Lyuk (Люк; translates to “manhole” in Russian, but the members said they just liked how it sounded) was a Ukrainian rock and rock-adjacent band that broke up in 2011. They’re also affiliated with the genres of punk, acid jazz, lounge, funk, hip-hop, and a bunch of others—the band members themselves have had a hard time defining exactly […]

Potap and Nastya (Потап и Настя) are a Ukrainian pop/rock duo. They sing mainly in Russian, occasionally in English, and rarely in Ukrainian. Their linguistic preferences have brought them controversy in their native Ukraine, but they remain a highly popular contemporary group, and they affirm that they are fully Ukrainian, despite singing in Russian. The group consists […]

Igor Matvienko (Игорь Матвиенко) is a Russian producer, composer, and founder of a number of popular bands, such as Lyube (Любэ), Ivanushki International (Иванушки International), Girls (Девочки), Fabrika (Фабрика), Cuba (Куба), and Mobile Blondes (Мобильные Блондники). He has also produced many important Russian singers, such as Zhenya Belousova (Женя Белусова), Viktoria Dayneko (Виктория Дайнеко), and […]

Yulia Volkova (Юлия Олеговна Волкова) is a Russian singer and actress best known for her role in the group t.A.T.u. alongside Lena Katina (Елена Сергеевна Катина). After her work with t.A.T.u., Volkova has acted in film and television and, more recently, embarked on a solo musical career. Volkova’s biggest success as a musician came from t.A.T.u. […]

The Red Elvises (also known as Igor and the Red Elvises; or Красные Элвисы, in its less-frequent Russian form) is a Russian-American band that plays an eclectic mixture of rockabilly, reggae, folk, disco, funk, surf rock, and traditional Russian music. The band is based out of Los Angeles, but has had successful tours in Ukraine […]

Naik Borzov (Найк Владимирович Борзов) is a Russian rock musician, poet, and singer-songwriter. He is known as the founder of the seminal but short-lived Russian punk band Infection (Инфекция), and more widely for his solo work.  Naik organized Infection when he was only 14 years old. During their early career, the group produced two full-length albums, Onanism […]

Billy’s Band is a Russian band from St. Petersburg who plays across the genres of blues, swing, jazz, and rock’n’roll. Started in 2001 by Billy Novik (real name Vadim Valeryevich Novik, Вадим Валерьевич Новик) and Andrey Reznikov (Андрей Резников), Billy’s Band has gone on to produce five studio albums, along with three singles and a slew of […]

Tina Karol (Тіна Кароль) is a popular Ukrainian singer, one of the brightest lights in the Ukrainian music scene over the last 10 years. Her career started in 2005 and she’s still reaching the tops of Ukrainian hit parades today. She’s often considered a pop singer, but her soulful voice and the baroque instrumentation she uses puts […]

Taisiya Povaliy (Таїсія Повалій) is a classic Soviet and Ukrainian pop and shanson singer. Born in 1964 near Kyiv to a musical family, Povaliy attended music school in Kyiv and then worked at a music hall for a few yeas before starting a solo career. She won a number of Soviet music contests at the beginning of […]