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

Kosovar-Albanian The Albanians of Kosovo (, ), also commonly called Kosovo Albanians, Kosovan Albanians or Kosovars (), constitute the largest ethnic group in Kosovo. Kosovo Albanians belong to the Albanians, ethnic Albanian sub-group of Ghegs, who inhabit the ...

rapper and singer. Born and raised in

Prizren Prizren ( sq-definite, Prizreni, ; sr-cyr, Призрен) is the second List of cities and towns in Kosovo, most populous city and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality of Kosovo and seat of the eponymous municipality and District of Prizren, ...

, she rose to prominence in the Albanian-speaking territories during the span of 2018 after the releases of five top-three singles

Life and career

1996–2019: Early life and career beginnings

Doruntina Shala was born on 14 December 1996 into 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 ...

family in the city of

, then part of the

FR Yugoslavia The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

, present

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

. Dorutina and her family are a part of the Shala tribe, and they speak

in the

Gheg Gheg or Geg (Gheg Albanian: ''gegnisht'', Standard ) is one of the two major varieties of Albanian, the other being Tosk. The geographic dividing line between the two varieties is the Shkumbin River, which winds its way through central Alba ...

dialect. 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

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

along other acclaimed artists such as

Action Bronson Ariyan Arslani (born December 2, 1983), professionally known as Action Bronson, is an American rapper and television presenter. Born and raised in Queens, he released his debut mixtape ''Bon Appetit ..... Bitch!!!!!'' in January 2011 and indepe ...

Martin Garrix Martijn Gerard Garritsen (; born 14 May 1996), known professionally as Martin Garrix (or Ytram and GRX), is a Dutch Republic, Dutch DJ and record producer who was ranked number one on ''DJ Mag''s Top 100 DJs list for three consecutive years—20 ...

and

Dua Lipa Dua Lipa ( ; born22 August 1995) is an English and Albanian singer, songwriter and actress. List of awards and nominations received by Dua Lipa, Her accolades include seven Brit Awards and three Grammy Awards. Lipa worked as a model before v ...

. 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, Kosovo. His father is an Albanian television produce ...

. 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 games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

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

MC Kresha Kreshnik Fazliu (; born 5 September 1984), known professionally as MC Kresha or 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. ...

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

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

. 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-Berbers, Berber tribes in Khenchela, Algeria A childhood friend of Jul (singer), JUL, he was discovered ...

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'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

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. Her most viewed

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

video is the 2021 single "Bye Bye" featuring Dafina Zeqiri, which has amassed over 84 million views. 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. In June 2024, Tayna released her comeback single “Si Ai”. The song went viral on

TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...

and other platforms catapulting the artist to new audiences. The song was taken off streaming platforms by her manager, after disputed break-up between them, however it was put up back again after some weeks after a disclosed agreement between the two. Her 2024 single "Si Ai" is Tayna's most streamed track to date, with over 67 million listens on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

alone.

Artistry

The music style of Shala has often been regarded as

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

and R&B, although her music also includes various styles of musical genres such as

reggaeton Reggaeton (, ) is a modern style of popular music, popular and electronic music that originated in Panamanian reggaetón, Panama during the late 1980s, and which rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s through a plethora of Puert ...

and

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. 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. Blending genres such as Rap-Pop, Alternative R&B, Ethno-Electronic, and Afrobeats, the artist's style fuses urban energy with lyrical vulnerability, showcasing strengths in vocal presence, lyrical depth, artistic direction, visual storytelling, and spiritual melodies.

Personal life

Tayna is currently based in Prishtina. She is fluent in English and Albanian along with extensive knowledge in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

. She is the founder of the Tayna Foundation, which aims to empower young people and communities through education, journalism, art, and culture; in 2025, the foundation donated over €25,000 to establish a Mobile Journalism and Podcast Lab at the University of Prishtina. She works as an independent artist, operating under her own label Pendragon.

Discography

Albums

* ''Bipolar'' (2023)

EP

* 2025 – ''Tayna New Year Edition''

Singles:

• 2017: ''Thirri Krejt Shoqet'' • 2018: ''Columbiana (feat. Don Phenom)'' • 2018: ''Shqipe'' • 2018: ''Fake'' • 2018: ''Doruntina'' • 2018: ''Pow Pow'' • 2018: ''Aje (feat.

)'' • 2019: ''Ring Ring'' • 2019: ''Kce'' • 2019: ''Caliente (feat. Cricket)'' • 2019: ''Pasite (feat.

Mc Kresha Kreshnik Fazliu (; born 5 September 1984), known professionally as MC Kresha or 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. ...

& Lyrical Son)'' • 2019: ''Bye Bye (feat.

)'' • 2019 : ''Sicko'' • 2019: ''Sorry'' • 2020: ''Edhe Ti (feat. Mozzik)'' • 2020: ''A jo'' • 2020: ''Bass'' • 2020: ''QE QE'' • 2020: ''Johnny'' • 2021: ''Moona (feat.

)'' • 2021: ''Magdalena (feat.

Flori Mumajesi Florjan Mumajesi (; born 23 August 1982), known professionally as Flori, is an Albanian recording artist, composer, producer, and singer. Born and raised in Tirana, Mumajesi began his career at an early age and rose to widespread acclaim after h ...

& Cricket)'' • 2021: ''WTF (feat. Ivorian Doll)'' • 2021: ''Ti Harro (feat. Azet)'' • 2021: ''La Boca (feat.

)'' • 2021: ''Taka'' • 2021: ''Hala (feat.

)'' • 2021: ''Heroinat'' • 2021: ''OFG'' • 2021: ''Pijetore (feat. Cricket)'' • 2022: ''Sdu me ni (feat. GESKO)'' • 2022: ''Alpha Omega (feat. Marin)'' • 2022: ''Pare (feat. Butrint Imeri & Mozzik)'' • 2022: ''Tequilla (feat. Azet)'' • 2022: ''Valle (feat
Lumi B
'' • 2022: ''Teket'' • 2022: ''Anaconda (feat. Kidda)'' • 2023: ''Merri'' • 2023: ''BIPOLAR LBUM' • 2023: ''Kalle'' • 2023: ''4X4 (feat. Rzon & II Ghost & Marin)'' • 2023: ''Xhelozi'' • 2023: ''Crazy Albanian Chick'' • 2023: ''Shqipet 2'' • 2023: ''O Jetë (feat.

Ardian Bujupi Ardian Bujupi (; born 27 April 1991) is a German-Albanian singer and songwriter. Born in Kosovo, he moved to Germany at a young age and he has been living there ever since. He gained recognition in German speaking Europe, German-speaking Europe ...

)'' • 2024: ''UNAZA (feat. Bardhi)'' • 2024: ''Vetëdija'' • 2024: ''Si Ai'' •2024 : ''U Bo Kohe (feat.

Noizy Rigels Rajku (; born 27 September 1986) known professionally as Noizy, is an Albanian singer, rapper and music producer. He is one of the most famous and successful artists in the Albanian music industry and has gained a large following due to h ...

& Varrosi)'' • 2024: ''Hotel California (feat. Light)'' • 2024: ''Folem Pak'' • 2024: ''NA 2 (feat. Loredana)'' • 2025: ''Amal'' • 2025: ''Thana'' • 2025: ''Lot (feat. Butrint Imeri)'' • 2025: Kitara (feat.

Yll Limani Yll Limani (; born 24 September 1994) is a Kosovo-Albanian singer and songwriter. Life and career 1994–2020: Early life and career beginnings Yll Limani was born on 24 September 1994 into an Kosovo Albanians, Albanian family in the city o ...

)

As lead artist

= 2017

= 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 women songwriters Albanian-language singers Kosovan people of Albanian descent Kosovan women rappers Kosovan women singers Kosovo Albanians Living people People from Prizren Sony Music artists 21st-century women rappers Musicians from Prizren