Anna Hoxha, better known by her stage name Anna Oxa, is an Italian singer, actress, and television producer.
Born to an Albanian father and an Italian mother, Anna made her debut at the Sanremo Music Festival 1978 with the song "Un'emozione da poco", which came in second place behind Matia Bazar. Afterwards, the song became a #1 hit in Italy, which allowed her to record her debut album, Oxanna. That album also went to the top of the charts.
Afterwards, she collaborated with a number of Italian artists, along with releasing her second album, which peaked into the top ten. To promote her album, Anna also ventured into acting. As sales and sponsorship declined, Anna switched record labels to CBS Records International in 1981. In 1982, she returned to the Sanremo Music Festival again with the song "Io no". Notable for Anna switching her androgynous punk look for a sexier image, it became a finalist, but her record label believed it wasn't enough to warrant a full album. Along with releasing new albums, Anna continued to compete in Sanremo, ending in the top seven each time. Notably, her 1986 entry, "È tutto un attimo", became a chart-topper despite only coming in fifth; the album of the same title peaked at number 3.
In 1989, she finally won Sanremo in a duet with Fausto Leali, with the song Ti lascerò. That would eventually become a number one hit in Italy, and they were internally selected to represent Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest 1989 with a new song Avrei Voluto. It came in 9th overall out of 22 entries, and was part of Anna's album Tutti i brividi del mondo, which also topped the charts.
Eurovision Song Contest 1989 | |||
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