Adrian Gaxha (, ; born 13 February 1984) is an Albanian singer, songwriter, producer, dancer, and entrepreneur from North Macedonia.

Life and career

Adrian Gaxha was born on 13 February 1984 into an Albanian family in the city of

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

, then part of the

Socialist Republic of Macedonia The Socialist Republic of Macedonia (), or SR Macedonia, commonly referred to as Socialist Macedonia, Yugoslav Macedonia or simply Macedonia, was one of the six constituent republics of the post-World War II Socialist Federal Republic of Y ...

, present-day

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

. Gaxha discovered his passion for music at an early age and started to play the

viola The viola ( , () ) is a string instrument of the violin family, and is usually bowed when played. Violas are slightly larger than violins, and have a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of the ...

. He commenced his early music career in 2001 simultaneously with his participation in Nota Fest. There, he won first prize, the first time a newcomer won both, the jury and the audience votes. Within a short time, Adrian became one of the most popular singers in Macedonia and Albania and other Albanian-speaking territories. Until today he has recorded four albums, three in Albanian and one in Macedonian. His performances usually include a lot of skillful dance choreography. He has also participated in festivals such as Videofest in

Pristina Pristina or Prishtina ( , ), . is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and District of Pristina, district. In antiquity, the area of Pristina was part of the Dardanian Kingdo ...

, Makfest in Štip, and has won the first prize at Ohrid Fest. In 2006, he finished second at the Macedonian national preselection for Eurovision, singing the song "Ljubov e" with the Macedonian-Romani legendary singer Esma Redzepova. In 2008, Gaxha, alongside Tamara Todevska and

Vrčak Rade Vrčakovski ( ; born 17 November 1980 in Strumica) better known by his stage name Vrčak (Врчак) is a Macedonian singer. He represented Macedonia

, won the pre-selection competition Skopje Fest and represented Macedonia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 with the song " Let Me Love You". After their performance in the second semi-final, the country failed to qualify for the grand final constituting its first overall non-qualification placing 10th with 64 points. Since 2008, Gaxha has been focusing more in the Albanian-language songs and the Albanian market. He participated in Kënga Magjike 2012, with Florian Beqiri singing the song "Ngjyra e kuqe" (The red color) and placed Top 10. The song was an instant hit on the radios and on social media, especially on YouTube where the song counts more than 49 million views. After the festival, he released "Kjo zemër" (This heart), who received similar success.

Discography

Albums

* ''Luj, Luj, Luj'' (2003) * ''Thuaj Mamit'' (2004) * ''300 Godini'' (2008) * ''Brenduar'' (2010)

Singles

As lead artist

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaxha, Adrian 1984 births 21st-century Albanian male singers Macedonian musicians of Albanian descent Albanian record producers Albanian songwriters Albanian dancers Living people 21st-century Macedonian male singers Macedonian record producers Macedonian songwriters Musicians from Skopje Eurovision Song Contest entrants