YouTube star [1] Ekrem Jevrić Gospoda was given a hero's welcome upon his arrival in his native Montenegro on July 11. His fame also grew when, allegedly unrelated to his status of YouTube star, he also took part in a photo-shoot for a renowned fashion brand.
At the Podgorica [2] airport, Jevrić was greeted by local camp [3] singer Purašević [4] and “hundreds of fans and relatives,” while tens of entertainment portals and TV stations from the Balkans — including from Macedonia [5] — reused a video from the event, also available on YouTube.
In the clip, apparently at a request of a female journalist, the singer-songwriter whose song about the daily grind ‘cursed’ working women because they can't take care of children, explains that “Women work. All our women work all over the Gray World,* women work,” and adds that he's not really bothered by that fact.
But, the man whose video currently has over 3.9 million views on YouTube, complained that he didn't make any money from that, because he's not paid per view, so “it's all for nothing, all for free, and maybe in the future, later we'll make something.”
In addition, a few weeks ago, numerous Balkan portals spread the news that Jevrić shows up in a menswear photo-shoot [6] as a tailor. One of them, SerbiaNet, also published [7] [SER] an audio clip with an excerpt from a telephone interview [8] [SER]. According to Jevrić:
I worked for a big and famous billionaire, with famous brands, called Dolce & Gabanna [9]. I was standing in front of a pub [in my suit] and he was passing by and asked me “Are you an Italian?” I said “Excuse me, but I am not, but I am quite close to Italy.”
Then they said “Would you allow us to take photos of you and take your telephone number, and we'll call you in ten days if you are accepted.” And then they accepted me and offered 500 USD per day to work for them. I worked two days, and got a thousand dollars. A car would come to my house and take me there, and then take me back home by car, and so. They also told me that they might invite me again to work for them, and what do I know…
The interviewer also tried to provoke conservative Jevrić about the openly gay status of Dolce & Gabanna, but to his credit the singer-turned-model ignored the issue.
* Possibly this is a reference to the common South Slavic idiom “the White World,” meaning abroad, far away, used in folk stories.