Lidija Percan

Although she sings both in Croatian and Italian, Percan rose to fame in Yugoslavia principally thanks to her songs in the Italian language (mostly in the Venetian dialect), both original songs and popular ones, such as her well-known hits "La mula de Parenzo", "La bella campagnola", and "Bella ciao".

Although she considers herself an Istrian Croat,[3][4] Percan was born into a family speaking Italian at home.

[1] In 2008 Percan was involved in a conflict with Herzegovinian priest Tomislav Hrstić, with the latter reportedly denying her to sing in the Italian language during mass at Pula's Sant'Antonio church.

[5] During her career Percan sang both in New York City (1972) and the Soviet Union, at a show attended by about 5 thousand people.

[1] In a 2018 interview she stated that singing in post-war Yugoslavia was a "beautiful sensation," and that she never had any problems or found any hindrances.