It’s time for the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, and this year will see 40 countries taking to the stage to win the famous singing competition for their country.
Representing Albania in the 66th contest is Ronela Hajati, who will be singing her song Sekret.
Hajati was selected through the national selection competition Festivali i Këngës, which was organised by Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) in December 2021.
As she gets ready to take to the stage, here’s everything you need to know about Ronela.
Who is representing Albania at Eurovision 2022?
Name: Ronela Hajati
Age: 32
Instagram: @ronelahajatiofficial
Twitter: @RonelaHajati
Ronela Hajati is an Albanian singer, songwriter and dancer. Also known mononymously as Ronela, she was born and raised in Tirana and began performing in competitions from a young age before going on to pursue a career in music.
In 2021, she won the 60th edition of Festivali i Këngës, which is Albania’s Eurovision selection competition, and was designated as the rep for this year’s competition.
What is Albania’s Eurovision 2022 song called?
Ronela will be singing her song Sekret for the 66th song contest.
Originally released as a single on 5th March 2022, it was composed and written by Hajati herself and produced by Marko Polo.
You can watch the full music video below:
Where did Albania come in the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest?
Albania finished in 21st place out of the 26 participating countries in the Eurovision 2021 Song Contest, scoring just 57 points.
Prior to the 2021 contest, Albania had participated in Eurovision 16 times, after joining the show in 2004. In 2012, they finished in fifth place with with the song Suus by Rona Nishliu. This was their highest placing to date.
When is Eurovision 2022?
The Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final will take place on Saturday 14th May 2022 in Italy’s PalaOlimpico Arena in Turin, following Maneskin’s win last year.
The event will be broadcast live on BBC One.
The semi-final will air across the BBC on Tuesday 10th May and Thursday 12th May.
Which countries are taking part in Eurovision 2022?
Here are the other countries competing in the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest – click on each one to find out more.
Semi-final 1
- Armenia
- Austria
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Denmark
- Greece
- Iceland
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Moldova
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Portugal
- Slovenia
- Switzerland
- Ukraine
The 2022 Eurovision Song Contest will air on the BBC from Tuesday 10th May to Saturday 14th May – listen to all of this year’s Eurovision songs on TIDAL, while the full album of tracks is available on CD and vinyl now.
You can also check out the full list of Eurovision winners and how many times the UK has won Eurovision here. If you’re looking for something to watch tonight, check out our TV Guide.
The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now – subscribe now and get the next 12 issues for only £1. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the Radio Times podcast with Jane Garvey.