Albania

Today: semi final allocation draw

On Tuesday 28 January at 16:10 CET, the Semi-Final Allocation Draw will take place to decide which country will perform in which of the 2 Semi-Finals. During the ceremony, the Host City Insignia will be handed over from the city of Tel Aviv to the Mayor of Rotterdam. You can watch the entire event here at 16:10 CET. You will be able to see the 2020 Eurovision hosts Chantal Janzen, Edsilia Rombley and Jan Smit at work, as they will host the allocation draw too. The event will take place at Rotterdam’s City Hall. The pots for the allocation draw are as follows: Pot 1: Albania Austria Croatia North Macedonia Serbia Slovenia Switzerland Pot 2: Australia Denmark Estonia Finland Iceland Norway Sweden Pot 3: Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Georgia Moldova Russia Ukraine Pot 4: Bulgaria Cyprus Greece Malta Portugal Romania San Marino Pot 5: Belgium Czech Republic Ireland Israel Latvia Lithuania Poland source: eurovision.tv

Arilena Ara

About Quick Facts NameArilena Ara Born18 July 1998 Nationality🇦🇱 Albanian National SelectionFestival i Këngës 2020 In Eurovision2020 Rotterdam (canceled) SongFall from the sky (2020, canceled) Biography Arilena Ara, known by her artistic name Arilena is an Albanian singer. She has participated in many children’s festivals in Shkodra. Tirana linked Arilena to the TV Klan where she first appeared on a show called Gjeniu i Vogel and then decided to compete in X Factor Albania. This was the wish of her father, who passed away a few months before Arilena was introduced to X Factor 2. Arilena won the competition and dedicated the victory to her father. She also won a contract from the organizers of the X Factor show. Seeing her age (then only 15), her management decided not to rush Arilena’s career.Arilena peformed in several shows like “Dance With Me”, competing with her partner Labi, a Kosovar journalist. On September 26, 2014, she released her first song “Aeroplan,” with a video clip that garnered over 2 million views on YouTube. After “Aeroplan” she released a follow up “Business Class” which also got a lot of views on YouTube as well as her third song called “Vegim”, dedicated to her father’s death. In 2016, she released a song called “November”. In december 2019, Arilena Ara won Festival i Këngës and therefore, was supposed to represent Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Shaj”, that was translated into English as “Fall from the sky”. Unfortunately, due to the Corona crisis, that didn’t happen. After Eurovision, Arilena featured in a hit single of Alban Skënderaj, “A i sheh”. Her songs “Aligator”, “Thirr Policinë” and “Ke me mungu” all reached the Albanian top-10, the latter the #1 spot. In december 2021, she teamed up with Gjon’s Tears for the song “Dance me”. Entries Fall from the sky Country🇦🇱 Albania Year2020 LanguageEnglish LyricsMichael BlueRobert StevensonSam Schummer MusicDarko DimitrovLazar Cvetkovski Backings– Results Semi Points: –Position: –Running order: – Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/vXpCWFIY6YE

Arilena Ara represents Albania in Rotterdam

Tonight, Festival i Këngës 2019 was won by Arilena Ara with the song “Shaj”. Second prize was for top favourite Elvana Gjata, while Sara Bajraktari became 3rd. Arilena won season 2 of the Albanian version of the X-Factor in 2013. In 2014 she had her first hit “Aeroplan”. She also topped the Romanian charts, so internationally she is not completely unknown. It is not known whether “Shaj” will be sung in Albanian or in English. Many Albanian contestants make the choice to sing in English. Jonida Maliqi however, chose to sing in Albanian last year.

Tonight is the night for Albania!

Tonight at 20:30 CET (scheduled, but at the nights of the semifinals we experienced a delay) the first national final of Eurovision 2020 starts: Festival i Këngës, the Albanian preselection. Twelve songs and artists will compete to win the 58th Festival i Këngës. One of the songs will represent Albania at the Eurovision Song Contest in Rotterdam. The competing songs are: Malaseen, by Bojken Lako Më ngjyros, by Kamela Islami Ajër, by Sara Bajraktari Me tana, by Elvana Gjata Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua, by Albërie Hadergjonaj Ajo nuk është unë, by Robert Berisha Me gotën bosh, by Tiri Gjoci Eja merre, by Era Rusi Botë për dy, by Olta Boka Kutia e Pandorës, by Valon Shehu Shaj, by Arilena Ara Shqiponja e lirë, by Gena For Eurovision addicts, one familiar face will show up: Olta Boka. She represented Albania in the 2008 Eurovision Song Contest with “Zemrën e lamë peng”. Composer Adrian Hila and lyricist Pandi Laço wrote the songs for Albania in 2006, 2007 and 2008. This year, Adrian is responsible for “Ajër” and “Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua” while Pandi wrote the lyrics for “Me gotën bosh”. Former participant Eugent Bushpepa composed “Kutia e Pandorës”. You can watch the final live if you like: RTSH and RTK have livestreams, but you can also watch the contest on facebook and youtube.

Albanian finalists known

We’ve heard all twenty songs of Festival i Këngës 58, the Albanian national final for the 2020 Eurovision Song Contest. The professional jury, consisting of Mikaela Minga (Albania) Christer Björkman (Sweden) Dimitris Kontopoulos (Greece) Felix Bergsson (Iceland) Rita Petro (Albania) decided which 12 songs should go to the final on Sunday. They are: Malaseen, by Bojken Lako Më ngjyros, by Kamela Islami Ajër, by Sara Bajraktari Me tana, by Elvana Gjata Ku ta gjej dikë ta dua, by Albërie Hadergjonaj Ajo nuk është unë, by Robert Berisha Me gotën bosh, by Tiri Gjoci Eja merre, by Era Rusi Botë për dy, by Olta Boka Kutia e Pandorës, by Valon Shehu Shaj, by Arilena Ara Shqiponja e lirë, by Gena The songs will be presented in the final next sunday, 22 december. Eurovision Universe will keep you updated again in the final, see you on sunday!

Rona Nishliu’s double emotions

Next sunday, Albania will choose it’s Eurovision entry for 2020. It might be a good moment to look back in the Albanian eurovision history. Just let me cry…. cry…. cry…. for this is the best I can do now. That is the translation of the lyrics of Rona Nishliu‘s Eurovision Song. She sang the song “Suus” (“personal”) entirely in Albanian, and ended up in fifth place in the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest. So far, Rona is the only Albanian contestant who managed to end up in the top-5. As you might understand, the song was a very emotional one. In her performance, people could not only hear Rona’s strong voice but also a lot of emotion. The song asked for it. However, the emotion in this song got an extra touch. The semifinal took place on the 22nd of may. The day before the semifinal, something terrible happened. At Qafa e Vishës near Himarë in Albania, a bus fell into an 80 metre ravine. The bus was filled with students. 13 of them died and 21 where seriously injured. Because of this, the Albanian government decided to declare the 22nd of may a day of national mourning. On this day, Rona Nishliu represented her country, singing Just let me cry…. cry…. cry…. for this is the best I can do now. You can imagine the words getting a completely different meaning for everybody in Albania…..

Listen to the Albanian songs!

Upcoming: the Albanian national final Festival i Këngës, which will be held december the 19th, 20th and 22nd. Twenty new songs, all in Albanian, will be presented on those evenings. After the 22nd of december we know the first entry for Rotterdam! Do you wanna hear the songs already? It’s possible. Albanian broadcaster RTSH published all of them on their instagram account. Enjoy!

Kejsi Tola

About Quick Facts NameKejsi Tola Born05 February 1992 Nationality🇦🇱 Albanian National SelectionFestivali I Këngës 2013Festivali I Këngës 2011Festivali I Këngës 2010Festivali I Këngës 2009 In Eurovision2009 Moscow SongCarry Me In Your Dreams (2009) Biography Kejsi Tola, born 5 February 1992, is an Albanian singer and songwriter. Kejsi Tola started singing when she was six years old. She studied at the Jordan Misja Artistic Lyceum. At age 11, she won the Young Voices of Albania competition and won the Young Voices of Shkodra twice. She was a finalist on Gjeniu i Vogël and won the fourth season of Ethet, the Albanian version of Pop Idol. In 2008, she was chosen by Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) to compete in the 47th Festivali i Këngës with her song “Më merr në ëndërr”. She won the contest with 126 points and got the chance to represent Albania at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 in Moscow. She qualified for the grand final, finishing 17th overall with 48 points. In late 2009, Kejsi competed in the 48th Festivali i Këngës with the song “Ndonjëherë” and finished 15th with 58 points. After this, she took a break to study classical singing at the University of Arts in Tirana. She came back to Festivali i Këngës in 2010 with the song “Pranë”. However, she didn’t make it to the final. In 2012, she participated in the 51st Festivali i Këngës with the song “S’jemi më atje”. She made it to the final and finished in 4th place with 42 points. In 2014, Kejsi entered Kënga Magjike with the song “Iceberg”. She placed 5th and won the Production Award. In 2018, she had a hit single with the song “U rritëm”. She competed again in Kënga Magjike in 2018 with the song “Me ke mua”, which was nominated for Best Song of the Year at the 2019 Kult Awards. In 2023, she was set to compete in Festivali i Këngës 62 with the song “Vallëzoj me dritën”, but she withdrew from the competition. Entries Carry Me In your Dreams Country🇦🇱 Albania Year2009 LanguageEnglish LyricsAgim DoçiJune Taylor MusicEdmond Zhulali BackingsEra Rusi DancersJenia Evgenios BuliArdi KocajAndi Kocaj Results Semi Points: 73Position: 7Running order: 16 Results Finals Points: 48Position: 17Running order: 19 https://youtu.be/w6Ori4A4ATo?si=J1J-e2Jh0gCo6QWq

Olta Boka

About Quick Facts NameOlta Boka Born13 September 1991 Nationality🇦🇱 Albanian National SelectionFestivali i Këngës 2020Festivali i Këngës 2008 In Eurovision2008 Belgrade SongZemrën e lamë peng Biography Olta Boka is an Albanian singer. She was born on November 4, 1991, in Tirana. Olta gained national and international fame through her participation in music festivals and her success at the Eurovision Song Contest. Olta Boka’s breakthrough came in 2008 when she competed in Albania’s prestigious Festivali i Këngës, the national selection for Eurovision. She performed the song “Zemrën e lamë peng” (We Left Our Hearts Behind), a powerful ballad that won her the competition. At just 16 years old, she represented Albania at the Eurovision Song Contest 2008, held in Belgrade, Serbia. Olta’s performance earned her 17th place in the grand fina. Following Eurovision, Olta focused on her music career and released several singles that showcased her versatile voice. In 2009, she participated in Kënga Magjike with the song “Mbete një brengë” (You Remain a Worry), which became a fan favorite. Over the years, she continued to be a regular participant in Albania’s most prominent music festivals, including Top Fest, where she performed songs like “Keq për ty” (Sorry for You). In 2013, Olta returned to Kënga Magjike with the song “E fundit jetë” (The Last Life). Besides music, Olta has a strong academic background. She graduated with a degree in dentistry from the University of Tirana. Balancing her career as a dentist and a singer has made her a role model for many young Albanians. In 2019, Olta released the song “Botë për dy” (A World for Two), which became another milestone in her career. The song showcased her ability to adapt to modern musical styles while maintaining her signature emotional delivery. In 2020, she made a return to Festivali i Këngës with the song “Botë për dy” (A World for Two), where she reached the finals. Olta continued to evolve as an artist, releasing hits like “Ti më ke mua” (You Have Me) in 2021. In April 2024 she released the song “Me shume se ti” (More Than You). Entries Zemrën e lamë peng Country🇦🇱 Albanian Year2008 LanguageAlbanian LyricsPandi Laço MusicAdrian Hila BackingsGridi KrajaMariola MisoGenci Myftaraj Results Semi Points: 67Position: 9Running order: 6 Results Finals Points: 55Position: 16Running order: 3 https://youtu.be/CmvA5kfNsig?si=kFSZWmMGz-hXPA2i

Hersi Matmuja

© Albin Olsson About Quick Facts NameHersjana Matmuja Born01 February 1990 Nationality🇦🇱 Albanian National SelectionFestivali i Këngës 2014Festivali i Këngës 2013Festivali i Këngës 2012Festivali i Këngës 2011Festivali i Këngës 2007 In Eurovision2014 Copenhagen SongOne Night’s Anger (2014) Biography Hersi Matmuja is an Albanian singer. Born on February 1, 1990, in Kukës, Albania, Hersi displayed an early interest in music. She began her professional music career when she was quite young and by her teens had already gained considerable recognition in the music industry in Albania. She studied at the Artistic Lyceum Jordan Misja in Tirana, after which she went to Italy to study at the Santa Cecilia conservatory in Rome, pursuing a degree in music and specializing in canto. This further honed her musical skills, and she was able to blend her knowledge of classical and popular music in her performances. Hersi Matmuja is most recognized for her participation in Festivali i Këngës, an annual music competition in Albania and one of the longest-running musical events in the country. She participated in this competition several times, first in 2007. Participations followed in 2011, 2012 and 2013. In 2014, she won the competition with the song “Zemërimi i një nate,” which gave her the opportunity to represent Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest that year. The song was translated into English for the Eurovision Song Contest and performed as “One Night’s Anger.” Beginning in 2015, she started a collaboration with the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio, contributing to multiple of their productions. Her outstanding performance in the orchestra’s version of Carmen earned her the role of Donna Elvira in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, reimagined by the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio. For two consecutive years, this interpretation of Don Giovanni was performed. In 2018, she voiced the Credo, a religious piece from the Orchestra di Piazza Vittorio, performed at the Panteão Nacional in Lisbon. On the experimental music front, she delved into the contemporary repertoire, particularly the pieces composed by Albanian artist Admir Shkurtaj. In 2016, she was featured in his opera Katër i Radës. Il Naufragio, a chamber opera produced by the Koreja Theater in Lecce. In 2018, she gave a live performance with the Mesimèr Ensemble of music. In 2020, she was part of the inaugural performance of the opera-concert KA. She also took part in the finale of the 40th Valentino Bucchi Composition Competition, performing three of the six final compositions. In 2019, Hersi Matmuja collaborated with Ilaria Fantin. They formed the duo Hana. The duo published their live videos on YouTube. In 2021 they did a tour through Italy. Also in 2021, Hersi released a new song and video, “Kënga çobanit”, which was inspired on the Luma folk tradition. In the same year, she co-organized the Gjallica International Festival, a festival with live music, poetry, workshops and the possibility to buy local products and see something of the area. Entries One Night’s Anger Country🇦🇱 Albania Year2014 LanguageEnglish LyricsJorgo Papingji MusicGenti Lako BackingsErga HalilajDorian MetohuOlsa PapandiliEdris Kraja Results Semi Points: 22Position: 15Running order: 6 Results Finals Points: –Position: –Running order: – https://youtu.be/Ahu_K_Jh2vc