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10 Most Famous Russian singers

Listening to your favourite artists is something you often enjoy. Music is a powerful and universal language and singing along becomes irresistible.

When it comes to Russian music, the artists evoke passion and real talent as well as unique singing styles.

Music in Russia dates back to ancient times with significant contributions from minority groups.

Russian music has gone through a long history and is vast like folk songs and the sacred music of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Today, there are several genres like pop, hip hop and even rock. These singers have got so much fan base in Russia and globally too.

Classical music is so popular in Russia and you will notice that most of the famous singers here started with an opera recital.  

Here are the 10 most famous Russian singers.

1. Alla Pugacheva

Photo by Bundesarchiv – Wikimedia

Alla begun her singing career in 1965 to date even though she no longer does live performances.

She is popularly known for her clear mezzo-soprano and a full display of sincere emotions. Alla has always adored living an iconic status across the former Soviet Union.

Back then, she was the most successful singer and had high sales and was very popular too.

Her songs are not just in Russian but in other languages too like English, German, French, Kazakh, Hebrew, Finnish, and Ukrainian.

In her entire singing career, Alla has more than 500 songs and over 100 records. Additionally, she has sold more than 250 million records.

2. Anna Netrebko

Anna Yuryevna Netrebko is an operatic soprano with an active international career.

She always performs at the Salzburg Festival, Metropolitan Opera, Vienna State Opera, and Royal Opera, London.

Her singing career started after she was discovered and promoted by Valery Gergiev.

Anna the begun singing at the Mariinsky Theatre, collaborating with the conductor in the theatre and performances elsewhere.

In 2002, Anna’s global breakthrough came after playing Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni at the Salzburg Festival.

Netrebko is best known for her rendition of lyric and coloratura soprano roles.

As she progressed in her career, Anna took heavier 19th-century romantic roles, such as Leonora in Il Trovatore and the role of Lady Macbeth in Macbeth.

Time magazine listed her on its Time 100 list in 2007, People’s Artist of Russia in 2008 and Austrian Kammersängerin in 2017.

3. Galina Vishnevskaya

Galina Pavlovna Vishnevskaya was a soprano opera singer and recitalist. Additionally, she was named a People’s Artist of the USSR in 1966.

Galina was married to Mstislav Rostropovich, a cellist, and they had two children.

In 1957, Galina made her debut in Finnish National Opera as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin. Then in 1960, she made her first appearance in Sarajevo at the National Theatre, as Aida.

Other operas that she has debuted in include her Metropolitan Opera debut as Aida in 1961. She also appeared at the Royal Opera House in 1962 with the same role.

Some of her popular recordings include Eugene Onegin (1956 and 1970), Mussorgsky’s Songs and Dances of Death (1961 and 1976), Britten’s War Requiem (with Sir Peter Pears and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, conducted by the composer; 1963).

4. Elena Obraztsova

Elena Vasiliyevna Obraztsova was a mezzo-soprano that won the People’s Artist of the USSR in 1976 and Hero of Socialist Labour in 1990.

In 1963 Elena got an invite to perform in a Bolshoi Theatre production of Boris Godunov in Moscow.

Later, she performed in the Salle Pleyel in Â鶹APP, a recital that opened her door to the opera houses of Europe and the world.

Obraztsova also played several other roles throughout her career. She performed under the baton of leading conductors like Claudio Abbado and Herbert von Karajan.

She first performed in New York in 1976, in Aida, and was called a “major artist” in reviews.

In 1990, Elena received the Hero of Socialist Labour Order of Lenin by the President of USSR. This was for her contribution to the growth of Soviet music.

5. Julia Volkova

Julia is best known for being a member of the Russian girl group t.A.T.u. the girl group was formed in 1999 by Ivan Shapovalov.

They signed a record deal with Universal Music Russia, and finally Universal’s sub-label Interscope Records in 2001.

Their first single, “All the Things She Said”, was a success that topped the charts in Australia, Austria, Denmark, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

t.A.T.u further recorded 3 studio albums in English, 3 Russian albums, and 4 compilation albums.

Other projects include the 2011 film You and I and opening T.A. Music, a Russia-based record label.

They disbanded in 2011 with Julia signing a solo contract with Gala Records. She released her debut single ‘All Because of You’ in Russian.

6. Nikolai Baskov

Nikolai is a former Opera singer with exceptional vocal talents. He left opera singing in 2000 and switched to pop. Baskov made a name for himself

Today, Nikolai experiments with new genres on YouTube and records musicals with Russian subtitles.

Baskov went to Gnessin Russian Academy of Music and Moscow Conservatory.

After graduating, Baskov took part in competitions like the All-Russian Young Singers Competition, he came 1^st. In 1999 he was 2^nd in the Grande Voce competition in Spain.

Some of his achievements include commendations as Meritorious Artist and People’s Artist of the Russian Federation, as well as People’s Artist of Ukraine.

7. Eduard Khil

Popularly known as Mr Trololo, Eduard Khil had won several awards, including the prestigious People’s Artist of Russia.

In 2009, his 1976 song I Am Very Glad, as I’m Finally Returning Home went viral after it was uploaded on YouTube. This song was associated with internet trolling after he was turned into a meme.

His other popular songs include From where does the homeland begin?  And How the steamers are seen off.

Khil’s singing style and performance was unique and easily distinguishable in Russia. He always included his personal charm and his lyrical baritone as well as humour.   

8. Timati

Photo by Okras – Wikimedia

Timati studied economics but later drifted toward music. Today, he is a famous hip-hop artist after gaining fame in the reality show Star Factory 4.

His first single was Welcome to St. Tropez. However, his song Moscow, scorning anti-government protestors, was the most-disliked Russian YouTube video.

Timati has collaborated with international artists like Fat Joe, German rapper Nox and Raul.

In 2011 he topped the charts in Luxembourg, Poland and Romania with the single “Welcome to St. Tropez”.

One of his biggest solo gigs was in 2016 in Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex in Moscow.

The concert was attended by more than 15,000 fans and featured a 3D installation, a car on stage and other remarkable show elements.

9. Valery Leontiev

Valery’s popularity peaked in the early 1980s. He is celebrated as one of the most outstanding artists of Soviet and Russian music.

His first award was in 1985 when he received the Lenin Komsomol Prize. Valery went on several tours in Germany, Israel, the USA, Canada, and India.

The 90s were some of his best years. In 1994 he performed on stage with Gina Lollobrigida in Saint-Petersburg.

In 1996, Valery won the People’s Artist of Russia and is fondly regarded as a legend of the Russian stage. Leontiev has over 30 albums that have sold millions of copies.  

10. Dima Bilan

Photo by Okras – Wikimedia

Dima represented Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2006 with ‘Never Let You Go in which he came in second.

Later in 2008, he won the contest in Belgrade, with the song “Believe”. Dima has several Russian number one hit records.

Although he studied to become an opera singer, he was bored of the lessons and dreamt of becoming a pop singer.

A classmate introduced him to Yuri Aizenshpis, who saw his potential. He then started performing under the pseudonym “Dima Bilan”, taking both the first name and surname of his grandfather.

Bilan’s big break came with the release of the sonnet”Na beregu neba”, which peaked at #2 on the TopHit radio charts.

His album ‘Na beregu neba’ was one of the best-selling albums in Russia. It received a gold certification in 2004.