Blagica Pavlovska’s "Celo Vranje" reverberates in Vranje as student cyclists arrive
Students on a bicycle tour were greeted with music and torches as the Serbian version of Pavlovska’s song once again became part of Vranje’s public life.
Blagica Pavlovska’s well-known tune filled the streets of Vranje as a group of students on a bicycle tour arrived in the Serbian town during pre-election campaigning. The riders are taking part in the "Guardians of the Constitution" tour ahead of early parliamentary elections set for 25 October 2026.
From a radio studio surprise to a local anthem
The students, who started their journey from Belgrade on 17 September carrying copies of the constitution and visiting several cities en route to Kragujevac, were received with music, torches and crowds. Among the songs repeatedly played at the welcome was a Serbian-language version of Pavlovska’s original, known locally as "Celo Vranje" — an adaptation of her Macedonian hit "Celo Skopje."
"Celo Vranje" has been part of the town’s soundscape for decades. Its story dates back to 1995 when radio host and music editor Nebojša Dimčić invited Blagica Pavlovska to the entertainment show "Turbo vikend" on Radio Vranje and Radio Gnjilane. Pavlovska brought a Serbian version of her song as a surprise for the hosts; listeners reacted enthusiastically and the recording quickly spread on cassette tapes and at local celebrations.
By 1998 Pavlovska officially released the track on the album "…i Celo Vranje," and since then it has become a staple at weddings, kafanas and public gatherings across southern Serbia. Its resurgence on the streets of Vranje during this politically charged moment drew attention beyond the town’s borders.
The arrival of the cyclists coincided with a nearby rally of supporters of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS); police kept the two groups separated. The bicycle tour itself is organised by the Student List – Studenti pobedjuju, which qualified to run in the elections after the Republic Electoral Commission validated 69,099 supporting statements. The list’s top candidate is medical faculty professor Ilija Srdanović, who the organisers say is first on the list but not the legal "bearer" of the list.
The broader political backdrop is tense. President Aleksandar Vučić was nominated by SNS as its candidate for prime minister and on 14 September announced plans to step down from the presidency on 27 September in order to contest the election. Student protests that began after the Nov. 1, 2024 rail station collapse in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people, have grown into a persistent political movement demanding accountability and early elections — a context in which the students’ tour and the song’s appearance took on added resonance.
What started as a spontaneous studio gift more than three decades ago has become woven into Vranje’s musical identity, and on this autumn day in 2026 a Macedonian singer’s adaptation once again sounded like a local anthem.
Photo: press material from the event
