Doruntina Shala (; born 14 December 1996), known professionally as Tayna, is a

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

rapper and singer. Born and raised in

Prizren ) , settlement_type = Municipality and city , image_skyline = Prizren Collage.jpg , imagesize = 290px , image_caption = View of Prizren , image_alt = View of Prizren , image_flag ...

, she rose to prominence in the Albanian-speaking territories during the span of 2018 after the releases of five top-three singles. Her success was further solidified upon her breakthrough in German-speaking territories in 2020 as she signed a record contract with

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

Life and career

1996–2019: Early life and career beginnings

Doruntina Shala was born on 14 December 1996 into an

family in the city of

Prizren ) , settlement_type = Municipality and city , image_skyline = Prizren Collage.jpg , imagesize = 290px , image_caption = View of Prizren , image_alt = View of Prizren , image_flag ...

, then part of the

FR Yugoslavia Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup A relationship breakup, breakup, or ...

, present

. Shala unsuccessfully auditioned for the first season of Talent X in 2016. She made her breakthrough in the Albanian-speaking territories, following the releases of "Columbiana" and "Shqipe" topping the charts in Albania. In August 2018, she performed at the Sunny Hill Festival in

Pristina Pristina, ; sr, / (, ) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city's municipal boundaries in Pristina District form the largest urban center in Kosovo. After Tirana, Pristina has the second largest population of ethnic Albanians and ...

along other acclaimed artists such as

Action Bronson Ariyan Arslani (born December 2, 1983), professionally known as Action Bronson, is an American rapper, songwriter, chef, wrestler, exotic olive oil taster, and television presenter. Born and raised in Queens, New York, he embarked on his musical ...

Martin Garrix Martijn Gerard Garritsen (; born 14 May 1996), known professionally as Martin Garrix and also as Ytram and GRX, is a Dutch disc jockey and music producer who was ranked number one on ''DJ Mag''s Top 100 DJs list for three consecutive years—201 ...

and

Dua Lipa Dua Lipa ( , ; born ) is an English and Albanian singer and songwriter. Possessing a mezzo-soprano vocal range, she is known for her signature disco- pop sound. Lipa has received numerous accolades, including six Brit Awards, three Gramm ...

. In December 2018, she released her follow-up single "Aje" featuring fellow Kosovo-Albanian rapper

Ledri Vula Ledri Vula (; born 10 July 1986) is a Kosovo-Albanian rapper, singer and songwriter. Life and career Ledri Vula was born on 10 July 1986 to Agron and Xheraldina Vula in the city of Pristina, then part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugo ...

. In the same month, she was named as the personality of the year by the Kosovan television programme Privé. In February 2019, Shala released the follow-up single titled "Ring Ring" and peaked at number eight in Albania. "Ring Ring" was succeeded by two top 10-singles, including "Kce" and "Caliente", the latter with Albanian producer

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

. In August 2019, she collaborated with Albanian rappers Lyrical Son and

MC Kresha Kreshnik Fazliu (; born 5 September 1984), known professionally as MC Kresha, is a Kosovo-Albanian rapper and songwriter. Born and raised in Mitrovica, Fazliu is credited as a viable hip hop artist in the Albanian-speaking Balkans. Life and ca ...

on "Pasite". The single reached number one in Albania and peaked at number 155 on the Spotify charts in Switzerland. Nevertheless, the follow-up collaboration with fellow Kosovo-Albanian singer

Dafina Zeqiri Dafina Zeqiri (; born 14 April 1989), also known mononymously as Dafina, is a Swedish-born Kosovo-Albanian singer. Life and career Dafina Zeqiri was born on 14 April 1989 into an Albanian family from Kosovo in the city of Varberg, Sweden. ...

, "Bye Bye", also reached number one in her native country. "Sicko" and "Sorry", the subsequent releases, attained success in Albania, reaching number 2 and 13, respectively, on the local chart. In June 2019, Shala signed a two-year contract with the Kosovan coffee company Devolli Corporation.

2020–present: ''Bipolar'' and continued success

In January 2020, Shala collaborated with Kosovo-Albanian rapper

Mozzik Gramoz Aliu (; born 29 September 1995), known professionally as Mozzik, is a Kosovo-Albanian rapper and singer. Born and raised in Ferizaj, Aliu began to make music at an early age before pursuing a professional career as a rapper. He rose to si ...

on their single " Edhe ti", which was released to commercial success in Albania and the German-speaking territories. In July 2020, the rapper signed a record contract with the German subsidiary label of

. Succeeding "Bass", the single, "Qe Qe", peaked at number nine in Albania and went on to reach number 45 in Switzerland. In January 2021, she released her single titled "Moona" featuring French-Algerian rapper

L'Algérino Samir Djoghlal (born 2 May 1981), better known as L'Algérino (), is an Algerian-French rapper and singer whose family came from the Chaoui- Berber tribes in Khenchela, Algeria. A childhood friend of JUL, he was discovered in 2001 by rapper Akh ...

while peaking at number 83 in Switzerland. Another charting collaboration followed in June 2021 with the release of "Ti harro" with German-Albanian rapper Azet. In the same month, Shala was chosen as the protagonist on the summer collection titled Playboy x DEF of the German subsidiary of

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

and German streetwear brand DefShop. In November 2021, she collaborated a second time with Ledri Vula on the follow-up single "Hala", which went on to peak at number 55 in Switzerland. Dedicated to Albanian women, "Heroinat" was released as the introduction single of Shala's upcoming debut studio album, ''Bipolar'', on 28 November 2021 coinciding with the celebration of Albanian independence day. "OFG" was released as the record's second single in December 2021.

Artistry

The music style of Shala has often been regarded as hip hop and R&B, although her music also includes various styles of musical genres such as

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ), also known as reggaetón and reguetón (), is a music style that originated in Panama during the late 1980s. It was later popularized in Puerto Rico. It has evolved from dancehall and has been influenced by American Hip hop m ...

and

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

. She is enthusiastic about literature and has frequently expressed her passion for reading and the books that have influenced her life.

Discography

Albums

* ''Bipolar'' (TBA)

Singles

As lead artist

= 2010s

= 2020s

As featured artist

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control 1996 births 21st-century Albanian rappers 21st-century Albanian women singers Albanian women rappers Albanian hip hop singers Albanian rhythm and blues singers Albanian songwriters Albanian-language singers Kosovan people of Albanian descent Kosovan rappers Kosovan singers Kosovo Albanians Living people People from Prizren Sony Music artists 21st-century women rappers Musicians from Prizren