AwlaVision Song Contest 16

AwlaVision Song Contest 16, often referred to as ASC#16, was the sixteenth edition of AwlaVision Song Contest, held in Pristina, Kosovo. The edition started the 04th March 2017, and ended the 25th March 2017.

45 countries took part in this edition. Slovenia debuted in this edition. Serbia withdraw from ASC. Armenia and Kazakhstan returned to the competition. Chasing Grace from England won the contest with the song "Trust" receiving a total of 314 points, 57 point ahead the runner-up, Israel. Finland finished in third place with 236 points. The host country, Kosovo achieved a 20th place with 16 points. The last place was for Germany, that got 1 point.

Organisation
After Kosovo's victory in AwlaVision Song Contest 15, RTK and ABU had to decide where to organise the contest this time. The projects were from Pristina (Pallati i Rinisë), Mitrovica (Minatori Sports Hall) and Prizren (Sezair Surroi). Finally, RTK and ABU chose Pristina as the host city of ASC16.

RTK decided to use popular and professionals people as presenters. Finally Era Istrefi and Edea Demaliaj were selected.

Pallati i Rinisë
The Pallati i Rinisë is a multi-purpose hall located in Pristina, Kosovo. It includes two arenas, larger one has a capacity of 8,000 spectators, while the lesser one has the capacity of 3,000 spectators. It also includes a shopping mall, indoor parking, two convention halls and a library. The whole building has more than 10,000 square meters of area.

In 1975, a referendum was held, and citizens of Pristina, then capital of the Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo, voted in favor of building a large hall. The complex was finished in 1977. It was originally named "Boro and Ramiz", after two World War II Yugoslav Partisans and People's heroes of Yugoslavia, Boro Vukmirović and Ramiz Sadiku. Vukmirović was a Montenegrin, while Sadiku was an Albanian, so the name was to symbolize brotherhood and unity of Serbs and Albanians. The building was heavily damaged in a fire on 25 February 2000. It was partially renovated, but the great arena and the large convention hall are still out of use. The ownership of the building is disputed between the Municipality of Pristina and the Kosovo Privatization Agency.

The lesser arena is mostly used for basketball by Sigal Prishtina. In April 2014, it hosted the Final Four of the Balkan Basketball League. The arena is also used for futsal, handball, athletics, basketball, volleyball, numerous other sporting competitions, and various concerts, exhibitions, fairs, conventions, and congresses. Great arena is currently out of function due to a fire back in 2000. Commentators and fans have called for the "Greater Coliseum" to be renovated and used for Sigal Prishtina's home games. The shopping center share a series of services such as a joint parking lot, 6D cinema, wellness center, numerous restaurants, cafes, and stores. The Newborn monument is located in front of the building.

Pristina
Pristina is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the homonymous municipality and district. The city has a majority Albanian population, alongside other smaller communities. With a population of about 500,000, Pristina is the second-largest Albanian-speaking city in the world. Geographically, it is located in the north-eastern part of Kosovo close to the Goljak mountains. The city is situated some 250 kilometres north-east of Tirana, 90 kilometres north of Skopje, 520 kilometres south of Belgrade and 300 kilometres east of Podgorica.

During the Paleolithic Age, what is now the area of Pristina was envolved by the Vinča culture. Pristina was home to several Illyrian and Roman people at the classical times. The king of the Dardanian Kingdom, Bardyllis brought various tribes together in the area of Pristina in the 4th century BC, establishing the Dardanian Kingdom. The heritage of the classical era is still evident in the city, represented by ancient city of Ulpiana, that was considered one of the most important Roman cities in the Balkan peninsula. In the middle ages, Pristina was an important town in Medieval Serbia and also the royal estate of Stefan Milutin, Stefan Uros III, Stefan Dusan, Stefan Uros V and Vuk Brankovic. When the Ottomans conquered the Balkan peninsula, Pristina was classified as an important mining and trading center on the market, due to its strategic position near the rich mining town of Novo Brdo. The city was known for its trade fairs and items, such as goatskin and goat hair, as well as gunpowder produced by artisans from Pristina in 1485. The first mosque in Pristina was built in the late 14th century, while under the Serbian rule. Pristina has always been considered as a city where tolerance and coexistence in terms of religion and culture has been part of the society in the last centuries.

The weather in Kosovo is mild and humid, with hot summers and cold and snowy winters. There aren't weather reporting stations close to Pristina, the nearest one is in Serbia. The highest temperature recorded in Kosovo (Pristina) stands at 39.2 °C, and the record high minimum temperature is −27.2 °C.

This is the first time in the contest that AwlaVision Song Contest is held in Kosovo.

Participants
45 countries took part in the edition.

Debuting countries
Bellow a list of all debuting countries:

Withdrawing countries
Bellow a list of all withdrawing countries:

Returning countries
Bellow a list of all withdrawing countries:

First Semifinal
Jury
 * (Host)
 * (Finalist)
 * (Finalist)

Second Semifinal
Jury
 * (Finalist)
 * (Finalist)
 * (Finalist)