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Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014

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Eurovision Song Contest 2014
Country Albania
National selection
Selection processFestivali i Këngës 52
Selection date(s)Semi-finals:
26 December 2013
27 December 2013
Final:
28 December 2013
Selected artist(s)Hersi
Selected song"One Night's Anger"
Selected songwriter(s)
  • Genti Lako
  • Jorgo Papingji
Finals performance
Semi-final resultFailed to qualify (15th)
Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2013 • 2014 • 2015►

Albania participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Copenhagen, Denmark, with the song "One Night's Anger" performed by Hersi. Its selected entry was chosen through the national selection competition Festivali i Këngës organised by Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) in December 2013. Up until this point, the nation had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest ten times since its first entry in 2004.

"One Night's Anger" song was promoted by a music video and several live performances across Europe. Albania was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest, which took place on 6 May 2014. Performing as number 6th, the nation was not among the top 10 entries of the first semi-final and therefore failed to qualify for the final, marking Albania's fifth non-qualification in the contest. The nation placed 15th in the semi-finals with 22 points.

Background

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Main article: Albania in the Eurovision Song Contest

Prior to the 2014 contest, Albania had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest ten times since its first entry in 2004. Its first entry was the song "The Image of You" performed by Anjeza Shahini, which finished in seventh place, the nation's second-highest placing as of 2023. The country's highest placing by 2015 had been fifth, which it achieved in 2012 with the song "Suus" performed by Rona Nishliu. Albania had previously failed to qualify for the final three times, most recently in 2013.[1] Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH) was the Albanian broadcaster for the 2014 contest and was tasked with organising the selection process for its entry: Festivali i Këngës.[2]

Before Eurovision

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Festivali i Këngës

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The national broadcaster of Albania, Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH), organised the 52nd edition of Festivali i Këngës with the aim of determining the country's participant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2014.[3] The competition consisted of two semi-finals on 26 and 27 December, respectively, and the final on 28 December 2013.[3] The three live shows were held at the Palace of Congresses in Tirana and hosted by Albanian journalist Enkel Demi, with models Xhesika Berberi and Marinela Meta co-hosting the two semi-finals as well as actress Klea Huta co-hosting the final.[3]

Competing entries

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From 8 and 9 October 2013, interested artists were able to submit their entries to RTSH.[4] The broadcaster received approximately 40 submissions. On 4 November 2013, RTSH announced the 16 artists and songs selected for the competition by a special committee.[5] "Jeta në orën 4" performed by Orges Toçe was later withdrawn and replaced by "Jehona" performed by NA.[6]

Key:   Withdrawn   Replacement entry

Competing entries[5]
Artist(s) Song Songwriter(s)
Besiana Mehmeti and Shkodran Tolaj "Jam larg" Vullnet Ibrahimi
Blerina Braka "Mikja ime" Gramoz Kozeli
Edmond Mancaku and Entela Zhula "Vetëm për ty"
  • Edmond Mancaku
  • Alma Meraj
Frederik Ndoci "Një ditë shprese"
Hersiana Matmuja "Zemërimi i një nate"
  • Genti Lako
  • Jorgo Papingji
Klodian Kaçani "Me ty"
  • Klodian Qafoku
  • Florian Zyka
Luiz Ejlli "Kthehu"
  • Marjan Deda
  • Sokol Marsi
Lynx "Princesha" Lynx
Marjeta Billo "Ti mungon"
  • Lambert Jorganxhi
  • Florian Zyka
NA "Jehona" Enis Mullaj
Orges Toçe "Ne mes" Orges Toçe
Renis Gjoka "Mjegulla"
  • Renis Gjoka
  • Edmond Tupe
Rezarta Smaja "Në zemër" Sokol Marsi
Sajmir Braho "Grua"
  • Endri Sina
  • Sajmir Braho
Venera Lumani and Lindi Islami "Natë e pare"
  • Endrit Shani
  • Olti Curri
Xhejn and Enxhi Kumrija "Kur qielli qan"
  • Xhejn Kumrija
  • Enxhi Kumrija
Xhejsi Jorgaqi "Ëndërrat janë ëndërra" Xhejsi Jorgaqi

Shows

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Semi-finals
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The two semi-finals of Festivali i Këngës took place on 26 December and 27 December 2013 and were broadcast at 20:45 (CET).[7][8] In each of the semi-finals, the contestants performed their entries alongside another Albanian artist, singing a past entry from Festivali i Këngës.[6]

Final
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The final of Festivali i Këngës took place on 28 December 2013 and was broadcast at 20:45 (CET).[11] Italian-Albanian singer Elhaida Dani and Danish singer Emmelie de Forest, who won the Eurovision Song Contest 2013, were the interval acts of the final.[12] The jury, consisting of Agim Krajka, Bojken Lako, Aleksander Lalo, Petrit Malaj, Erjona Rushiti, Xhevahir Spahiu, and Hajg Zaharian, determined Hersiana Matmuja as the winner of the contest for the song "Zemërimi i një nate".[12]

Key:   Winner   Second place   Third place

Final–28 December 2013[11]
Draw Artist(s) Song Results[13]
Points Place
1
 Hersiana Matmuja "Zemërimi i një nate" 69 1
2
 Besiana Mehmeti and Shkodran Tolaj "Jam larg" 12 13
3
 Luiz Ejlli "Kthehu" 20 10
4
 Frederik Ndoci "Një ditë shprese" 33 5
5
 NA "Jehona" 25 7
6
 Klodian Kaçani "Me ty" 45 2
7
 Venera Lumani and Lindi Islami "Natë e pare" 37 4
8
 Blerina Braka "Mikja ime" 16 12
9
 Xhejsi Jorgaqi "Ëndërrat janë ëndërra" 0 16
10
 Xhejn and Enxhi Kumrija "Kur qielli qan" 28 6
11
 Lynx "Princesha" 6 15
12
 Marjeta Billo "Ti mungon" 18 11
13
 Sajmir Braho "Grua" 40 3
14
 Rezarta Smaja "Në zemër" 25 7
15
 Edmond Mancaku and Entela Zhula "Vetëm për ty" 10 14
16
 Renis Gjoka "Mjegulla" 22 9

Preparation and promotion

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Following "Zemërimi i një nate"'s win, the song was revamped and released in English as "One Night's Anger" for its Eurovision participation. A music video for the song premiered on the official YouTube channel of the Eurovision Song Contest on 16 March 2014 alongside the premiere of the new version.[14][15] For promotional purposes, Matmuja embarked on a small tour with live performances at various events related to the contest in Hungary, Montenegro, the Netherlands and San Marino.[16][17][18]

At Eurovision

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Hersi presenting herself during the Eurovision Song Contest 2014.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2014 took place at B&W Hallerne in Copenhagen, Denmark; it consisted of two semi-finals held on 6 and 8 May, respectively, and the final on 10 May 2014.[19] According to the Eurovision rules, all participating countries, apart from the host nation and the "Big Five", consisting of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, were required to qualify from one of the two semi-finals to compete for the final, with the top 10 countries from the each semi-final progressing to the final.[20][21] On 20 January 2014, an allocation draw was held at the Copenhagen City Hall in Copenhagen that placed each country into one of the two semi-finals, and determined which half of the show they would perform in.[22] Albania was placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 6 May, and was scheduled to perform in the first half of the show.[22]

Once all the competing songs for the contest had been released, the running order for the semi-finals was decided by the producers of the contest rather than through another draw, to prevent similar songs being placed next to each other; Albania was set to perform in position 6, following Iceland and preceding Russia.[23] The contest was broadcast within Albania on the RTSH network, with Andri Xhahu providing commentary, a role he also performed during the previous year's contest.[24]

Performances

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Hersi performing during the dress rehearsal of the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014.

Hersi took part in technical rehearsals on 28 April and 2 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 5 and 6 May.[25] This included the jury final on 6 May where the professional juries of each country, responsible for 50 percent of each country's vote, watched and voted on the competing entries.[26] At the end of the first semi-final, the country was not among the top 10 entries and therefore failed to qualify for the final, marking Albania's fifth non-qualification in the Eurovision Song Contest.[1][27] When the results were revealed, Albania placed 15th with 22 points, including the top 12 points from Montenegro.[28]

Voting

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See also: Voting at the Eurovision Song Contest

Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding points from 1–8, 10, and 12 as determined by a combination of 50% national jury and 50% televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who were citizens of the country they represented. This jury judged each entry based on vocal capacity; stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they could not vote impartially and independently.[20] The nation awarded its 12 points to Montenegro in the first semi-final and Spain in the final.[28][29] Xhahu was the Albanian spokesperson who announced the country's voting results during the shows.[24][30]

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to and awarded by Albania in the first semi-final and final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2014, respectively. The points awarded by Albania in both the first semi-final and the final were based solely on the jury's vote due to an insufficient number of votes cast during the televote period.

Points awarded to Albania

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Points awarded to Albania (Semi-final 1)[28]
Score Country
12 points  Montenegro
10 points
8 points
7 points
6 points
5 points  San Marino
4 points
3 points
2 points
1 point  Netherlands

Points awarded by Albania

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Detailed voting results

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The following members comprised the Albanian jury:[31]

  • Edmond Zhulali (jury chairperson)
  • Alfred Kacinari
  • Jetmir Barbullushi
  • Mira Tuci
  • Engjëll Ndocaj
Detailed voting results from Albania (Semi-final 1)[32]
Draw Country E. Zhulali A. Kacinari J. Barbullushi M. Tuci E. Ndocaj Jury Rank Points
01  Armenia 4 5 11 1 14 6 5
02  Latvia 12 10 10 15 10 13
03  Estonia 14 12 7 13 9 12
04  Sweden 3 4 5 5 7 5 6
05  Iceland 13 15 13 14 11 15
06  Albania
07  Russia 15 13 15 7 13 14
08  Azerbaijan 7 6 4 2 3 4 7
09  Ukraine 8 8 12 10 6 8 3
10  Belgium 10 14 8 9 12 11
11  Moldova 9 7 6 12 8 7 4
12  San Marino 6 3 3 8 2 3 8
13  Portugal 11 11 14 11 5 10 1
14  Netherlands 5 9 9 6 15 9 2
15  Montenegro 2 2 1 4 1 1 12
16  Hungary 1 1 2 3 4 2 10
Detailed voting results from Albania (Final)[33]
Draw Country E. Zhulali A. Kacinari J. Barbullushi M. Tuci E. Ndocaj Jury Rank Points
01  Ukraine 15 17 17 24 13 19
02  Belarus 18 8 26 25 22 23
03  Azerbaijan 12 14 16 7 26 15
04  Iceland 24 26 18 26 14 24
05  Norway 23 19 19 18 15 20
06  Romania 22 16 9 14 16 16
07  Armenia 9 13 20 6 25 13
08  Montenegro 6 10 5 5 3 5 6
09  Poland 14 18 21 23 23 22
10  Greece 3 22 15 15 2 9 2
11  Austria 11 6 4 4 6 6 5
12  Germany 7 2 8 8 17 7 4
13  Sweden 1 12 1 1 9 4 7
14  France 17 5 22 22 7 12
15  Russia 26 25 25 16 18 25
16  Italy 2 3 3 9 1 2 10
17  Slovenia 13 15 14 13 19 14
18  Finland 16 9 13 19 24 17
19  Spain 4 1 6 2 4 1 12
20   Switzerland 25 24 23 20 20 26
21  Hungary 5 4 2 3 5 3 8
22  Malta 8 23 7 17 8 10 1
23  Denmark 20 21 24 21 11 21
24  Netherlands 19 20 12 11 21 18
25  San Marino 10 11 10 10 10 8 3
26  United Kingdom 21 7 11 12 12 11

References

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  1. ^ a b "Countries: Albania". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 26 October 2020. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  2. ^ "All about Albania". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 14 July 2012. Archived from the original on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "Festivali i Këngës kicks off in Albania tonight". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 26 December 2013. Archived from the original on 4 November 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  4. ^ Sahiti, Gafurr (14 September 2013). "Albania: RTSH calls for songs, deadline 9th of October". ESCToday. Archived from the original on 9 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Krijimet në konkurim" [Creations in competition] (in Albanian). Radio Televizioni Shqiptar. 2013. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  6. ^ a b Sahiti, Gafurr (27 December 2013). "Watch now: Festivali i Këngës 52 second show". ESCToday. Archived from the original on 11 November 2023. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  7. ^ a b Granger, Anthony (26 December 2013). "Albania: Festivali i Kenges Semi Final 1 Tonight". Eurovoix. Archived from the original on 28 December 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b Granger, Anthony (27 December 2013). "Albania: Festivali i Kenges Semi Final 2 Tonight". Eurovoix. Archived from the original on 28 December 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Nis edicioni i 52 i Festivalit të Këngës në RTSH, të gjitha këngët në garë!" [The 52nd edition of the Song Festival on RTSH starts, all the songs in the competition!] (in Albanian). 77 News. 26 December 2013. Archived from the original on 27 December 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Sonte nata e parë e Festivalit në RTSH. Këngët dhe konkurrentët pjesëmarrës" [Tonight is the first night of the Festival at RTSH. Songs and participating contestants] (in Albanian). Republika. 26 December 2013. Archived from the original on 27 December 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  11. ^ a b Granger, Anthony (28 December 2013). "Albania: Festivali i Kenges Final Tonight". Eurovoix. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  12. ^ a b "Hersi Matmuja wins Festivali i Këngës!". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 29 December 2013. Archived from the original on 9 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  13. ^ "Albania: Festivali i Këngës #52". Eurovisionworld. Archived from the original on 9 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  14. ^ Qendro, Helio (17 March 2014). "Albania: One Night's Anger official video released". Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  15. ^ "Hersi – One Night's Anger (Albania) 2014 Eurovision Song Contest". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 16 March 2014. Archived from the original on 19 April 2020. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  16. ^ Besim, Ramadan (4 April 2014). "Hersiana Matmuja starts promotional tour in San Marino". Wiwibloggs. Archived from the original on 11 November 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  17. ^ Sahiti, Gafurr (3 April 2014). "Albania: Hersi kicks off promo tour in San Marino". ESCToday. Archived from the original on 11 November 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  18. ^ "Eurovision in Concert 2014" (in German). ESC – Fairytales. 7 April 2014. Archived from the original on 11 November 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  19. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest–Copenhagen 2014". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 18 May 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  20. ^ a b "Rules of the 59th Eurovision Song Contest" (PDF). European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 20 September 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  21. ^ "Eurovision Song Contest–Rules". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). 31 October 2018. Archived from the original on 8 April 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  22. ^ a b Escudero, Victor M. (20 January 2014). "Allocation Draw results: Who's in which Semi-Final?". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 22 January 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  23. ^ Siim, Jarmo (24 March 2014). "Running order for Eurovision Semi-Finals decided". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 2 January 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
  24. ^ a b Xhahun, Andri (1 May 2014). "Eurovision Song Contest 2014 Live në RTSH me Andri Xhahun" [Eurovision Song Contest 2014 Live on RTSH with Andri Xhahun]. Info Media Albania (in Albanian). Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  25. ^ Lewis, Pete (4 April 2014). "Eurovision 2014: rehearsal schedules released". ESCToday. pp. 1–8. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  26. ^ Roxburgh, Gordon (7 May 2014). "Now the juries decide on the second Semi-Final". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 9 April 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  27. ^ "First Semi-Final of Copenhagen 2014". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 4 May 2021. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  28. ^ a b c d "Results of the First Semi-Final of Copenhagen 2014". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  29. ^ a b "Results of the Grand Final of Copenhagen 2014". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  30. ^ Roxburgh, Gordon (10 May 2014). "'Good evening Copenhagen' – Voting order revealed". European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 13 May 2014.
  31. ^ Brey, Marco (2 May 2014). "Who will be in the expert juries?". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 5 May 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  32. ^ "Full Split Results | First Semi-Final of Copenhagen 2014". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  33. ^ "Full Split Results | Grand Final of Copenhagen 2014". Eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
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