Arilena Ara (Albanian:[aɾiˈlɛnaˈaɾa]; born 17 July 1998) is an Albanian singer and television presenter. Ara rose to national recognition in Albania, upon her victory at X Factor Albania in 2013. After her participation in the 18th edition of the music contest Kënga Magjike, her song "Nëntori" found significant success in Romania and Eastern Europe, peaking at number-one in the Romanian Airplay chart. Following her forthcoming success at the 58th edition of the music contest Festivali i Këngës in 2019, she was designated as the Albanian representative at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, before the contest's cancellation.
Life and career
1998–2018: Early life and career beginnings
Arilena Ara was born on 17 July 1998 into an Albanian family in the city of Shkodër, Albania.[1][2] Ara performed in various dancing and singing competitions as a child, including at the children's talent show Gjeniu i Vogël finishing in third place.[2][3] She won the second series of the talent show X Factor Albania on 31 March 2013.[2][4] Her first single, "Aeroplan", was released in February 2014.[5] Finishing in third place, Ara participated in the 18th edition of the music contest Kënga Magjike with the song "Nëntori" in November 2016.[6][7] The song subsequently experienced commercial success abroad, peaking at number one on the Romanian Radio and TV Airplay rankings as well as reaching number 3 in Bulgaria and number 38 in Hungary.[8][9][10][11] In early 2017, the song's remixes, including "Nëntori (Bess Remix)" and "Nëntori (Beverly Pills Remix)", further reached the top 20 in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).[3][12][13] In the course of 2017, Ara performed at the Europa Plus Festival in Moscow, Russia, and won the award for the song of the year at the Astana Dausy Music Awards in Astana, Kazakhstan.[3][14]
Ara released her debut studio album, Pop Art The Album, on 6 November 2021.[24][25] Prior to its release, four singles, "Murderer", "Aligator", "Thirr Policinë" and "Ke me mungu", were released from the record. Containing R&B and hip hop music, "Murderer" featuring Albanian rapper Noizy was released as the record's lead single in July 2021.[26][27] Its second single, "Aligator", followed on 9 August 2021 and peaked at number five in Albania.[28][29][30] For the record's third single titled, "Thirr Policinë", the singer collaborated with Kosovo-Albanian musician Dafina Zeqiri and reached number six in Albania.[31][32] Ara scored her first number-one single with "Ke me mungu" in October 2021.[33] In April 2022, she debuted as a television presenter, hosting the investigative show Piranjat.[34] On the fifth season of the singing show X Factor Albania was a Judge.[35] Ara participated in Kënga Magjike 2024, duetting with Pirro Çako with their song "ZERO GRADË", later withdrawing from the competition for unknown reasons.
^"Nëntori" did not enter the Tophit chart but both official remixes, including "Nentori (Beverly Pills Remix)" and "Nentori (Bess Remix)", peaked at number 1 and 16, respectively, in the Commonwealth of Independent States.
^"Silver and Gold" did not enter the Tophit chart but the official remix "Silver & Gold (Going Deeper Remix)" peaked at number 139 in Commonwealth of Independent States.
^"Media Forest – Weekly Charts". Media Forest. 17 July 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2022. Note: Select 'Songs – Radio'. Romanian and international positions are rendered together by the number of plays before resulting an overall chart.
^"Media Forest – Weekly Charts". Media Forest. 21 August 2017. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2022. Note: Select 'Songs – TV'. Romanian and international positions are rendered together by the number of plays before resulting an overall chart.
^"Nentori (Bess Remix) – Arilena Ara". Tophit. Archived from the original on 25 January 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2022. Note: The 'Peak Position On Top Radio Hits' column is to be taken into consideration.
For "Last Train to Paris":"The Top List – 18 November 2018" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 18 November 2018. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
For "A i sheh":"The Top List – 26 December 2020" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 26 December 2020. Archived from the original on 28 December 2020. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
For "Aligator":"The Top List – 14 August 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 14 August 2021. Archived from the original on 14 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
For "Thirr Policinë":"The Top List – 11 September 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 11 September 2021. Archived from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
For "Ke me mungu":"The Top List – 23 October 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 23 October 2021. Archived from the original on 23 October 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
^"Arilena Ara – Listen All Songs". Tophit. Archived from the original on 30 December 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021. Note: The 'Peak Position On Top Radio Hits' column is to be taken into consideration.
"Media Forest – Weekly Charts". Media Forest. 17 July 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2022. Note: Select 'Songs – Radio'. Romanian and international positions are rendered together by the number of plays before resulting an overall chart.
For "E gjallë":"The Top List – 02 April 2022" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 2 April 2022. Archived from the original on 2 April 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
"Dance me":"The Top List – 26 March 2022" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 26 March 2022. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
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