain its success is to quote/paraphrase the sentence I found in the industry booklet a few years ago. Basically, the organizers agree on a few basics for a successful film festival: "Content is king, Collaboration is key and Encounters among creative folks are essential". I am glad to confirm that even after many years, the organizers are still taking "these basics" seriously while developing the festival further and, most importantly, in the right direction.

This is why I keep coming back and reviewing Zurich Film Festival.

From the perspective of Gimme A Beat, exploring *the female factor* of the festival is easy. Zurich Film Festival always provides a significant number of female stories and movies from female directors, and a good balance of different genres, aspiring filmmakers, and (potential) blockbusters.

As listeners of Gimme A Beat (and my family and friends) already know, having a busy schedule is business as usual for me, and with so many great movies, definitely a pleasure. For me, Zurich Film Festival is all about watching movies. My most enjoyable moment is sitting in the dark cinema, fully immersed in the storyline. This year, even if many fabulous events were happening on the festival grounds, I haven't attended/seen any of them.

Most importantly, I have seen almost 35 movies and managed to get together with 5 female filmmakers and 2 lead actresses.

With so much more material I decided to dedicate several whole Gimme A Beats to Zurich Film Festival, the one happening tonight and a few others later on. In most cases, I will adapt my radio show to the Swiss screenings of movies, to make sure that these movies receive the attention they deserve.

Considering the number of movies I've seen (almost 35), I will not be reviewing all the movies and posting them on the Gimme A Beat page. But, I will continue posting the reviews after tonight's show until the end of the year since most of the movies from the festival are coming to the cinemas next year. This year again I will be focusing on my highlights only. To find them you should follow the search with the following hashtags: #zff #zff2024 #highlight #gimmeabeat.

In tonight's Gimme A Beat, I will be focusing on the following movies:

- Black Box Diaries, the documentary directed by Shiori Ito, who I had a chance to interview. Swiss official release on October 31st.

- Es Gehts um Luis / About Luis, directed and written by Lucia Chiarla, with Natalia Rudziewicz as a lead actress. I had a chance to interview both of them. Swiss official release is not known yet, but I will keep you posted.

Tune in to Gimme A Beat (21.10.2024) tonight to hear my impressions of the Zurich Film Festival, the reviews of the movies in the focus, and interviews with Shiori, Lucia, and Natalia combined with music selected by Lucia and Natalia and music from Freya Arde, who wrote the music for another one of my highlights, Riefenstahl. While that soundtrack is not out yet, this was another opportunity for me to celebrate female talent.

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ playlist.

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for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠previous entries

It's 2024, and I am back again with a bunch of my favourite NPR Tiny Desk concerts.

NPR Music's Tiny Desk Concerts were always one of my favourite things to listen to, but with the pandemic, my interest turned into an obsession. In 2020, I did two shows dedicated to them: Obsessed with Tiny Desk 2020 Part I and Part II, in 2021 I did one more, in 2022 another one and last year one as well.

So what is it about NPR Tiny Desk Concert series that I love?

It is very simple, this series brings an intimate concert vibe through approx 20-minute video performances, recorded either live at the desk of All Songs Considered host and producer Bob Boilen or, during the pandemic, at someplace that feels like an artist's home. The latter unsurprisingly called Tiny Desk (home) concerts. Bob Boilen retired in the meantime, but he created music history with NPR Tiny Desk Concerts and his legacy continues.

During the pandemic, we couldn't attend gigs or music festivals, so, for me, NPR Tiny Desk Concerts were the closest thing I had to live gigs. Even today, this is still my favourite place when I need to do something at work that requires deep concentration. Also, when I am craving a live and more intimate experience.

Let's be honest, how often are you able to see your favourite (or newly discovered favourite) artist performing in a small, intimate venue? Unfortunately, not that frequently.

And this is why my yearly Obsessed with Tiny Desk is here to stay. Minimum once per year and sometimes even more than that.
Tune in tonight to Gimme A Beat (16.09.2024) to hear my selection of NPR Tiny Desk Concerts featuring Tems, Maro, Noname, Kehlani, Feist, Chaka Khan and Chappell Roan. For NPR, you can donate here.

Check out npr tiny desk selection on youtube with videos of the sessions.
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for the info about old shows please go to previous entries

Last month I did the first part of the review of m4music festival 2024.

This month I will continue with the review of m4music festival and share two more artists who were part of my exploration of the "female factor" of the festival.

In tonight's show, I will keep my focus on the Swiss music scene, covering the fascinatingly cool band and music label Sirens of Lesbos and über talented young singer-songwriter Mary Middlefield.

For impressions of their performances at m4music festival, check here, and here, respectively. You can also check overall impressions of the festival here.

Tune in to Gimme A Beat (17.06.2024) tonight to hear interviews with Jasmina and Nabyla of Sirens of Lesbos and Mary Middlefield combined with the music from their latest releases.

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠⁠ playlist.

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for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠previous entries

Since 1998, m4music festival takes place every March here in Switzerland: two days in Zurich and one day in Lausanne. This festival is a project from Migros Culture Percentage. This is a flawlessly organised festival at one of the coolest locations in Zürich: Schiffbau; with many concerts happening on the seven (+1) stages, at or close to the main building.

M4music festival is more of a cultural platform than a typical music festival. It is a place where artists and industry experts meet and exchange ideas, experiences and visions of the future. There are several ways this festival makes this happen. By offering interesting panel discussions and workshops on the latest hot issues in the music business; competition for the next generation of musicians (Demotape Clinic) and simply by providing the chance to mingle with many local, national and international people at the venue, talk, share opinions and knowledge.

I was visiting and reviewing this festival for many years until the pandemic. This year I realized that I missed m4music experience, so I decided to come back.

As usual, it was a very busy two days, but most importantly for Gimme A Beat, in my exploration of "female factor" of the festival I managed to get together with 4 very talented artists for interviews. In order to give all artists focus they deserve, I will break down the show in two. 

In tonight show I will focus on one band: a fabulous, female-led band Say She She and one solo artist, young talented artist Hannah Jadagu. Both are based in NYC.

For impressions of their performances at m4music festival, check here, and here, respectively. You can also check overall impressions of the festival here.
Tune in to Gimme A Beat (20.05.2024) tonight to hear interviews with Say She She and Hannah Jadagu combined with the music from their latest releases.

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠⁠ playlist.————————————————————————–

for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠⁠previous entries

In October's and December's Gimme a Beat, I reviewed the 19th edition of Zurich Film Festival.

I have been exploring the female factor of the Zurich Film Festival for several years now. But this year, I had a chance to get together with so many female filmmakers and actresses that I decided to breakdown my review of the ZFF into several shows.

While I've seen 30+ movies during the festival, I haven't reviewed all of them. But the ones that I did, you can find if you follow the search with the following hashtags: #zff #zff2023 #highlight #gimmeabeat.

In tonight's Gimme A Beat, I will be focusing on Maria Montessori / La Nouvelle Femmes, a feature debut directed and co-written by Lea Todorov about Maria Montessori.

Maria Montessori / La Nouvelle Femmes is a movie not just about one woman ahead of her time, but women’s emancipation and empowerment, at times connected or even depending on difficult choices. This movie also reminds us that many of the issues women faced almost a century ago still exist in today’s society, and that solving those even today needs the power of women working together to change it. You can find the review of the movie here. 

A few days after I saw the movie, I had an opportunity to get together with Lea as well as with Jasmine Trinca, who was outstanding in the leading role as Maria Montessori. With Lea, I talked about why it was important for her to tell us Maria Montessori’s story, moving from documentary to feature filmmaker and about her personal experiences as a daughter and mother. With Jasmine, I talked about why she accepted the role of Maria, her work with Leila Bekhti (who portrayed Lili d'Alengy, a fictional character) and how she became the actress she is today.

Tune in to Gimme A Beat (15.04.2024) tonight to hear interviews with Lea and Jasmine as well as cherry-picked music sung by female artists that I heard in various movies throughout Zurich Film Festival.

Check also the relevant ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠Deezer⁠⁠ playlist.————————————————————————–

for the info about old shows, please go to ⁠⁠previous entries