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Vitas. Author Sparsell.

Top 10 Interesting Facts About Vitas

His full names are Vitaly Vladasovich Grachev and known professionally as Vitas. He is a Latvian-born Ukrainian-Russian singer, songwriter, and actor. Vitas is known for his unique falsetto and his eclectic musical style, which incorporates elements of operatic pop, techno, dance, classical, jazz, and folk. Though somewhat debated, it is said that he has a vocal range of 7 octaves.

He is considered the youngest artist to perform a solo concert, 鈥楶hilosophy of Miracle,鈥� at the 鈥楽tate Kremlin Palace.鈥� Over the years, Vitas has produced many albums, including 鈥楾he Songs of My Mother.鈥� He was the only foreign performer at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. He has performed solo concerts in countries like Germany, Australia China, and Canada.

1. He Was Inspired To Music At An Early Age Through His Grandfather

Vitaly Vladasovich Grachev is a son of Lilia Mihailovna Gracheva, who was Russian, and Vladas Arkadevich Grachev. He was born in Daugavpils, which was then in the Latvian SSR, on 19 February 1979. He soon moved with his parents to Ukraine, where he was raised in Odessa.

 He showed an interest in music from an early age; his grandfather taught him to play the accordion at the age of 5 and wrote his first song, “Rain in Tbilisi”, when he was 6.

 He composed at least 1,000 songs by the age of 12. While in art school at the age of seven, he appeared in various theatrical productions. His dean at the art school in Odessa reportedly hailed him as “a gift from God”.

2. He Was Propelled To Success Through Russian Television And Visits To Asia

Vitas grabbed the spotlight for the first time in December 2000 through Russian television in early 2000. He also had a stint in Asian markets in 2005. Much of his recognition outside Russia and Asia came in 2010, when songs such as “Opera #2” and “The 7th Element” (both from his 2001 debut album Philosophy of Miracle) and “Smile!” (from his 2002 album of the same name) achieved viral success.

3. Vitas Started His Career By Performing in Small Bars And Restaurants

He started by performing small gigs at bars and restaurants in the late 90s. One of his more notable performances from this time was “Opera 2” at a bar in Odessa, showcasing his now iconic high note. Thanks to recovered footage, it was discovered that his first music video was that of “Opera 1 (Euro version)” dating to 1999 in Odessa.

Vitas received an invitation from Lucio Dalla, the composer who created “Caruso”, to perform this song together with the author at the “San Remo in Moscow” concert in the State Kremlin Palace in 2003. Mr. Dalla then invited Vitas to come to Rome to take part in the rehearsals of “Toska”, a modern version of Puccini’s opera.

4. He is Known To Design His Own Costumes And Has Performed With Prominent Music Labels

Vitas has performed with entertainment labels such as Universal Music Group, and has toured extensively in several countries. He designs his own stage costumes, and employs a backing band named DIVA during live performances.

5. For The Love Of His Mother, He Dedicated Two Albums After Her Death

After his mother鈥檚 death in 2001, Vitas released two albums, “The Songs of My Mother” and “Mama”. “The Songs of My Mother” included classic Russian songs which are sometimes considered to be the “gold reserves” of Russian pop music

 In November 2003, Vitas presented his second tour program, “The Songs of My Mother” in the Russia Concert Hall in Moscow. Compared to the flamboyant nature of his previous “Philosophy of Miracle” tour, “The Songs of My Mother” was more conservative, drawing on classic Russian songs.

6. He Has Also Appeared In Television Series As A Singer And Comedian

Vitas also starred in a murder mystery television series called “小胁芯谢芯褔褜 薪械薪邪谐谢褟写薪邪褟” (“Beloved Scoundrel”), in which he played a pop singer with an unusually high voice. He also starred in a comedy called Crazy Day.

In June 2006, Vitas was invited by China Central Television to take part in a grand event entitled “The Year of Russia in China” in Beijing. Vitas performed two songs, “The Star” and “Opera #2” during the event, marking the beginning of his popularity in China.

7. He Has Performed With The Once Famous American Label Gemini Sun Records

In October 2007, Vitas was signed with the now-defunct American label Gemini Sun Records. Gemini Sun released the Audio Visual Connect Series Vita鈥檚 compilation CD + DVD set featuring eight music videos with the corresponding songs also on audio CD, in addition to a bonus audio track.

 In 2008, Vitas also released “Light of A New Day”, a 40-minute track of non-lyrical vocalization and instrumentation. The song is available as a free download on his website.

Over the years Vitas released many other studio albums like 鈥�A Kiss as Long as Eternity鈥� (2004), 鈥楽ay You Love鈥� (2009) and 鈥楥ome Just For You!鈥� (2016); and performed in different concert programs like 鈥楳y Love Story鈥� (2014鈥�2017), and 鈥業’ll Give You Love鈥� (2018鈥損resent). His upcoming studio album is titled 鈥�20鈥�

8. He Had Some Of His Concerts Broadcast Live

His large-scale concert at the Palace of Arts “Ukraina” in Kyiv in March 2012 was broadcast in Ukraine’s main TV channels and later released on DVD. In 2013 he brought the tour to Germany, performing in several cities.

9. He Prefers To Live A Private Life

He likes to live a private life and has often declined interviews with only a few exceptions. In an unusual move, he allowed himself and his family to be interviewed on the talk show 鈥淟et Them Talk鈥� in January 2012.

10. He Received Bad Publicity After Knocking Down A Cyclist While intoxicated

On 10 May 2013, Vitas was arrested after hitting a cyclist with his car near the VVC Exhibition Centre in Moscow. The cyclist was uninjured and proceeded to film the scene with police afterward, which depicted an unkempt and possibly intoxicated Vitas being held by authorities.

The accident was widely covered by Russia-1 and Channel One Russia, two of many other TV channels.