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 […]

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 […]

Alyosha (Альоша; real name Olena Kucher, Олена Кучер) is a well-known contemporary Ukrainian pop singer and songwriter who has written hits for both herself and other artists. She is known both for her male name—“Alyosha” is usually a diminutive of “Aleksey”—and, of course, her singing. Her website introduces her thus: “In her character, as well […]

Casual is a contemporary Russian rock group. Started in 2009, Casual has seen quite a bit of success, with a number of singles climbing the Nashe Radio charts, as well as four successful albums: Inside (Инсайд), People Always Went (Все время люди шли), 242 Grams (242 грамма), and Be Quiet (Сделай тише). The group has played […]

Gaitana (Ґайтана; real name Ґайта-Лурдес Ессамі, or Gaita-Lurdes Essami, which means “strong and great” in the Lingala language) is a Ukrainian/Congolese jazz, funk, soul, and pop singer. Her biggest fame may have come from representing Ukraine at Eurovision in 2012, but she also has a slew of successful albums to her name and is one of Ukraine’s most […]

Svetlana Loboda (Світлана Лобода) is a contemporary Ukrainian pop singer. Though she sings mainly in Russian, most of her career has taken place in Ukraine, and she is widely esteemed in her country. She was named a Distinguished Artist of Ukraine in 2013. Loboda grew up in Kyiv, where her parents encouraged her musical leanings […]

Ani Lorak (Ани Лорак; real name Karolina Kuyek, Кароліна Куєк) is a multitalented Ukrainian pop singer. Lorak isn’t shy about her contributions to Ukrainian pop culture—her website describes her as “a singer who was fated to become the nation’s idol.” Born in Bukovina, Lorak wanted to be a singer from the time she was four years […]

Controversial, bizarre, and talented, there is no one quite like Ukrainian singer/comedian/actor/drag queen Verka Serduchka (Верка Сердючка). Serduchka is the drag persona of Andriy Danylko (Андрій Данилко) and frequently performs and sings at concerts and in films. Danylko himself is a wide-ranging actor, composer, singer, and performer who was born in Poltava, Ukraine, to rural roots. […]

Iryna Bilyk is a highly celebrated Ukrainian singer/songwriter and entertainer from Kyiv. Mainly a composer of ballads and dance pop, she has released albums in her native Ukrainian as well as Russian and Polish. Her impressive commercial success in Ukraine, fueled in large part by her ability to adapt to the changing popular music landscape, won […]