Croatia’s was represented by Severina Vučković in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with the song "Moja štikla" . The song was described as a turbo-folk song with humorous lyrics and Balkan folk motifs. The lyrics were written by Severina, the music by Boris Novković and Franjo Valentić, and arrangement by popular Bosnian-born musician Goran Bregović. Vučković was chosen using the Dora competition in the seaside resort of Opatija, the place where the first Dora was held. Severina was born 21 April 1972 in Split, Croatia, then Yugoslavia. As a child she took part in numerous children festivals and musicals. When she was 17, she recorded her first album Severina for Croatian record companyOrfej. In 1991 she started recording for Tutico and became one of the greatest stars of Croatian music. She won many festival awards and her albums achieved high sales. She achieved international fame when her home porn video was published on the Internet in 2004. Severina previously attempted to reach Eurovision in 2000.
Before Eurovision
Dora 2006
Dora 2006 was the Croatian national selection which selected Croatia's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2006.
Competing entries
The list of competing artists and songs were released on 10 February 2006.
Semi-final 1
The first semi-final took place on 2 March 2006 at the Crystal Ballroom of the Hotel Kvarner in Opatija, hosted by Duško Curlic, Mirko Fodor and Emilija Kokic. Sixteen entries participated and eight advanced to the final. The qualifiers were determined based on the votes of televoting and an "expert" jury.
Semi-final 2
The second semi-final took place on 3 March 2006 at the Crystal Ballroom of the Hotel Kvarner in Opatija, hosted by Duško Curlic, Mirko Fodor and Vesna Pisarovic. Sixteen entries participated and eight advanced to the final. The qualifiers were determined based on the votes of televoting and an "expert" jury.
Final
The final took place on 4 March 2006 at the Crystal Ballroom of the Hotel Kvarner in Opatija, hosted by Duško Curlic, Mirko Fodor and Emilija Kokic and Vesna Pisarovic. The sixteen finalists entries participated the winner was chosen based on the votes of televoting and an "expert" jury. Severina Vučković was the winner with the song "Moja štikla".
At Eurovision
Due to Serbia & Montenegro’s withdrawal from the contest this year, Croatia automatically qualified for the final based on the previous year's performance. Croatia performed 20th, following France and preceding the Ireland eventually coming 12th with 56 points. As Croatia failed to reach the top 10 in the final, the country was forced to compete in the semi-final of the 2007 Contest.
