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37-414: Various singing presentations have been used throughout its history, beginning with radio-only performances in the first few years, then expanding to live performances, playback, remakes, and duets featuring other singers. The winners have traditionally been selected by a jury. However, other voting methods have also been applied, such as televoting or regional juries. At times, the head juror has carried twice

74-570: A highly successful musician by winning the first edition of Festivali i Këngës as well as her future victories in the festival. Zela is a recipient of significant awards and decorations . She was awarded the Merited Artist Order , People's Artist Order and Honor of Nation Order . Vaçe Zela was born on 7 April 1939 in the city of Lushnjë , then part of the Kingdom of Albania , into an Albanian family, as she herself said, in which music

111-549: A household name in her native country. She released her first single, "Lermeni (Let Me Be Free)" and a year later released her first album, Kam Qejfin Tim (I Run My Own Game) . Bleona's first major tour took place that year, and she performed 25 summer shows at concert halls in Switzerland and Germany . Bleona speaks and sings in English , Albanian , Italian and German . She studied

148-734: A role alongside Dolph Lundgren in Dead Trigger . The following year, Bleona appeared in 211 , an action-thriller starring Nicolas Cage . Bleona was cast as Nova in the 2019 series Paper Empire in what would be her first major role alongside Wesley Snipes , Denise Richards , Robert Ravi and Anne Archer . In February 2014, Bleona started shooting a new reality television series titled Euros of Hollywood which premiered on November 3, 2014, on Bravo network. The show followed Bleona recording her first album in English and her life in America on becoming

185-514: Is an American citizen , and as of 2010, Bleona lives in California , where she has worked with producers such as Timbaland , Rodney Jerkins , and Grammy award winner David Foster . She has 8 Albums in Albania and has released several singles in English, such as "Show Off", "Famous", "Take You Over", "Without You" and "Pass Out," the latter co-produced by Timbaland . September 10, 2013, she released

222-472: The Eurovision Song Contest 2004 , finishing in 7th place with the song " The Image of You ". Ever since, more international interest in the festival has emerged, with Eurovision fans from Europe and beyond increasingly following the contest through live internet streams and satellite feeds. Every year, hashtags related to Festivali i Këngës have trended on Twitter in many European countries during

259-718: The Stanislavski System of acting, graduating with a BA from the Academy of Performing Arts in Tirana . She also plays violin . From 1998 through 2002, Bleona released four albums, all of which reached the charts in southeastern Europe. In 1999 she headlined the Humanitarian Tour for the People of Kosovo, where she played a number of concerts around Europe. From 2000 to 2001 she performed more than 80 concerts across Europe, and by 2002

296-460: The "Magic Song Festival Awards," Albania's version of the Grammy Awards . In 2006, Bleona became the youngest recipient of Albania’s VMA "Excellent Career Award" in the award's history. Her eighth album Mandarin sold over 800,000 copies in 2007, breaking her previous record. In theme with the album, which means "tangerine," she dyed her hair red in 2006 and kept it that way until 2007, featuring

333-490: The 1980s Italian hit song " Su Di Noi " originally by Enzo Ghinazzi . Her music video for the track was shot at the iconic El Matador Beach in Malibu, California . In February 2019, she landed her first number-one single on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart with the hit track "I Don't Need Your Love". Bleona made her acting debut in 2012 with an appearance in an episode of Steven Seagal 's True Justice . In 2017, she landed

370-579: The Ensemble of Songs and Dances ( Albanian : Ansambli i Këngëve dhe Valleve ). Zela was the first winner of Albanian music competition Festivali i Këngës with the song "Fëmija i parë" (English: First Child ), on 26 December 1962. International awards include "Golden Disk" , "Woman of the year" in Cambridge, England for '97-'98, "Golden Microphone" from the Ministry of Culture of Kosovo , etc. The latest award

407-566: The Eurovision Song Contest in 2004, Festivali i Këngës quickly began producing a greater degree of national and international interest. The festival also received a boost of audience with the participation of newcomers from said competitions, such as Anjeza Shahini , who had won the Ethet e së Premtes Mbrëma ( Albanian Idol ) talent show a few months prior to competing in FiK and was popular with

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444-641: The House of Pionieri, at 13, her parents encouraged her to focus on academics and give up on singing, but against their advice, she continued to pursue a career in entertainment. When she was 14 years old, Bleona earned an audition and landed her first major role as the lead singer for the Skampa Theater in Elbasan . Following a performance at the Albanian National Music Festival at age 15, Bleona became

481-515: The capital city of Pristina in Kosovo ; Tetovo in Macedonia and Düsseldorf, Germany . Supporting her on tour was DJ Freestyle Steve and Brasco. Concert attendance ranged from 50 to 70,000 people per performance. In the summer 2013, Bleona announced the release of her single "Take It Like A Man" produced by StopWaitGo. Maximum Pop called it "an uplifting dance floor filler that screams 'GIRL POWER' at

518-559: The city, although her parents did not like much the idea that their daughter took such a path. Nevertheless, she went to Tirana to compete in order to study at the prestigious School of Arts, but was not accepted, and attended Qemal Stafa High School , where she began to learn the guitar. Zela was first appointed in the Army's Ensemble ( Albanian : Ansambli i Ushtrisë ), then in the State's Ensemble ( Albanian : Ansambli Shtetëror ), and finally

555-492: The color in three music videos. In 2008, Bleona won two awards (media & internet) with the song "Magnetic" at the "Magic Song Festival Awards". Bleona moved to the U.S. in September 2010. Shortly afterward she met producer Timbaland while both were attending the Grammy Awards , and after a year of discussions, she began working with him on three new tracks. Her first English language single "Show Off" featuring Petey Pablo

592-603: The first Kosovar-Albanian singer to win the contest with the ballad " Mirësia dhe e vërteta " ("Goodness and truth"). The song had a humanitarian anti-war message and is often referred to locally as a song for Kosovo , relating to the 1998–99 war . Up until 1999, Festivali i Këngës was the biggest music event in Albania. Its popularity began to waver after the introduction of other competitions such as Top Fest and Kënga Magjike , which were more liberal with their entry and singer selections, and eventually began to produce higher ratings. However, with Albania's introduction to

629-464: The following year with " Larg urrejtjes " ("Away from the hatred") in 1997. These songs mirrored the country's difficult reality following the collapse of the pyramid schemes, an event which wreaked havoc all throughout Albania. Despite the difficult times, Festivali i Këngës never stopped its broadcast and went ahead as scheduled during the final weeks of December, as it has done for every year since its inception. In 1998, Albërie Hadërgjonaj became

666-601: The live final. Festivali i Këngës is usually the first national selection process of the Eurovision season, where countries reveal their competing entries for the main contest in May. Due to it commonly being held around Christmas week, Eurovision fans refer to this time period as "FiKmas". Albania's Eurovision journey has produced many memorable entries and performances by both established and emerging musicians. Its best result to date has been by Kosovo-Albanian singer Rona Nishliu with

703-423: The public for her voice and stage presence. Anjeza Shahini won the 42nd edition of Festivali i Këngës , placing hopeful professional singer Mariza Ikonomi in second place. Mariza boycotted the stage when the results were announced in a sign of disappointment. Much was at stake in this edition, as the winner would be the first ever representative of Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest . Anjeza went on to sing at

740-486: The public". They were accused of endangering the country with "immoral aspects" in their songs and performances. This incident began a period of extreme pressure and censorship, with the ruling Communist Party imposing numerous sanctions on the contest's creativity and strict censorship on anything deemed inappropriate by the government. This ranged from limiting the type of clothes artists could wear, to restricting their range of movement while performing. The main organisers of

777-614: The rock group, Elita 5 . Bleona's first tour in the United States was in 2004, when a club promoter invited her to New York City to perform at Webster Hall . Since then, she has continued to perform in both the United States, the Middle East and in Europe. Bleona's 2005 album, Boom Boom was recorded in both English and Albanian. That same year her single "S'dua" won the Media Award at

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814-471: The show were accused of conspiring against the country and corrupting its youth. The songs were highly monitored and the topics were generally related to the country's development or the government and its main figures. After Hoxha's death in 1985, the change in lyrics was very abrupt and censorship began to relax. Nertila Koka and Anita Bitri quickly became known for their songs about love, while Parashqevi Simaku , Irma Libohova and Morena Reka also engaged

851-519: The single "Take It Like A Man" which went to No. 7 in the UK charts. She was also a celebrity judge on the fourth season of the Albanian version of The X Factor and the breakout star of the 2014 Bravo's TV reality series Euros of Hollywood . In February 2019, she landed her first number one on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart with " I Don't Need Your Love ." Bleona began singing at age 5 when she joined

888-615: The song " Suus ", ranking 2nd in the semi-final and 5th in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 . As of 2022, Vaçe Zela holds the record for the highest number of wins having won the contest eleven times followed by Tonin Tërshana with four wins, Aurela Gaçe , Manjola Nallbani , and Elsa Lila with three wins respectively. [REDACTED] Media related to Festivali i Këngës at Wikimedia Commons Va%C3%A7e Zela Vaçe Zela ( Albanian pronunciation: [ˈvatʃɛ ˈzɛla] ; 7 April 1939 – 6 February 2014)

925-399: The state of affairs in Albania at the time. During this period, the contest was also introduced to the word "God" for the first time. Prior to that, religion was illegal and the word was not allowed to be pronounced in public. The participation of Albanian singers from outside the country's borders was also an addition to the history of the festival during this decade. Before that, the country

962-572: The top of its euro-pop lungs". She celebrated the track reaching #7 on the UK club charts by headlining Las Vegas Gay Pride on September 7, 2013. Bleona was invited to perform consecutive years at the Palm Springs White Party, in 2013 and 2014. In 2015, following her time as a judge on X Factor Europe , Bleona's single "Take You Over" peaked at #3 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. Bleona recorded her version of

999-493: The voting power of other jurors. Vaçe Zela holds the record for most victories in the competition with eleven wins followed by Tonin Tërshana with four wins and Aurela Gaçe , Manjola Nallbani , and Elsa Lila with three wins. The most recent winner is Mal Retkoceri, who won the 62nd edition of the contest. The first edition of Festivali i Këngës took place on 21 December 1962 at the High Institute of Arts in Tirana and

1036-405: The youth with progressively more liberal political entries year after year. Rock groups such as Tingulli i Zjarrtë had a considerable impact with the message of their songs and the introduction of rock music to the Albanian music scene, a genre which has endured successfully to this day and can easily be spotted even in modern FiK entries, many of which feature electric guitars. This liberalisation

1073-522: Was "Special Grand Prize for Singing Legend", the 45th anniversary of the Festival at ART , for the singer's unique contribution to Albanian music , and participation since the very first years of this festival, during which she received many awards. Bleona Qereti Bleona Qereti (born May 14, 1979), also known mononymously as Bleona , is an Albanian and American singer, songwriter, actress, entrepreneur, model and television personality. Qereti

1110-465: Was "sitting cross-legged in everyone's soul". The first to discover Zela's talents were her school teachers. She was not only talented in music, but also in painting and theater. Zela was only ten years old when she began to sing folk songs from the Myzeqe region. She would often casually sing in her city of Lushnje's parks, attracting the passersby. Soon she would participate in small concerts organized in

1147-520: Was allowed by the silent consent of the Communist Party leadership all along, primarily as a result of their realisation that the days of communism in Eastern Europe were coming to an end. The general public, however, was less aware of the imminence of such changes to the political order, making the performances have a puzzling effect that provoked both feelings of outrage and hope. Although Albania

Festivali i Këngës - Misplaced Pages Continue

1184-608: Was an Albanian singer and songwriter. She was a leading figure in the music industry and is considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century in Albania , Kosovo and North Macedonia . Born in Lushnjë and raised in Tirana within Communist Albania , she developed a great interest in music at an early age before embarking on a professional career as a musician in 1962. An eleven-time winner, she built her reputation as

1221-453: Was headlining outdoor concerts and festivals. In that same year she released the DVD Nje xhiro neper Shqiperi (Walking Through Albania). In 2003 Bleona released the album Ti Nuk Di As Me Ma Lyp . Within 3 months of its release, the album had sold 300,000 copies. Over the next four years she again toured throughout Kosovo , England , Germany , Switzerland , and Italy , and co-headlined with

1258-402: Was in a period of isolation. The clothing and performances of the singers became more extravagant as time went by, with singers such as Bleona Qereti , Ledina Çelo and Adelina Ismajli being among the most notable trendsetters of the new era. In 1996, the stage of Festivali i Këngës welcomed newcomer Elsa Lila , who won the contest with " Pyes lotin " ("I ask the tear") in 1996 and again

1295-482: Was released on September 27, 2010. Bleona has also worked on songs with Rodney Jerkins , Makeba, and Jimmy Douglass . In February 2011, Bleona became a citizen of the United States . In September 2012, Bleona's co-produced single with Timbaland , "Pass Out" featuring Brasco was released. She toured Europe to promote the single, performing in Albania in the cities of Vlora , Elbasan , Shkoder and Tirana ;

1332-583: Was the last country in Eastern Europe to part with communist rule in 1992, FiK entries were ringing the bells of change already by 1988. After the fall of communism, Festivali i Këngës had a temporary boost in both quality and diversity. The winning songs reflected the transitional period that the country was undergoing. The 1991 winner, Ardit Gjebrea with "Jon", and the 1992 winner, Osman Mula's entry sung by Aleksandër Gjoka, Manjola Nallbani and Viktor Tahiraj titled " Pesha e fatit " ("The weight of fate") were centred on immigration and freedom, coinciding with

1369-472: Was won by Vaçe Zela performing the song titled " Fëmija i parë ". The contest's entries, under communism , were strictly centered around light music . Over time, neutrally-themed entries started to be used as a tool for the governing Communist Party of Albania in promoting its ideals. The 1972 edition was a turning point for the contest, in which dictator Enver Hoxha prosecuted the organisers of Festivali i Këngës 11 after declaring them "enemies of

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