30 January 2025| Zagreb, Croatia [Matija Kovačević with tedNEWS]
“We can describe this performance in one word—perfection!” “What a blessing, I got goosebumps—unlike anything we’ve ever seen on Croatia’s Got Talent!”
These are just some of the national headlines Agape Family Quartet made after appearing on Supertalent, the Croatian edition of Britain’s Got Talent and the country’s most-watched show. Nicknamed “tata i 3 brata” (“dad & 3 brothers”), the a cappella quartet consists of pastor Darko Kovačević and his sons Andrija (artistic director who crafted arrangements for all the songs), Matija (a theology professor at the Adriatic Union College), and Jakov (also working for the church in Croatia).
The Audition
They closed the audition round, following over 100 acts in 9 episodes. Introduced through a playful video showcasing their family and church life, Darko shared, “We are all members of our church, and I am a Seventh-day Adventist pastor.” In predominantly Catholic Croatia (80%), with less than 0.07% Adventists, this was remarkable. Their performance of Shall We Gather at the River (from the Croatian Adventist Hymnal) earned a standing ovation. One judge said, “I haven’t heard something this good in a long time,” while another remarked, “You’ve brought incredible peace and joy to our show.”
The Semi-final
After receiving four “yeses”, they returned for the semi-final with an a cappella rendition of Oceans. Vanja Popov, from their larger gospel ensemble Agape, joined for vocal percussion. Two female judges teared up, asking the mother to stand up. “How can a mother give birth to not one but three such sons? Not only are you talented but you are such well-behaved, beautiful people.” A male judge said, “The love you have for each other has reached every corner of this studio and all the homes that watched you.” Even the fourth judge who expressed his general dislike for spiritual music, but gave yes for quality singing, now also admitted, “It’s wonderful that with you we can rejoice over different values from what we’re used to.”
The Final
Though they didn’t make the final due to strong competition, including four golden buzzers in the semi-final episode, they made history when invited as special guests for the final—something never done in the show’s 11 seasons. The quartet closed the season with a Christmas medley, including O Holy Night, during which a judge who often fought with his colleague from the far side came to her and hugged her, vividly illustrating the point of Christmas: “In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself … entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.” (2 Cor 5:19). The audience and jury gave a standing ovation, and the presenters asked Pastor Darko to invite viewers to the gospel ensemble Agape’s concert a month later.
Praise to God Alone!
The public response was overwhelmingly positive from start to finish. In a country where Adventists are often misunderstood, Catholic viewers wrote hundreds of positive comments, such as, “They brought peace to our hearts”, “What denomination are they from? They’re wonderful!” “An example for every family. God bless them!”
Their performances went viral, reaching hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube, Facebook and TikTok in a country of just 3.8 million people. Grateful, the Kovačević family said, “Praise to God alone! We prayed for His help not to bury the talents He gave us but rather use them the way we should. Then, an incentive to apply for Supertalent came from an unexpected direction. After prayerful consideration, we decided to apply. And the rest is history.” A history that has altered long-held opinions or newly, positively introduced hundreds of thousands of people to the Adventist faith community.
Featured image: Courtesy of Nova TV, from left to right
Photo: Zagreb, Croatia (David Neal)
The first episode of Croatia’s Got Talent is the most-watched entertainment TV program in September
