1989–2024: Early life and formations Ronela Hajati was born on 2 September 1989 into an Albanian family in the city of
Tirana, then part of the
People's Socialist Republic, present
Albania. Her mother originally hailed from
Korçë while her father, Marash Hajati, was from
Shkodër. Showing interest in music from a very young age, Hajati studied both
ballet and
piano during her elementary school years. She also participated in a series of Albanian singing and dancing competitions. Hajati continued her early career with participations on various music events at different occasions, such as
Top Fest and . In late 2013, she participated in the 15th edition of with the song "Mos ma lsho", which earned her the Internet Award in the grand final. In December 2015, Hajati released her follow-up single "A do si kjo" and peaked at number 13 in Albania. The succeeding charting single, "Marre", followed in June 2016 and peaked at number 13 as well. In the span of 2017 and 2018, Hajati released four subsequent singles, including "Mos ik", "Sonte", "Maje men" and "Do ta luj", to commercial success with altogether reaching the top 30 in Albania, resepectively. In December 2018, Hajati successfully participated at on its
20th edition with the song "Vuj" eventually finishing in fourth place. In March 2019, following a certain absence, the singer released "Pa dashni" and reached number six in Albania. Her chart success followed into June 2019 with the single "Çohu", a collaboration with Albanian rapper Don Phenom, debuting at number seven on Albania's Top 100. Succeeding the top 10 single "Lage", Hajati scored her first number-one single with the follow-up "MVP" released later that year in September 2019. In July 2020, the Albanian football club
KF Tirana approached Hajati to produce and perform the club's anthem "Bardh' e blu" as part of celebrations to mark its centenary year.
2021–present: RRON and Eurovision Hajati announced her debut studio album,
RRON, in March 2021. Its lead single, "Prologue", debuted in the same month at number 19 on the Albanian Top 100 and rose to number two a month later. The second single, "Shumë i mirë" which had reached number 15 in late 2021, was nominated for an award at the 2021
Netët e Klipit Shqiptar gala in
Ulcinj, Montenegro. Succeeding "Shumë i mirë", the third single, "Aventura" released in May 2021, went on to peak at number three in her native country. In June 2021, Hajati collaborated with Kosovo-Albanian musician Vig Poppa on the album's fourth single, "Alo", which became a top 15 single that month. Released in October 2021, the follow-up "Leje" eventually reached number 13. In November 2021, the Albanian national broadcaster, (RTSH), reported that Hajati was one of 20 artists shortlisted to compete in the
60th edition of with the song "". During the grand final in December 2021, the singer emerged victorious and was thus announced as
Albania's representative for the
Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in
Turin, Italy. "" was performed in the first semi-final of the contest on 10 May 2022, but failed to qualify for the final despite being a favourite, finishing in 12th place as Albania's eighth non-qualification in the contest. The song entered the charts in selected countries after its participation in the Eurovision Song Contest, reaching number three in Albania and number 67 in Greece. She was one of four acts from her semi-final to move to the Second Chance round, later being announced as one of the 22 finalists. Hajati took part in the competition with the
Spanish-language song “Salvaje”. Eventually, she did not reach the top 10 of the selection's final. == Artistry ==