Soni Malaj (born 23 October 1981), also known mononymously as Soni, is an Albanian singer, songwriter and dancer.

Life and career

Soni Malaj was born on 23 October 1982 into an Albanian family in the city of

Tropojë Tropojë (; sq-definite, Tropoja) is a municipality in Kukës County, northeastern Albania, within the historical ethnographic region of the Gjakova Highlands. The municipality consists of the administrative units of Bajram Curri, Bujan, Bytyç, ...

, then part of the

People's Republic of Albania The People's Socialist Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika Popullore Socialiste e Shqipërisë, links=no) was the Marxist–Leninist one party state that existed in Albania from 1946 to 1992 (the official name of the country was the People's R ...

, present

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

. Her real name is Sonja Malaj. She spent her childhood until the age of 9 in Tropoja. The family then moved to

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

where Soni would continue her career as a singer. She has participated in competitions like "Top Fest" (2006), and she placed second in

Kënga Magjike Kënga Magjike (; ) is an annual music competition organised by the Albanian television broadcaster Televizioni Klan. The music competition has been broadcasting annually since its inauguration in 1999 with the exception of 2020. The first edi ...

with

Flori Mumajesi Florjan Mumajesi (; born 23 August 1982), known professionally as Flori, is an Albanian recording artist, composer, producer, and singer. Born and raised in Tirana, Mumajesi began his career at an early age and rose to significant recognition aft ...

, with the song "Fluturimi 3470". After Serbian singer

Marija Šerifović Marija Šerifović ( sr-cyr, Марија Шерифовић, ; born 14 November 1984) is a Serbian singer. Born in Kragujevac as the daughter of Verica Šerifović, she rose to prominence in 2003 with her debut album '' Naj, Najbolja''. Šerif ...

won

Eurovision Song Contest 2007 The Eurovision Song Contest 2007 was the 52nd edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Helsinki, Finland, following the country's victory at the with the song "Hard Rock Hallelujah" by Lordi. Organised by the European Broadcasti ...

, there was speculation that her winning song

Molitva "Molitva" ( sr-Cyrl, Молитва; "Prayer") is a song with music by Vladimir Graić, lyrics by Saša Milošević Mare, and sung by Serbian singer Marija Šerifović. It was the winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest 2007, performed for . ...

was actually

plagiarism Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...

of Soni Malaj's song Ndarj
Soni Malaj
also won top fest 11. She was a jury and coach at the 2nd and 3rd edition of the Talent Show "

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

". In 2018, Malaj unsuccessfully attempted to represent Albania in the

Eurovision Song Contest 2019 The Eurovision Song Contest 2019 was the 64th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Tel Aviv, Israel, following the country's victory at the 2018 contest with the song " Toy" by Netta. Organised by the European Broad ...

, after finishing fifth at the 57th edition of

Festivali i Këngës Festivali i Këngës (; ), also referred to as simply FiK, is an annual music competition in Albania organised by the national broadcaster Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH). Broadcast every year since its inauguration in 1962, it has also determ ...

with the song "Më e fortë". In March 2021,

Televizioni Klan Televizioni Klan, also known as TV Klan, is an Albanian private television channel with national coverage, based in Tirana, Albania. History and profile TV Klan launched as a Franco-Albanian joint-venture, with its first broadcast airing on 25 ...

(TV Klan) announced her as one of the contestants selected to compete at the 22nd edition of

Discography

Albums

* ''Nuk qaj për ty'' (2002) * ''Mbretëresha e natës'' (2003) * ''E vogëla'' (2005) * ''Mesdhe'' (2006) * ''Unik'' (2010)

Singles

As lead artist

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Malaj, Soni 1981 births 21st-century Albanian women singers Albanian dancers Albanian showgirls Albanian songwriters Albanian-language singers Festivali i Këngës contestants Living people People from Tropojë