Era Istrefi dazzles fans in Dubai

Albanian singer-songwriter Era Istrefi's track Bonbon has become a hit worldwide garnering over 500 million views on YouTube and hundreds of thousands of fans from far and wide, even the UAE. Bonbon also translates to 'candy' in French, which best describes Era's sweet and likeable personality. She travelled to Dubai recently to perform at XL Dubai, one of three shows she had lined up in the region.
When City Times caught up with Era she said this was her first time in Dubai and she had heard it was a beautiful city; she was eager to embrace the "nice weather that is always here" and the city's ever-growing technological advancements. Her song Bonbon gets airplay here, and she is not unaware of her growing fan base in the region, claiming it was one of the reasons she was so keen to travel and perform in the city.
Although it's not unusual for a foreign song to be featured and listened to worldwide, Bonbon is sung in Albanian, particularly in the Gheg dialect, which made it even more shocking for Era to comprehend its immense popularity.
She said, "It shocked me, because my intention with Bonbon wasn't to be international - I was only famous in Albania and I was just releasing another song of mine - the reaction was so fast and huge, it was very surreal for me, for a week I couldn't even believe what was happening - but it was so fun, I could definitely say that was the best moment of my life."

'Rihanna is my inspiration'
Her singing style being similar to fellow pop star Rihanna, she openly accepts that fact, stating, "When my voice hits certain notes, it sounds like Rihanna and I'm aware of that. But at the same time I love that, because she is my inspiration and I have similarities to her, naturally. But I always try to keep my own style in terms of music, lyrics and personality - I don't try to copy her art, it's just my voice which is similar to hers."
Era definitely showcases her uniqueness and authenticity in her style of music, stating that her style doesn't stick to a single genre, rather she combines genres.
She elaborated, "I'm like a chameleon, I tend to get bored very easily, so I like to change my looks, my genre, my music, my style; I evolve - I would say that Reggae was my first 'love' along with dance hall which people really 'vibed' with, then I combined it with Hip Hop, RnB, Soul, Pop, Electronic and lately Trap. But pop is always there, that's my main thing."

'I'm working on my album'
Nowadays, musicians are branching out into the film industry with acting stints, even the likes of Rihanna. On this topic, Era said, "When I was six years old, I played a role in a movie and I literally cried in the movie because it was so sad. In the story, my mum leaves me and I got so into the role,  it was a perfect performance from me and the film crew were all applauding, telling me that I am an amazing actress. I would definitely consider an acting opportunity if it comes up." She also gave us a sneak peek of what's to come from her in the future. "I'm working on my album, I'm going to release two more singles this summer - I don't know the exact date of the album, but it's close."

'Health is number one'
The music industry suffered a blow on April 20 when the death of one of the world's most successful DJs, Avicii, was announced, which saddened Era as she identifies with the pressure he went through.
"It's a sad story, because the music industry is hard - it's tough, it's not for everyone - you really have to work on staying sane because [the industry] can get to you emotionally - although I didn't know him, I feel very sad for him."
In light of Avicii's health problems leading to his unfortunate demise, she gave some tips on how she stays sane and controls her emotions, stating, "Being healthy is number one, it is important to stay healthy physically and mentally - live in harmony; do good, be good and believe that things will get better - but health is number one."
Some of Era's favourites!
To round off the interview, we asked Era some quick-fire questions with the challenge being that she had to answer them in five seconds, here's how it went: Her favourite Hollywood star, after a generous 30 seconds of thinking time, was Al Pacino. Her favourite food was an easy decision: rice. Rihanna was the obvious choice as her favourite musician. We couldn't determine who her favourite sports team was because she doesn't watch sports. Dubai snatched the prize of 'favourite holiday spot', no surprises there. The last book she read was The Woman's Handbook - a book for women in the business field. Her most memorable moment is, as she stated, "my memory is not that good, so I would say yesterday's show", of course referring to her appearance at XL Dubai on April 26. And her most embarrassing moment occurred on the same night when the crowd stared awkwardly at her after she pulled off a particular dance move. Although she didn't know what a 'dab' was, we were able to demonstrate with the help of her promoter Ardin Badivaka alongside her, resulting in a worthy 'dab' attempt from her.
Message for Khaleej Times                                                         
"Hi Khaleej Times readers, I hope you are having an amazing time in Dubai just like I am. Love you all, thank you for the support. Suhail Galadari, thank you very much for your hospitality, for inviting me and for supporting all international artists; you are the best."
videointern@khaleejtimes.com