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Bleona

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Bleona
Bleona in Ibiza, photo by Vincent Peters 13 June 2013
Background information
Birth nameBleona Qereti
BornKorçë, Albania
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • actress
  • television personality
  • model
Instrument(s)Vocals, violin
Years active1996-present
Websitewww.iambleona.com

Bleona Qereti, professionally known as Bleona, is an Albanian-American singer, entrepreneur, and actress.[1] Since 2009, Bleona has resided in the United States where she has worked with producers such as Timbaland, Rodney Jerkins, and Grammy award winner David Foster.[2] She has released several singles since, such as "Show Off", "Fuck You I'm Famous", "Take You Over", "Without You" and "Pass Out," the latter co-produced by Timbaland. On September 10, 2013 she released the single "Take It Like A Man".[3] In February 2019, she landed her first number one on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart with "I Don't Need Your Love."[4]

Early life

Bleona was born in Korçë, Albania. She began singing at age 5 when she joined the House of Pionieri, and performed her first solo concert at age 9 for the Albanian Secret Service, where her father worked. At 13, her parents encouraged her to focus on academics and give up on singing, but against their advice she continued to pursue a career in entertainment. When she was 14 years old, Bleona earned an audition and landed her first major role as the lead singer for the Skampa Theater in Elbasan.

Following a performance at the Albanian National Music Festival at age 15, Bleona became a household name in her native country.[5] She released her first single, "Lermeni (Let Me Be Free)" in 1996, and a year later released her first album, Kam Qejfin Tim (I Run My Own Game).[6] Bleona's first major tour took place that year, and she performed 25 summer shows at concert halls in Switzerland and Germany. In 1997 she toured in support of the Albanian Democratic Party (headed by Sali Berisha), and released a music video for the track "Kam Qejfin Tim." Since then she has released approximately one new music video a year.[7]

Bleona speaks and sings in English, Albanian, Italian and German.[8] She studied the Stanislavski System of acting, graduating with a BA from the Academy of Performing Arts in Tirana. She also plays violin.[9]

Music career

1998–2002

From 1998 through 2002, Bleona released three albums, all of which reached the charts in southeastern Europe.[3] In 1999 she headlined the Humanitarian Tour for the People of Kosovo, where she played a number of concerts around Europe. From 2000 to 2001 she performed more than 80 concerts across Europe, and by 2002 was headlining outdoor concerts and festivals. In that same year she released the DVD Nje xhiro neper Shqiperi (Walking Through Albania).[citation needed]

2003–2008

Bleona, November 16, 2011

In 2003 Bleona released the album Ti Nuk Di As Me Ma Lyp. Within 3 months of its release, the album had sold 300,000 copies. Over the next four years she again toured throughout Kosovo, England, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, and co-headlined with the rock group, Elita 5.[10]

Bleona's first tour in the United States was in 2004, when a club promoter invited her to New York City to perform at the legendary Webster Hall.[11] Since then, she has continued to perform in both the United States, the Middle East and in Europe.[12]

Bleona’s 2005 album, Boom Boom was recorded in both English and Albanian. That same year her single "S'dua" won the Media Award at the "Magic Song Festival Awards," Albania's version of the Grammy Awards.[13][14] In 2006, Bleona became the youngest recipient of Albania’s VMA "Excellent Career Award" in the award's history.[15] Her eighth album Mandarin sold over 800,000 copies in 2007, breaking her previous record. In theme with the album, which means "tangerine," she dyed her hair red in 2006 and kept it that way until 2007, featuring the color in three music videos.[16] In 2008, Bleona won "Media Award" with the song "Magnetic" at the "Magic Song Festival Awards".[17]

2009–2012

Bleona moved to the U.S. in September 2010. Shortly afterwards she met producer Timbaland while both were attending the Grammy Awards, and after a year of discussions she began working with him on three new tracks. Her first English language single "Show Off" featuring Petey Pablo was released on September 27, 2010.[18] Bleona has also worked on songs with Rodney Jerkins, Makeba, and Jimmy Douglass.[19]

In February 2011, Bleona became a citizen of the United States.[20]

In September 2012, Bleona's co-produced single with Timbaland, "Pass Out" featuring Brasco was released.[21] She toured Europe to promote the single, performing in Albania in the cities of Vlora, Elbasan, Shkoder and Tirana; the capital city of Pristina in Kosovo; Tetovo in Macedonia and Düsseldorf, Germany. Supporting her on tour was DJ Freestyle Steve and Brasco. Concert attendance ranged from 50 to 70,000 people per performance.[22]

2013–2016

In the summer 2013, Bleona announced the release of her single "Take It Like A Man" produced by StopWaitGo.[23] Maximum Pop called it "an uplifting dance floor filler that screams 'GIRL POWER' at the top of its euro-pop lungs".[24] She celebrated the track reaching #7 on the UK club charts by headlining Las Vegas Gay Pride on September 7, 2013.[25]

Bleona was invited to perform consecutive years at the "White Party", joining Lady Gaga as just the second artist to perform two years in a row. As a result, her single "Fuck You I'm Famous" became an anthem for the LGBTQ community.

In 2015 following her time as a judge on X Factor Europe, Bleona's single "Take You Over" peaked at #3 on the Billboard Dance chart.

2018–present

Bleona recorded her version of the 1980's Italian hit song "Su Di Noi" originally by Enzo Ghinazzi. Her music video for the track was shot at the iconic El Matador Beach in Malibu, California. In February 2019, she landed her first number one single on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart with the hit track "I Don't Need Your Love".

Television & film

Bleona made her acting debut in 2012 with an appearance in an episode of Steven Seagal's True Justice. In 2017, she landed a role alongside Dolph Lundgren in Dead Trigger. The following year, Bleona appeared in 211, an action-thriller starring Nicolas Cage. Bleona was cast as Nova in the 2019 series Paper Empire in what would be her first major role alongside Wesley Snipes, Denise Richards, Robert Ravi and Anne Archer.[26]

In February 2014, Bleona started shooting a new reality television series titled Euros of Hollywood which premiered on November 3, 2014 on Bravo network. The show followed Bleona recording her first album in English and her life in America. In 2015, Bleona returned to Albania where she was a member of the X Factor jury. In 2016, she was a member of Your Face Sounds Familiar jury in Albania.[27]

Discography

Albums

Bleona posing in a music video, June 16, 2012
Year Title
1997 Kam Qejfin Tim (I Run My Own Game)
1999 Nese Me Do Fort (If You Love Me That Much)
2001 S'me Behet Vone (I Don't Care)
2002 Ik Meso Si Dashurohet (Go Learn How to Love)
2003 Ti Nuk Di As Me Ma Lyp (You Weren't Man Enough for Me)
2005 Greatest Hits
2005 Boom Boom
2007 Mandarin

Singles

Year Title
1996 "Lermeni"
1999 "Nese me do fort"
2001 "S’me behet vone"
2002 "Ik meso si dashurohet"
2003 "O bo bo c'i bere vehtes"
2005 S'dua"
"Boom Boom"
2006 "Hallal e ke"
2007 "Mandarin"
2008 "Magnetic"
2010 "Show Off"
2012 "Pass Out"
2013 "Without You"
"Take It Like A Man"
2014 "Fuck You I'm Famous"
"Still In Love"
2015 "Take You Over"
2018 "Wicked Love"
2018 "I Don't Need Your Love"
2019 "Su di Noi"

Weekly charts

Take you over (2015) Peak position
Bulgaria (IFPI)[28][failed verification] 4
Greece Digital Songs (Billboard)[29][failed verification] 11
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[30] 3
US Hot Dance/Electronic Songs (Billboard)[31] 28

References

  1. ^ "Spotlight On Bleona". Billboard. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  2. ^ "Bleona Qereti". Rushdiemedia.com. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved January 25, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b "About Bleona". MTV. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  4. ^ "Dance Club Songs – February 16, 2019". Billboard. February 11, 2019. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
  5. ^ "Bleona Qereti, Actress, Singer-Performer". Backstage.com. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  6. ^ "Bleona Qereti Truly Does Run Her Own Game". Bleonaworld.com. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  7. ^ "Spotlight on Bleona". Billboard. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  8. ^ "Bleona". Pleimo.com. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  9. ^ "Bleona". Bravo TV. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  10. ^ "Bleona Qereti and Elita 5". Daily Motion. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  11. ^ "The Madonna of Albania". Four Two Nine. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  12. ^ "Bleona Bio". Reverbnation. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  13. ^ "Bleona Qereti Koncert ne Tetove". Youtube. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  14. ^ "Bleona Bio". Reverbnation.com. Retrieved January 22, 2015.
  15. ^ "About Bleona". Bleonaqworld.com. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  16. ^ "Bleona Mandarin". Youtube. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  17. ^ "Interviste 60 Sekonda". Youtube. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  18. ^ "Bleona Qereti". Listal.com. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  19. ^ "Bleona I Told Timbaland To Give Me A Chance". Global Grind. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  20. ^ "Bleona Q World". Daily Motion. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  21. ^ "Albanian Fire! Bleona Debuts "Pass Out" (Featuring Timbaland)". Europopped. October 2012. Archived from the original on June 5, 2013. Retrieved October 22, 2012. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ "The Glamorous Bleona". BFM Mag. Archived from the original on June 9, 2015. Retrieved January 26, 2015. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  23. ^ "Introducing Bleona". Hit The Floor. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  24. ^ "Bleona-Take It Like A Man". Maximum Pop. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  25. ^ "Las Vegas PRIDE 2013 Festival Entertainment". lasvegaspride.org. Southern Nevada Association of PRIDE, Inc. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
  26. ^ "Bleona". IMDb. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  27. ^ "Euros Of Hollywood". Bravo. NBCUniversal. Retrieved January 23, 2015.
  28. ^ "Bulgarian Airplay Top 5". Bulgarian Association of Music Producers. September 28, 2014. Archived from the original on November 12, 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  29. ^ "Greece Digital Songs: Dec 20, 2014". Billboard. Retrieved August 26, 2015. (subscription required)
  30. ^ "Bleona Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard.
  31. ^ "Bleona Chart History (Hot Dance/Electronic Songs)". Billboard.
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