ALBANIA – The national broadcaster of Albania, Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH), will organise the 59th edition of Festivali i Këngës to select their participant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2021.
It will consist of two semi-finals on 21 and 22 December and the grand final on 23 December 2020. The three live shows will be hosted by Albanian actress Jonida Vokshi and Albanian host Blendi Salaj. The broadcaster opened a submission period between August and October for artists and composers to participate in the competition.
A jury panel, consisting of Agim Doçi, Alma Bektashi, Eugent Bushpepa, Jonida Maliqi and Klodian Qafoku, scored all received songs. On 28 October, the broadcaster published a provisory list of twenty-six artists and songs shortlisted to compete in the two semi-finals of the contest. On 16 November, the broadcaster ultimately released all of the competing songs on its official YouTube channel.
The semi-finals will be broadcast on 21 December and 22 December 2020 at 21:00 (CET), respectively. As a result of the ongoing pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the performances of the two semi-finals were pre-recorded before the scheduled dates. During the first semi-final, the competing participants will perform the official studio version of their entries, while on the second semi-final, they will present their acoustic versions.
The final will take place on 23 December 2020 and will be broadcast at 21:00 (CET).
