Yll Limani (Albanian:[yɫliˈmani]; 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 Albanian family in the city of Pristina, then part of the FR Yugoslavia, present-day Kosovo.[1][2] His father, Mufail Limani, was a member of the Albanian band Minatori.[3][4] The singer's public singing debut was at the first season of The Voice of Albania in 2011, followed by an appearance on the 9th edition of the Albanian music contest Top Fest in 2012.[5][6][7] Upon a three-year hiatus, Limani's first single as a lead artist, "Single" featuring Kosovo-Albanian rapper Gent Fatali, was released in January 2015.[8] The singer made his first appearance on Albania's Top 100 chart with "Pritëm se po vi" in July 2016, which debuted and peaked within the top three.[9] Following this, the Albanian broadcaster, Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH), reported in November 2016 that Limani was selected among the 25 contestants to compete in the 55th edition of Festivali i Këngës in December with the song "Shiu".[10][11][12] Finishing in third place, the single peaked at number 34 in March 2017 as his second charting record in Albania.[13]
In July 2019, he scored his second number-one single with the release of "Nuk po kalojka", a collaboration with composers Aida Baraku, Kevin Field, Armend Rexhepagiqi alongside Macedonian producer Darko Dimitrov.[14][15] The Sunny Hill Festival in Pristina approached Limani a month later, and went on to perform at the festival sharing stage with other acclaimed artists, such as Miley Cyrus, Calvin Harris and Dua Lipa.[16][17]
2021–present: Lshoja zanin and continued success
Limani was featured on Cricket's singles "Ndoshta" and "Pray" in February 2021 with the former peaking at number one and the latter becoming a top 30 single in Albania.[18][19] He released "A ki me rrejt", his first single as a lead artist in over six months after "Leje", in April 2021 and reached number two.[20] The follow-up collaborations, "E di" and "Marre", with Albanian singer Elvana Gjata were released in June 2021 and "E di" peaked at number one for three consecutive weeks.[21][22] In October 2021, Limani announced that he had started working on his debut extended play.[23] A month later, he was invited to join Swiss rapper Loredana's Red Bull Symphonic concert in Lucerne, Switzerland.[24] Throughout the year, the singer contributed to Albanian singer Arilena Ara's debut studio album, Pop Art The Album.[25][26][27] His debut extended play, Lshoja zanin, was eventually released on 5 December 2021.[28][29] "Lshoja zonin" from the record peaked at number one on the Albanian Top 100. Limani contributed credited songwriting to the Cypriot entry, "Ela", for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 by Greek singer Andromache.[30]
“Ulu” was his next single published in February 2023. Melody by Ylli Limani and Fatjon Miftari, Lyrics by Ylli Limani. The song was produced by Fatjon Miftari and the music video wiz made by Wonder. In May 2023 Limani released ”U kry” . Music and Lyrics by Ylli Limani, Produced by Fatjon Miftari, Beat by Art. The music video is made by Fati TV. ”Kaje” is a collaboration with the singer Dafina Zeqiri published in June 2023. With Music and Lyrics by Ylli Limani, Produced by Fatjon Miftari. The music video was shot by Fati TV. On October 6, 2023, he released “Per kon me zbukuru”. A production by Panda Music with lyrics and melody by Ylli Limani;Denk;Tonic. Music Video director is Ari Dalladaku. ”Spiti” is a collaboration with Sidatra, a Greek artist. Lyrics and melody by Sidatra and Ylli Limani. The song was published in November 2023.
Discography
Albums
List of studio albums, with selected chart positions
For "Shiu":"The Top List – 26 March 2017" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 26 March 2017. Archived from the original on 19 October 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Ke pi sonte shume":"The Top List – 25 June 2017" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 25 June 2017. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Dritat":"The Top List—01/04/2018" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 1 April 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "A ja ka vlejt":"The Top List – 15 April 2018" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 15 April 2018. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Harrom":"The Top List – 17 February 2019" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 17 February 2019. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Nuk po kalojka":"The Top List – 21 July 2019" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 21 July 2019. Archived from the original on 19 October 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Pse je me to":"The Top List – 15 September 2019" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 15 September 2019. Archived from the original on 25 December 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Engjej":"The Top List – 26 January 2020" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 26 January 2020. Archived from the original on 25 December 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
For "Buzët e kuqe":"The Top List – 04 October 2020" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 4 October 2020. Archived from the original on 27 December 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
For "Leje":"The Top List – 12 December 2020" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 12 December 2020. Archived from the original on 27 December 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
For "A ki me rrejt?":"The Top List – 24 April 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 24 April 2021. Archived from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
For "Malet":"The Top List – 5 November 2022" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 5 November 2022. Archived from the original on 5 November 2022. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
For "Kriminele":"The Top List – 14 January 2023" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 14 January 2023. Archived from the original on 1 February 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
For "U kry":"The Top List – 3 June 2023" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 3 June 2023. Archived from the original on 22 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
For "Kaje":"The Top List – 1 July 2023" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 1 July 2023. Archived from the original on 22 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
For "Për kon je zbukuru?":"The Top List – 2 December 2023" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 2 December 2023. Archived from the original on 22 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
For "Spiti":"The Top List – 11 November 2023" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 11 November 2023. Archived from the original on 17 November 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
For "E di":"The Top List – 31 July 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 31 July 2021. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
For "Lshoja zanin", "Gënjeshtare", "Vonë" and "Çka nëse":"The Top List – 18 December 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 18 December 2021. Archived from the original on 18 December 2021. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
For "Qaj":"The Top List – 25 December 2021" (in Albanian). Top Channel. 25 December 2021. Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
