She’s a 19-year-old from Växjö who is making her debut at Sweden’s Melodifestivalen.

But during her first rehearsal on Thursday — just days ahead of the first semi-final in Gothenburg — Adrijana wasn’t showing any sign of nerves.

The hip-hop singer delivered a series of sound performances of her song “Amare”, which rides the dirty pop wave very well without ever sounding generic. The performance sees Adrijana standing centre stage in urban wear while a series of ballerinas pirouette and dance around her.

Ahead of rehearsal we caught up with Adrijana for a super-short interview — she’s a woman on the move!

What was your reaction when you got the news you’d be singing at Melodifestivalen?

I got so happy and excited — I couldn’t believe it was true!

What is the message of your song “Amare”? And what inspired you to write it?

“Amare” means “love” in Latin, but it’s not the typical love song. This song is about girls who are not afraid to say what they are feeling.

Does songwriting come easily to you?

Songwriting comes very easy to me when I hear a good beat or when I get inspired by people around me.

When people think of Melodifestivalen they don’t usually think of hip-hop. Do you think Sweden is ready for a hip-hop winner?

Yes I do. I’m not only hip-hop — that is what people keep mistaking. And that is why in Melodifestivalen people will see a different side of my music.

Christer Björkman describes you as a “talented hip-hop girl from Växjo”. Is Växjo known for hip-hop music? Who were your hip-hop role models?

I don’t think its known for hip-hop music but there are a lot of hip-hop artists over there. I have so many role models but my biggest ones are Travis Scott and Rihanna.

How would you sum up the staging in a few words?

It’s a simple yet strong act. You can look forward to a different show. I want the audience to feel joy and love from me.

Your last name Krasniqi suggests you have some international flavour. What’s your background?

Yes, I’m an Albanian from Macedonia.

Finally, what is your favourite Melodifestivalen song from the past?

That’s easy: Loreen’s “Euphoria”!

Adrijana will compete in the first semi-final on Saturday in Gothenburg. 

Read more Melodifestivalen 2017 news

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Alicia
6 years ago

Thanks , I’ve just been looking for info about this topic for ages and yours is the best I have discovered till now. But, what about the bottom line? Are you sure about the source?

KennyESC
KennyESC
7 years ago

Omfggggg we have two albanians now in other SF :*

Ermal Meta(Sanremo/Italy) & Adrijana Krasniqi, so happy, I will root for them ???

Trans Mermaid
Trans Mermaid
7 years ago

LOVE HERRRRRRRRRR

an esc fan
an esc fan
7 years ago

So sorry for being off topic, but if you talk about bulgarian names, I am so thinking about Yordan/Yordanov. I’ve heard this name so often, guess is no.1 most common.

Ivan U7n
Ivan U7n
7 years ago

I can’t say for Albania/Macedonia common surnames, but I do know that in neighboring Bulgaria the surname of the Bulgarian JESC 2014 star Krisia is very common (Todorova). Also to me, having Slavic language as my mother tongue, Krasniqi sounds similar to Slavic roots meaning beautiful (and maybe red).

(J)ESC Fanatic
(J)ESC Fanatic
7 years ago

Is she related to Besa in any way? 😀