Hello.
Well that's what I'm working at, that's my main goal right now. I've been working pretty hard for that, doing promotion and recently just finished recording the whole album and the first single that's out is on its way, then the video for the second single... keep on working.
Yes, it's a good thing. I've been abroad from Russia since I was ten and I've been kind of brought up, you know, the age that you do actually listen to music has been in America and here. I've been brought up on European music, so that's helped me to know what people like and to develop my taste in music as well. More European rather than Russian. Russia is very influenced by European music as well, so it's pretty similar.
People do like the more Russian stuff as well. For example my first Russian album is very different, very different to any kind of music here, or the kind of music I have on the first English album. It's much more... more ballads and it's just very mellow and has a Russian sound to it. But I've always wanted to sing in English, I was inspired by Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston and always wanted to do that kind of stuff.
No, I'm actually the first to get a deal with an international record company and hopefully I'll be the first to break through in Europe.
Obviously I'm not happy with being compared to other people, as I always say... I'm being compared to Britney a lot right now, like the Russian Britney Spears, which I am flattered in terms of her success and how huge she is in the world, but I wouldn't like to be compared musically or vocally or physically because I'd like to be individual and have my own style of music and just be known for myself and not be compared to anyone else. But it's hard right now and it's the whole "teen" - y'know, age thing. She's 19, I'm 18 nearly, so...
Well actually there's not really a Russian sound to this album because there is no such thing really. Like, for example, you have Latino music; you can hear it right away. People don't really know what Russian music is like and I don't know myself. Unless you play the balalaikas- the traditional sounds, which people don't anymore, so it's pretty European. I guess the fact that I'm Russian and the fact that there's no one else Russian around in the pop scene is maybe, I'm hoping, gonna help me be different.
86,000
I'm going to have a big party in Russia for my 18th birthday, you know, I'm going to have all my relatives over, friends, my parents friends... I don't think I'm going to do a concert; I'm just going to have no work, just relax all day, get presents and get all the attention. I have big plans for the summer, I have a promotion tour in Europe, Asia and then I'm going to start working in America as well.
Yeah definitely.
There's one song which has been translated and the production is completely different, the rest of the songs are brand new. A couple of songs which I wrote in Russian originally but I had English lyrics written here and one song which I wrote in English. I've just been working with a lot of different producers. I've been really lucky with big producers actually like Sturken and Rodgers [Britney, Christina Aguilera, N' Sync, Emma Bunton, Sisqo], Mark Hill [Craig David, Artful Dodger], Brian Rawlins [Jennifer Lopez, Christina Aguilera]. So it's quite a mixture of things - there's a few pop songs, actually "Before You Love Me" is one of the popiest songs on the album, the rest are much more R&B flavoured and ballads.
I've been doing it for about a year now and always wanted to write but never actually thought of it seriously but now, especially the second album, I definitely want to write more; at least half the songs on the album.
Mariah Carey. The first time I heard "Hero" or "Without You" I started imitating, buying songbooks, I play the piano. So her, mainly. I've always admired her voice and her music.
When I was really little? Russian, Russian music. My father was a big fan of The Beatles, I sang along to The Beatles as well.
That's not my aim you know, to become a sex idol or whatever. But the main thing, I want to sing and I want people to believe in what I'm singing and maybe inspire people in some way. But I think the whole package is important, the way you look, the way you present yourself, so I'm working on that as well.
The first single is called is called "Before You Love Me", it's been produced by Stargate. It's kind of pop, very catchy I think, up tempo kind of song and the video has been directed by Tim Royes and it's in The Matrix style; black, shiny leather and walking on the walls and jumping around. I'm just working on happening here, doing loads of promotion at the moment, travelling around France, Germany as well. Just hoping for the best.
Thank you.
