Twenty-five acts sang during the first night of Festivali i Këngës 59 — Albania’s national final for Eurovision 2021. While the show has faced some major challenges because of the pandemic, including one act, Manjola Nallbani, coming down with the illness, producers made unprecedented changes to make sure the show could go on. They moved the event outside. Ditched the live orchestra. And pre-recorded the shows. Ultimately they delivered a programme that was worth the wait through all those drawn-out ads.
Era Rusi whipped her hair back. Orgesa Zaimi served stunning vocals in a monochrome suit. Anxhela Peristeri had backing dancers playing tug-of-war with her arms. Inis Neziri show off her pitch-perfect vocals. And Mirud created a MOOD. But who was your favourite? You can re-watch the show below. Then vote in our poll. You can vote for as many acts as you’d like, but you can only submit your votes ONE time. So make it count.
We will close this poll at 17:00 Tirana time on Tuesday afternoon. The results will NOT be visible until after the poll is closed.
Night 1 of FiK 59 was all about the original versions of the songs. On Tuesday, during Night 2, we will see the 25 acts perform acoustic versions of their songs. We’ll only learn the 18 finalists after the second night.
Who got your votes? Who do you think will improve during acoustic night? And who had the best staging? Let us know down below!
WOW, Miruds uplugged version and performance much better! Love it!
I feel a bit bad for the artists. Putting the venue outdoors in December, you could see their breath in half of the performances. I wonder if some of the lackluster dancing/emotion was just people being cold on stage. Props to all the pro dancers who didnt get to have a coat.
I was thinking the same thing! I’d heard some of the artists before nailing songs in previous years but being noticeably off yesterday.
Both Era and Inis were excellent, but I think Inis should win. Her vocals were astonishing and the song is even better live. But i wouldn’t be unhappy with Era winning.
Everything is so bad 🙁 Good luck for qualifying I think…
Karma or Inis. The only thing i know after heard them live: Albania will not send a man this year. The men is not that great, sorry.
So Ty and Njesoj didn’t make it……interesting.
Angela and Mirud delivered the most awkward performances ever. Sadly for their fans, they stand no chance to win. Jessica and Inis will fight for the trophy.
My choices: Fatos Shabani – Ty (7). Fatos Shybani delivered “Ty” fairly well, it was emotional and atmospheric. Maybe it is boring for some but he really owned the staged with his voice and his guitar without any need of fireworks. One word: BEAUTIFUL. Sardi Strugaj – Kam Me T’ba Me Kajt (6.75). Sardi Strugaj surprised me as I didn’t pay attention to it while listening to the studio versions. Such an epic and dark entry and a strong raspy voice. Era Rusi – Zjarri im (6.5). A bit messy but the one with the most potential on stage. Rosela… Read more »
Too ‘gay’ for Albania….the homophobia jumped out
The interesting thing: Tibor wrote “look like an overzealous middle aged lady on a cheap ski resort” and I thought, oh, I must confess he has put into words what I saw. And nobody commented “the middle aged lady phobia jumped out.” Why is there a difference and people react differently in the case of Hector trying to find a description of what he saw in his eyes concerning the performance from Mirud in this competition. For some reason I don’t think at all that Hector is homophobic. But maybe you know him??? and know more than I can read… Read more »
Middle aged white ladies are one of the most privileged groups in the world. They of course still have their struggles and their oppressors, and should be helped through them, but they are not belittled like LGBTQIA+ people were and are. They are not killed like LGBTQIA+ people were and are. They are not mocked so often and stereotyped like LGBTQIA+ people were and are. Is making an ageist joke about era in poor taste? Absolutely. But it has nowhere near the impact that making a homophobic joke does, simply due to context.
And of course I have 8 downvotes. What a shock to everyone.
Borges Zaimi is the Samanta Tina of Albania. Maybe someday we’ll see her of the Eurovision stage.
Knowing Albania, only Orgesa and Inis have a chance to win from the first night.
Kastro, bringing the fire to FiK <3 simply amazing bop he got
To be honest, I’m really disappointed about this year’s edition. In my opinion there was at least 4 songs from last year (Me tana, Eja merre, Ankth, Shaj) that are better than the best one from this year (Nese vdes). And sadly Mirud’s performance was really bad.
Okay… dislike this all you want, but this was my first time watching FiK and I gotta say, it’s one of the worst (if not the worst) national finals out there. 3 hours of absolutely nothing, terrible camera work and sound quality, amateur performances, no voting. Such a waste of time.
This happens to you and many Eurovision fans because you want to see a national final similar to Melodifestivalen. Festivali i Këngës is a traditional song festival in Albania that is being used as national final for Eurovision since 2004 because of the loss of interest in it (there were other new cooler music festivals as Kënga Magjike and Top Fest with more contemporary or modern sounds). Even if it is now the national final of Albania for ESC, it is still the Albanian song contest made for Albanian people, not for Europeans. Also you cannot expect receiving the same… Read more »
Kastro and Sardi were the only ones that really woke me up. Only thing Kastro needs is some fire and some dancers.
I think era rusi is their best bet, but anxhela can be good too.
Karma reminds me of Fairytale. Both great vocal but the song was so uneventful!
I agree, but tbh Perralle (pre-translation and revamp) was better than Karma is.
I checked out if the lyrics of the revamp were that far off and surprisingly they weren’t. So, take what you want from it, but Perralle has a really similar lyrical content (“And that’s why I love you…”)
But the composition of Perralle is much stronger. Feels more raw, intense and interesting. I have no idea what were they thinking in stripping it down of it’s musical richness.
Thinking of it, maybe those same lyrics do work better when the musical arrangement actually lets you feel them. Yeah, no comparison!
Fairytale is the ONLY Albanian entry of the last six years not to be ranked in my top five of ESC for that given year. Had they sent Perralle instead, they would’ve managed it.
boring yes i agree
Vallja e Jetes would give something new from albania at eurovision
The juries vote for the “friends”… this is stupid. Albania is too small and everyone knows each other. It’s time to modernize the voting system. Let Albania’s citizens decided to choose. No Corrupt Jury needed.
Are you sure that “everyone knows each other” in a country of 3 million? Also, Albania isn’t “too small” territoriality either. A modest size for a European country, just like Belgium or The Netherlands.
Yes, it is small. Especially in the entertainment industry. I am not talking about territoriality. Those two countries have a combined population of 20 million! The Albanian entertainment industry is like a small family. Everyone does know each other and most of them are friends. Which is a conflict of interest when it comes to these types of festivals. That’s why the jury should be the citizens or 3rd party sent by EBU.
This obsession with numbers is irrelevant because people in the entertainment industry comprise of 0.01% of the entire population in every country, whether 5 or 500 million. If the whole nation knows them, of course they will know each other too, but that does not necessarily imply that they are friends. Being colleagues in the music industry and being friends are two completely different things.
Just a simple solution of opening the televote would do the trick as well.
Inis Neziri amazing singer. Winner absolut
Can somebody clear it up please: is Wendi’s song called Si Ajo or Vesi I Shpirti Tim? Because Wiwibloggs uses Si Ajo, FiK uses Vesi I Shpirti Tim, but her live performance is on Youtube as Si Ajo as well as being on Wikipedia as Si Ajo. So idk anymore
Anxhela did the best.
This is how I would vote in the final:
1. Mirud (With new costume and better vocals)
2. Inis
3. Anxhela
4. Era
5. Devis
I would bet on Anxhela to win tho
I don’t think it’s even close. It’s Xhesika Polo for me. In a night full of “good”, that was special.
SAME. Just Xhesika, love her.
era absolutely killed that performance, but watch the juries give it like 2 points. its past time for fik to introduce a televote (and one that counts for 50% of the results, not 7% or whatever it was in 2017).
Thing is that juries are the professionals in music and generally have a better average taste in music than the public. Which is why they should have the majority of the vote. Otherwise, spirit in the sky would have won over arcade. I agree that the difference should be less maybe a twenty point twenty point margin for the jury would be fair.
There is no such thing as a better taste in music because it is subjective. Plus this is Festivali I Kenges, it is traditional and not very mainstream so it’s not like there are any ‘terrible’ uptempo songs that televoters could reward anyway.
Juries let the country end up in 17th place every time, I mean…
Are the juries of FIK actually awarding points with Eurovision in mind or are their points only rewarding composition and live performance of the entry in the special context of FIK?
I am surprised that my favourite going into this conviced me with his live performance. The only thing, the sound people should let his voice get more in the foreground.
My winner is Sardi Strugaj – “Kam me t’ba me kajt”
Inis definitely is the best voice that Albania ever had so she will win
Unpopular opinion: Fatos Shabani had the most authentic and absolute best performance of the night. So much passion and love!
Yesss
The most Eurovision-ready act is Inis Neziri.Period. Era Rusi is the second act that I would say that is eurovision-ready but I really don’t know if she stands any chance at all considering how the FiK jury treated Me Tana last year. As for Anxhela Peristeri I think that she can do better, I’m not disappointed but I think that in this case her biggest rival, Inis Neziri, did better. As for Mirud, this was not a winning performance, the camera shots were messy and as in Era Rusi’s case I don’t know if the jury supports an act like… Read more »
I likewise love Kastro’s song! But agreed I don’t think it will be going to Eurovision. I suspect it’s really going to be between Inis and Anxhela as well as maybe Era Rusi if they don’t have jury members who have a personal dislike for this ‘kind’ of music.
I think it’s clear by now that it’ll be Anxhela or Inis. Even though the homophobic trolling was in no way justified, Mirud’s performance did not translate well live and Era’s song is probably a bit too fun/over the top/trashy to win over a notoriously conservative jury. Watch Fatos, Xhesika and Kamela do better than expected due to strong live performances.
I don’t have a clear favorite. “E Lirë” became my favorite entry, but sadly Gigliola hasn’t performed well. I love a lot of things about Kamela, Wendi and Evi Reçi, but I’m aware their songs aren’t usually taken as winning contest material. Possibly Sardi was the one of my front group that presented the best package. Knowing FiK, I would say it’s between Anxhela and Inis. Anxhela was very convincing tonight and her song is more dynamic and has the ethnic edge. Though there’s something about Inis that’s very compelling. She deserved a better song. It must be said that… Read more »
I believe Anxhela and Orgesa were the ones who elevated their entries the most on this first night.
Anxhela, Inis or Era will win probably, but Mirud’s performance wasn’t so bad really. He needs more confidence on the stage, but the song is really nice. I’m still rooting for him to win.
*Spoiler*
I saw his costume for final night and it looks soo much better and fits very well to the song
That performance was bad. Dancing was cringe, outfits were odd, he look terrified on stage and totally uncomfortable. Vocals were not great, particularly during important parts of the song. Most importantly, as the “upbeat song” it had a total lack of energy.
Can anyone who can understand Albanian help us translate Wendi Mancaku’s song or at least roughly describe it’s meaning in a few words. There’s a couple of us who really like that song, but we also realize that understanding the meaning helps a lot! Thanks in advance.
I believe I’m the other part of the “couple of us” Colin mentioned and I would like to reinforce this wish. 🙂 Also curious to know if the dancer lighting a cigarrette for his partner is something the lyrics mention.
You got it right, Una, she was indeed mentioning cigarettes in the lyrics. I don’t see a problem in using them for artistical purposes though (as long of course there isn’t a secret agenda, like old times in Hollywood when tobacco companies used movies as advertising). But I would consider do it without the cigarette. After all, both the act of smoking and the act of lighting someone’s cigarette could be represented by some universal gestures. Maybe it would make life easier for the dancers. And they are interpretative dancers, after all.
A translation of Wendi’s song Albanian: I lash të gjitha sot, cigaren edhe ty Vesi i shpirtit tim Skam asnjë shpëtim Derën hapur e lash per ty Mirëmëngjes trishtim Do më bëhesh krahë, të kaloj vetminë Sjemi, sjemi, sjemi Më harroi dhe emrin Cigaren e atij, të fundit po e pi Sjemi, sjemi, sjemi, asnjëherë sdo jemi Ska më ne te dy Është ajo ai Vetëm për mua, sot i thuaj jo Mësomë dhe mua të mos jem më kjo Për dreq une dua, dikë që smë do E dashuruar, bëhu si ajo, si ajo English Vice of my soul… Read more »
Thank you 🙂 I really love this song.
Wendi Mancaku- Bad Habit Of My Soul I quit everything today Cigarettes and you Bas habit of my soul I have no salvation I left the door open for you (I can’t figure out what she says here) You’ll be my wings To get through loneliness We’re not, we’re not, we’re not He even forgot my name His cigarette His last one I’m smoking We’re not, we’re not, we’re not We will never be No more me and you It’s him and her Only for me today say no Teach me not to be this girl anymore I love someone… Read more »
Thank you so much. 🙂
What I find really interesting here is that Vesi i shpirti tim (or Si Ajo) is in a way like a mirror image to her last year’s song Ende. Ende was about remembering and keeping someone’s long lost love close. Vesi i shpirti tim is about letting go what hurts you. I really like this artistic train of thought of Wendi Mancaku.
Would you be able to do the same for Tjerr and E moren boten please? They’re 2 of my favourite entries but there are no lyrics available yet
Thank you very much for the translation. 🙂 So the cigarette is not just mentioned in the lyrics, but actually works as a symbol of bad habits she want to leave behind. I totally understand why the choreographer went for it. And now I can give my full support to Wendi and her song.
Kamela Islamaj, best dressed for second year in a row.
In my opinion, Sardi Strugaj was the best. 🙂 He should WIN! 🙂
I also liked Gjergj Kaçinari and Kastro Zizo. 🙂
Inis – Ok. 🙂
But I did NOT like Era and Rosela at all. I don’t want them at Eurovision… 🙁
klinti and Inis.. best performances..
Team Era Era jote! (Aka Era Rusi)
Inis and Anxhela had the best overall package. Depends whether you like a powerful ballad or an upbeat number. I will say that Inis looked the most comfortable on stage, but she didn’t have to remember any choreography. Inis voice made it look like an effortless performance. They could add some mode dramatic lighting for ESC. Anxhela’s perfromace was more of an ESC typical show perfromace.
Weak year, but… Mirud was daring and I appreciate that, the song is really really nice but he needs more confidence on stage I think. On the other hand, Era is EVERYTHING. I hope she wins.
Inis.
I’m impressed by Xhesika’s performance! She made me cry during the performance, though i really like Festina and Kastro Zizo too. So at the end i still rooting for Anxhela or Era.
***Spoiler***
These are the qualifiers according to Eurovision Albania’s Instagram stories: (don’t read if you don’t want to be spoiled)
Sardi
Xhesika
Orgesa
Wendi
Era
Gjergj
Rosela
Devis
Mirud
Gigliola
Victor
Kamela
Florent
Inis
Evi
Anxhela
Festina
Kastro
According to an Albanian twitter user, this is also the order in which these artists performed in the Finale which was actually filmed Monday evening. (while we were watching the first night’s broadcast). It seems the jury votes only will be broadcast live on Wednesday.
Erik didn’t qualify? I’m very surprised, I wasn’t sure how the jury would respond to Jo’s lyrical content given the festival is still very traditional in nature
To be honest, I’m surprised the song was chosen to compete in the first place given the nature of its lyrical content. But I suppose if the selection comitee didn’t take issue with that, then the juries wouldn’t either? I’m really not sure… Objectively speaking, given the quality of the song and his vocals, I do think he deserved to qualify but maybe it’s for the best that he didn’t.
I can’t find this in Eurovision Albania’s Instagram stories. Also, I would take it with a grain of salt a day early. Still, if so, FiK continues eliminating my 1st in the semi. Last year, it was Wendi, this year, apparently Klinti. I still hope it’s not a real line-up. But if it is, I have no idea how some of these went in ahead of him… If so, I’ll endorse Xhesika and Wendi in the finals.
You’re right, perhaps I should have clarified that it was a generally trustworthy source which stated that Eurovision Albania leaked the qualifiers. I have to say, you’re an absolute angel for supporting Xhesika and Wendi 🙂 I was feeling like an outlier among the fandom!
Yeah, these are my top 3 – Klinti, Xhesika, Wendi. And any of them would be a great winner, IMHO. I have no idea how the jury thought that Viktor, Festina, Kamela or Devis had any more impactful songs, but ultimately, it’s not my decision. And never expected him to win anyway, so in long run, this is just two days ahead. Now I definitely want Xhesika or Wendi to snatch that title as a surprise, but I still think it will be Inis vs Anxhela (which is also between two good songs, so okay).
if true then is a shame..i didn’t like many songs but in my opinion klinti had the best performance together with Inis.. i can’t see him in the list
Hmm, to be honest, I’m a bit underwhelmed and disappointed by the performances. Don’t get me wrong, of course, there were some good performances, but overall, there wasn’t really a performance where I had this wow effect. Even though Mirud’s song was my favourite, I found his performance rather quite dull. Yes, the camera angles are usually a problem in FiK, but even Mirud himself looked robotic and seemed uncomfortable. I still don’t change my opinion: I think it’s a great song and it has potential, but definitely NOT with this choreography and NOT with this outfit. Inis’ vocals didn’t… Read more »
Orgesa strong performance.
Anxhela awfull staging, vocals quite good, definitely a very strong song if delivered at its best. And I’m pretty sure she ça.
Era lift up her song by her ability to make the show.
Inis started well but the sound or her vocals were irregular after the first minute. Classic performance.
Mirud has the full package and tried something, either we like his choreography or not, maybe just a lack of self-confidence.
The qualifiers were apparently leaked, the only real surprise was Enxhi, who NQd unfortunately. Victor also Qd somehow.
Era, Inis and Fatos Shabani were the best. Mirud and the couple of old guys who nobody remembers were just HORRIBLE!
Enxhi Nasufi: One of my favourite songs but was let down by her performance Orgesa was pretty much pitch perfect vocally, it’s a shame her song isn’t the best I continue to be VERY conflicted by Erik Lloshi – one of the best songs in the lineup but I can’t overlook the fact that the song is about abortion. Good performance nevertheless Era Rusi was a bit underwhelming vocally and I don’t think the choreography suited the performance very well but she is still my favourite by far Xhesika Polo – A pleasant surprise, I didn’t think too much of… Read more »
Xhesika Polo’s performance almost had me in tears, such an emotional song! As for the rest, unfortunately my favorites underwhelmed imo, Mirud seemed a bit robotic while doing choreography and lacked a little stage presence, Enxhi’s styling was off imo, and Inis was okay but really not sure it stood out much. I do think Era really killed her performance and the song really grew on me, and Anxhela did really well although I’m not a fan of her attitude and actions. Vashezo was good as well, I would say, and si ajo is just really captivating for me although… Read more »