2022 was the 61st edition of the annual Albanian music competition . The contest was organised by (RTSH) at the

Palace of Congresses The Palace of Congresses () is a venue in Tirana, Albania, where numerous multi-genre concerts, exhibition, festivals, competitions and other events are held, including the annual Festivali i Këngës and Kënga Magjike and the Tirana Book Fa ...

in Tirana, Albania. It encompassed two semi-finals held on 19 and 20 December, succeeded by a nostalgia night on 21 December and culminated in the final on 22 December 2022. The four live shows were hosted by Arbana Osmani. Elsa Lila resulted as the winner of the contest with the song "Evita". The Albanian representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 was selected by the public, with "" performed by Albina and Familja Kelmendi emerging as the representative.

Format

The 61st edition of was organised by (RTSH) and consisted of three semi-finals on the respective dates of 19, 20 and 21 December and the final on 22 December 2022. The four live shows were hosted by Albanian presenter Arbana Osmani and held at the

in Tirana, Albania. Osmani directed the contest along with Bojken Lako, Eduart Grishaj, Eraldo Rexho and Shpëtim Saraçi.

Voting structure

The selection process for the winner of the 61st edition of and Albanian representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 underwent a significant change. Prior to this, the winner was determined by a jury vote, which faced controversy due to allegations of nepotism and corruption. In response, the organisers of RTSH introduced a new system combining public and jury voting. While the top three and two prizes would continue to be chosen by the jury, the winner would no longer receive an invitation to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest. Instead, the Albanian representative for the contest would be selected through a separate televoting process.

Contestants

RTSH initiated an application period for artists and composers interested in participating in the 61st edition of from 3 June to 30 October 2022. Following the application process, a provisional list of 26 participants was published by the broadcaster on 27 October, three days prior to the end of the application period.

Shows

Semi-finals

The semi-finals of took place on 19 December and 20 December 2022 and were broadcast live at 21:00 ( CET) on the respective dates. Albanian actress

Margarita Xhepa Margarita Xhepa (born 2 April 1932; rup, Margarita Gepa) is an Albanian actress, best known as one of the great ladies of Albanian cinema and theater. She continues to play in recent films such as Firdus in Bolero ne vilen e pleqve, based on t ...

was the special guest of the first semi-final, performing a monologue to raise awareness about domestic violence against women and share her own experiences. Following the conclusion of the second semi-final, five out of ten contestants from the New artists were selected by a jury to advance to the final, while all 16 contestants from the Big artists automatically qualified for the final.

Nostalgia Night

The nostalgia night of took place on 21 December 2022 at 21:00 (CET). During the show, prominent Albanian singers accompanied the Big artists in performing renditions of historic songs from previous editions of .

Final

The final of took place on 22 December 2022 at 21:00 (CET). Albanian-Belgian singer Gala Dragot and Ukrainian group Kalush, who won the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, were the interval acts of the final. The jury, consisting of Alma Bektashi, Elton Deda, Genc Salihu, Jeani Ciko and Rita Petro, determined Elsa Lila as the winner of the contest with the song "Evita". The Albanian representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 was selected by televoting, with Albina and Familja Kelmendi with the song "" being named as the country's chosen representatives. Erma Mici received the award for the Best New Artist, while Rovena Dilo was awarded the Career Award. Key: Winner Second place Third place

Broadcasts

The four live shows of Festivali i Këngës were broadcast live from 19 December to 22 December 2022 on RTSH in Albania and

Radio Televizioni i Kosovës Radio Television of Kosovo (RTK; sq, Radio Televizioni i Kosovës, sr, Радио Телевизија Косова / ''Radio Televizija Kosova'') is the public service broadcaster in Kosovo. RTK operates two radio services broadcasting a dive ...

(RTK) in Kosovo. RTSH further provided international

live streaming Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...

of the shows through their official website, without any accompanying commentary.

References

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2022 in Albanian music 2022 in Albanian television 2022 song contests December 2022 events in Europe Eurovision Song Contest 2023