Mr. Qemal Zylo is a distinguished public figure in the Albanian Diaspora, known for his intellectual and patriotic work, specifically in America. Mr. Zylo is known for his hard work, steadfast dedication and honest approach to various endeavors he has undertaken throughout his life, both in Albania and abroad. He left his native land in 1997, a very tumultuous year for Albania, to then begin his life in the United States. Prior to his emigrating, Mr. Qemal Zylo has carried various important roles in Albania. Graduating with high Honors in the field of Mechanical Engineering, Mr. Zylo was appointed at the Army Institute of Technical Design of Albania after his studies. His career in Albania includes roles as Chief of Technical Branch in the Defense Ministry of Albania, Chairperson of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Army Academy “Skanderbeg”, and Chief of Technical Support for the Peace Corps, a branch of the American Embassy.
In United States, specifically in New York, Mr. Zylo has organized many cultural events in the Diaspora, always with the aim to serve the Albanian community. These activities have been featured in the Albanian media, such as the lllyria Newspaper, Dielli Newspaper, various Albanian Television channels, and more.
Mr. Zylo is known to be a very modest person, one that usually does not like to talk about himself. In fact, in the past he has refused to do personal interviews, however, I believe, it is the Albanian Television “Alba Life” which he founded, and its aims that have allowed us to land this interview. I am honored that Mr. Zylo gave me his first interview for our audience today.
Tell me something about yourself?
While it is difficult to talk about oneself, I will humbly respond to your question. First, my origin is from “Arrëz e Madhe” of Tepelena City, a place that makes me proud. I graduated as Mechanical Ingineer at University of Tirana and I worked in different places and positions that you just mentioned so, I wont repeat. Throughout those years I have taught many Engineering classes and remained active as an educator. I earned my Master’s Degree and completed all the PHD graduate course work in the field of Engineering. I have presented my Doctoral Thesis research at various conferences; however, due to leaving Albania in 1997, which was in the verge of a Civil War, I was unable to complete the last step of my PHD studies, which is always a regret of mine from the academic point of view. Once in the United States, I completed my studies in the field of Computer Science and worked as a Computer Professor for the Globe Institute of Technology and Bromson ORT College for a number of years. For the past decade, I have been working for the Norwegian Christian Home and Health Center as an Engineer.
Apart for my daily full-time job, I have organized many events at the colleges where I have worked. These activities aimed at sensibilizing the Albanian and foreign students to know and learn about the history, culture and the many traditions of the Albanian peoples. For this interview, I will point out the Symposium organized for the Independence of Kosova that I organized in Bramson ORT College, where the guest of honor was Congressman Joe DioGuardi and the annual Albanian Flag Day event, where many important personalities of the Albanian government had been invited. Another very important event, which I organized, was the “Good bye Ceremony” for the famous singer, Anita Bitri, who tragically lost her life with her mother and her only child. For this event, I collaborated with various Albanian artists, such as Frederik Ndoci, Edmond Xhani, among others. The concert was organized at the First Evangelical Free Church, where I was working and with the help of the Albanian community we made it possible to take their bodies to Albania.
I founded the organization “Alba Life” Inc., which was legally approved by the State of New York. “Alba Life” has two focal points, which are “Alba Life” TV and the “Alba Life” Albanian School that now has classes in Staten Island and Brooklyn. The Albanian School, offers Albanian classes in the after-school programs for children of Albanian heritage. Together, “Alba Life” TV and the Albanian School, hold weekly activities, that is, two days dedicated to the School and two days for the television programs run by “Alba Life” TV. So as you can see, I’ve always tried to remain active beyond my day-to-day job whether it was in academia or the Albanian community.
How were you introduced to the industry, and what first got you interested?
I have always been drawn to the many events and activities organized in the Diaspora, by many organizations, and their broadcasts in the media. My technical background as an engineer and also in the computer field, made this type of work fairly easy. The aim of “Alba Life” TV was to expose the Albanian culture and history, its traditions, its language, and so on. For this reason, the first program of Alba Life TV has been about the Albanian School and its activity. After receiving my license as a TV producer from various Media authorities in Staten Island and New York, we began our collaborations to broadcast programs about the Albanian community through many TV outlets in America. The initial work was not easy, however, the partnership and the creation of a Board, with professional people, has shown great results. I need to mention here the contribution of the Programming Director, Mr. Amir Suka, a very talented young man who works for prestigious American Media outlets, Todd Watkins, Odise Salillari, Neritan Bejleri, Osman Greva, Miri Mehmeti, Skender Pali, Andrea Lole, etc.
What are your achievements so far?
The biggest achievement is the broadcast of our programs on American TV channels, with various times during the week, making us proud to be Albanians. I am happy with the quality of the programs we broadcast. Another special accomplishment is the content of our programs such as the ability to bring to our audience many interviews from Albanian personalities known for their contribution in different fields such as culture and business, along with filming many events organized by various Albanian organizations. We try to satisfy our audience to the best way possible, especially when we get special requests about our programs on TV or what our audience would like to see on the Alba Life TV in the future. Our television programs vary in different themes, and are broadcasted not only in the channels of CTV here in NY, but also worldwide; this thanks to technology, various TV digital packages and YouTube. As a result, our programs are featured on the digital package of Diaspora TV and also TV Alb, which has viewers around the word. With TV Alb we have a special channel that features our programs 24 hours every day, which makes us work even harder to bring an assortment of programs to the viewers. I would like to point out that our aim is not to compete with the TV stations in Albania; rather, our intent is to bring to our audience what the Albanian TV stations in the homeland can not cover here in the Diaspora. Alba Life TV is gaining daily viewers and is known not only to the Albanian Diaspora, but even to the American public. This is due to being invited by various senators, congressmen and different American politicians so we could cover their events. When celebrating the Five Year Anniversary of Alba Life TV, among many important Albanian personalities, we had a special pre- recorded greeting by the New York City Mayor, Mr. Michael Bloomberg. Lastly, in 2012, Alba Life TV founders in collaboration with Petrika Melo and various talented Albanian artists well-recognized in their fields, such as Lindita Mezini Lole, organized the 1st Albanian Classical Concert in Manhattan, NY. This concert, as pointed out by the Albanian General Consul in New York, Dritan Mishto, opened a series of events, honoring the Albanian 100 years of Independence. Finally, I would like to point out that Alba Life TV continues to successfully collaborate with Albanian Culture TV and other Medias, here in New York.
What are some programs you are producing nowadays?
When we began our producing, we were only broadcasting weekly programs on CTV in New York. Now, however, we have to produce daily, since our programs are featured daily in the digital packages, which obviously require more work and effort. In addition to this, it necessitates a broader collaboration in different areas, especially with the younger generation, to whom we hope to transmit our knowledge and work.
It is important to note that our programs always aim to service the Albanian community. Some examples of these programs cover a range of many areas. More specifically, to document different cultural events; to cover various gatherings done by Albanian American organizations; to evidence musical and cultural festivals; to present the viewers with individuals that have had achievements in the fields of arts, education, business; to show various historical documentaries about Albania, Kosova, Çamëri, Ulqin, Ana e Malit, Dibra and much more.
Who are some incredible guest stars on the show?
This is a difficult question to answer because Alba Life TV has featured many important Albanian figures on its shows. However, some of these public figures, include: Hollywood director Stan Dragoti, New York Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj, Albanian President Bujar Nishani, Kosova’s president Atifete Jahjaga, Former Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha, current Prime Minister Rama, Saimir Pirgu, Behgjet Pacolli, Prince Leka, Arta Dade, Teuta Arifi, Congressman Eliot Engel and Joseph Dio Guardi, James Vacca, Manhattan’s Borough President Scott Stringer, Prof.Peter R Prifti, Father Artur Liolin, Professor Sami Repishti, Dr.Elez Biberaj, Professor Shenasi Rama, Attorney Sabri Gjoni, Fadil Berisha, Tony Dovolani, Ermira Cunmulaj, Amir Suka, Ruben Avxhiu, Viktor Martini, Pëllumb Kulla, Naum Prifti, Novruz Shehu, Fatos Kongoli, Richard Lukaj, Petrika Melo, Lindita Mezini Lole, , Mike Dusi, Dom Pjeter Popaj and Edin Gjoni.
How do you feel TV and Entertainment have changed since you first began both on air and in the industry itself?
There have been many changes. First, when we began our broadcasting as a television in the Diaspora, there were only Albanian Culture TV with Adem Belliu as producer, AlbTV with producer Gani Vila and TV 21 with Halil Muja as producer. Now, we see many television channels in the AlbTV digital package. For instance, “With the Albanian People” with Qazim Doda as producer and lastly, “AAnews” with Skender Pali as producer, who has also been Alba Life TV’s previous collaborator.
In this regard, the number of television media has grown. However, we are a very big community and there is work for everyone. We do what we do for the community through volunteer work, thanks to our passion and devotion to bringing various aspects of life of the Albanian community in the United States.
Secondly, the quality of the programs has improved dramatically, which subsequently has raised the number of viewers. For this reason, it is impossible to cover every single event that is presented. For example, this past September we were unable to cover all the official visits done by the Albanian and Kosova’s delegation. We, however, were able to cover a good number of them, which were seen with much interest by our viewers.
In addition, Alba Life TV continues to broadcast the work of various Albanian events primarily in the tri-state area. From its unbiased reports, Alba Life TV has established itself as one of the most reliable sources for the accuracy of the most important events in the Diaspora. Some of these recent events include the 20 year Anniversary of the Illyria newspaper and its celebration event of the 5 year Anniversary of Independence of Kosovo, the 70 Year Anniversary of VOA (Voice of America) in Albanian, the 15 Year Anniversary of Albanian Culture TV. Likewise, it has covered a series of activities and events brought together by organizations such as “Ana e Malit”; “Vatra”, Albanian Roots”, “Devolli’; “Çamëria”: “NAAC”; “Shoqata e shkrimtarëve”; “Forumi për demokraci”, folkoric festivals organized by the church “Zoja e Shkodres”, International folkloric festivals in New Jersey where artists Merita Halili and Raif Hyseni have participated., and numerous other events that is impossible to mention in this interview.
What are some of your memorable moments in show business?
This type of work gives you many memorable moments, from those recordings in the studio to those Live recordings, which certainly prove to be very interesting. I would like to share a very special time we had with the famous Albanian tenor, Mr. Saimir Pirgu. Mr. Pirgu was in New York City, to play the role of Alfredo at the Metropolitan Opera alongside the famous Plácido Domingo. The interview we had with this Albanian tenor was very delightful, where Saimir presented himself as a very simple and charming young man, besides the fact that his talent is making headlines all over the world. During this interview we all enjoyed the questions and answers and in the midst of it we shared humor together. Because of his busy schedule it was hard for him to conduct the interview in our studio, which, of course, is technically stronger given our equipment there. I recently, put up this interview again in the AlbTV digital package and while watching his interview; curiously I watched another interview Saimir was giving to TV Klan months after our interview. He was giving this interview, while in Albania where he gave a concert recently, benefiting children with Down Syndrome. I watched the interview at TV Klan with close attention and many of the questions were almost the same as those conducted by our TV. This could be, because we all want to dig in dipper to those areas that has made him so famous. I mentioned Saimir, because he will remain in my memory as someone who was very humble, charming, which makes his popularity even bigger. The same can be said about the Albanian dancing superstar Toni Dovolani. We are very grateful to have him participate in some of the events organized by our community in New York. Another very memorable moment was the visit of New York Senator Mr. Martin Golden who came to one of the Albanian classes of Alba Life School in Brooklyn. Senator Golden spent over an hour with the students, staff and parents. He was so pleasantly surprised by the intelligence and wit of the Albanian young students. What was also memorable about his visit was again, the same quality that I mentioned above about Saimir and Tony, the simplicity of carrying oneself. It is very unfortunate, that we have yet to see a high government official both from Albania and Kosova visit the classes of Alba Life School and see first hand, how these language classes are being taught. Even more, it is discouraging to see that much attention is put on the dinners and lunches these dignitaries have, rather than coming and encouraging the many young children who are of Albanian parents that so eagerly spent their weekends, only so that they can learn the language, history and culture of their parents. I sincerely hope that this will change in the future.
In the end, however, I am very pleased by what Alba Life has accomplished as an organization, both with its TV and the Albanian language school. There is, of course, much more work to be done. Nevertheless, I am confident that the thousands hours of work we have put into our community will be a good reminder for the future Albanian generation that we ought to be proud of our land and never forget where we came from.
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