Liljana Kondakçi (born 12 October 1950) is an

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 ...

singer and actress. Her career in the music scene and her delicate, melodious voice have made her one of the most recognized names in the Song Festival of Albania.

Life and career

Kondakçi was born in

Tirana Tirana ( , ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in Albania, 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 ov ...

on 12 October 1950. She was only 14 years old when the young girl with long black hair, a strikingly sensual appearance, dressed simply in a printed

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

dress, stepped onto the stage of the most important festival of the time, the end-of-year music festival organized by Radio Television. It was 1967, the fifth edition of the festival, and she captured attention with a live performance of a song composed by Ferdinand Deda. "The Village with Lights Will Blossom", despite its schematic and era-typical lyrics, quickly became a tune widely whistled by the youth, while the young singer marked the beginning of an uninterrupted participation in all the subsequent

festivals A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holidays, eid. A ...

. For 22 consecutive years, Kondakçi would remain one of the most renowned

singers Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

of Albanian

light music Light music is a less-serious form of Western classical music, which originated in the 18th and 19th centuries and continues today. Its heyday was in the mid‑20th century. The style is through-composed, usually shorter orchestral pieces and ...

, also gaining recognition for her original interpretation of traditional

folk songs Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...

. Throughout this period, Kondakçi was employed as a singer at the Tirana variety show ''Estrada'', and for a shorter time, she worked at

Albanian Radio Television Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (; ; formerly TVSH , now mostly referred to as RTSH ) is the national public broadcasting company of Albania. Founded in 1938, it operates several radio and television channels, over a domestic transmitter network as we ...

as a

music editor The term music editor may refer to one of several occupations. In publishing, a music editor is a person who prepares music manuscripts for publication. The use of music editors began at the onset of music publishing in Europe in the late 15th cent ...

. Kondakçiu was the winner of the 18th

Festivali i Këngës (; ), commonly known as and also referred to as simply FiK or Fest, is an annual music competition in Albania organised by the national broadcaster (RTSH). Broadcast every year since its inauguration in 1962, the festival has determined th ...

. She is a

Merited Artist of Albania Merited Artist of Albania () was a state honorary title for the decoration of outstanding art performers of People's Socialist Republic of Albania. It was created by law in 1960 and amended in 1980. The title was no longer given in Albania after t ...

, she also appeared in two films in the Albania cinema.

Arrest and legal issues

In 2006, Kondakçi was reportedly stopped at the Sibari railway station in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

while transporting three kilograms of

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

. Italian media indicated that she was known by the nickname "Mama" within a 20-member

drug trafficking A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestion, ...

gang A gang is a social group, group or secret society, society of associates, friends, or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over Wiktionary:territory#Noun, territory in a ...

. In 2010, she was arrested in Thessaloniki, Greece, following an international arrest warrant issued by Italian authorities. Subsequently, she was extradited to Italy, where she was accused of evading police checks by leveraging her fame as asinger. Kondakçi was sentenced to 2 years and 8 months in prison in Italy for her involvement in drug trafficking. She completed her sentence and was released in early 2013, after which she returned to

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

Personal life

Upon her return to

, Kondakçi resumed a low-profile life in

. Her family reportedly shielded her elderly mother from the details of her legal troubles, informing her that Kondakçi was in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. Following her release from

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...

in early 2013, Liljana Kondakçi made a notable public appearance on 25 January 2013, when she was interviewed on the Albanian television program Zonë e Lirë. During this interview, she discussed her experiences during incarceration and her plans for the future. In the years that followed, Kondakçi maintained a low public profile. While she did not return to active performance, she occasionally participated in interviews and television appearances. For instance, in a 2024

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" re ...

, she reflected on her musical career and commented on the situation of fellow singer Parashqevi Simaku. Kondakçi has two children, a daughter who is a soprano and pianist and a boy who is a painter. Her husband died in 2017.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kondakci, Liljana 20th-century Albanian women singers Living people Albanian people imprisoned abroad People extradited from Greece People extradited to Italy Festivali i Këngës winners 1950 births Albanian film actresses 20th-century Albanian actresses Albanian singers Albanian drug traffickers People from Tirana Merited Artists of Albania