The joint album “Neked” by Naked and Lakatos Mónika FolkTrió was released in digital format on June 2, 2026, via the record label Adriatica Records. Born out of friendship, encounters between cultures, and shared musical practice, the album brings together Balkan trippy dub jazz and Vlach-Romani musical tradition.

This international project brings together the Serbian band Naked, known for its fusion of Balkan traditions, jazz, funk, and contemporary musical expressions, and the Hungarian ensemble Lakatos Mónika FolkTrió, led by one of the most prominent singers of the Vlach Roma community, Mónika Lakatos.

The result of their collaboration is an album that combines heartfelt vocals, precise rhythms of Romani tradition, and layered Balkan “trippy dub jazz”, creating a unique and distinctive sound.

The idea of collaboration between the two groups dates back to 2011 at the “Babel Sound” festival in Hungary, while work on the joint project began in the summer of 2021.

“Collaboration between two different worlds has given birth to a new, third world – a musical record about people and time, in which vitality and nostalgia, melancholy and fire, love and lament intertwine”, explains Branislav Radojković, a member of Naked.

After several years of encounters at European festivals and concert stages, including WOMEX, the musicians finally completed the album, whose title carries multiple layers of meaning.

In addition to the obvious wordplay with the name of the band Naked, the Hungarian word “neked” means “to you”.

“To you... and to all those who are no longer with us”, says Radojković, noting that the compositions were created during a period marked by reflections on the passage of time and dear people who have passed away.

The release of the album was preceded by two video singles. The song “Csábítós” was released on January 16 with a music video that introduced the audiovisual world of the new project, while on May 28 the video for the track “Vrati se” followed.

Reflecting on its atmosphere, Radojković noted that the song speaks about “the inevitable passage of time, unfulfilled dreams, and nostalgia for youth”, while the old train carriages with wooden seats and the Pannonian plain, where the video was filmed at Lake Balaton in Hungary, “perfectly reflect the elegiac atmosphere of the song”.

The album features nine compositions, five written by Branislav Radojković and four by Mihály Mazsi Rostás and Monika Lakatos, with arrangements created collaboratively by members of Naked and Lakatos Mónika FolkTrió.

The album “Neked” by Naked & Lakatos Mónika FolkTrió, which European audiences have had the opportunity to hear live in concerts across Hungary, Serbia, Sweden, and the Czech Republic, features: Branislav Radojković (bass), Goran Milošević (drums), Đorđe Mijušković (violin), Rastko Uzunović (clarinet and tenor saxophone), Antal Máté Kovács (percussion), Mihály Mazsi Rostás (guitar and voice), and Monika Lakatos (vocals), with a guest appearance by Đorđe Kujundžić on alto saxophone.

LINKS:

Neked - Streaming platforms >>  ǀ  Vrati se - More on Video >>  ǀ  Naked Website >>  ǀ  Lakatos Mónika Website >>  ǀ