Zemfira, that well-known girl who contributed Russian rock has its own twist, light, journalists gave it a name - “female rock”. Her songs are still played on radio stations, and for young people Zemfira’s work is a source of inspiration, melancholy and sadness.
The little future singer was born in the city of Ufa, into a family of high moral views. Father Talgat Talkhovich was a history teacher, and mother Florida Khakievna was a specialist in physical therapy.
Zemfira was Not only child in the family, the elder brother Ramil doted on his sister and a trusting, very warm relationship always developed between them. Sometimes, a girl could tell her secret to her brother and not be afraid that she would be judged, scolded or laughed at.
Since childhood, the girl was drawn to music. In such early age For 5 years Zemfira already took piano lessons at a music school and was a soloist in the choir. And at the age of 7, without anyone’s help, she wrote her first song and did not hesitate to perform it in front of her mother’s colleagues.
Musical activity brought great pleasure and was much more than just a hobby.
At school, Zemfira became interested in basketball, but she was not particularly tall, and this spurred her even more to achieve something. Her efforts were not in vain and she became the captain of the Russian junior team. Sports are so pulled the girl in tight, which stood on par with music, which was very important.
Therefore, in high school huge problem became what to devote your life to, who to become. Thinking a lot about this topic, Zemfira made it a priority musical activity And applied to the art school in his hometown.
In order to have her own personal money, and not ask her parents, Zemfira began to look for part-time work and got a job at a local restaurant, where she performed various popular compositions in the evenings.
I got a little fed up with this lifestyle, I wanted to change my occupation, and now the girl is working at a radio station, recording commercials. At this time Zemfira n starts recording songs own compositions on cassette tapes.
At the end of the 90s, Zemfira's life takes a sharp turn 180 degrees. Her songs, recorded on tape, through friends, completely randomly end up in the hands of the producer the then famous group “Mumiy Troll”.
He appreciates musical compositions having truly seen real talent. Leonid Burlakov gives Zefmira the opportunity to advance in her activities, and she records her first album, which she calls “Zemfira”.
Zemfira did not even expect such success, because the album sold like hotcakes, and at the concerts there were always many people who were delighted with her music.
Work has begun on the second album entitled “Forgive me, my love”, which became the most popular in early 2000. This album is still the most popular among the singer’s projects. One song even became the soundtrack to the movie “Brother 2”.
Later, Zemfira received a very large and serious offer; director Renata Litvinova invited her to join her team so that the girl could compose music for the film “Goddess: How I Fell in Love.”
Zemfira’s musical activity brought such success that she was included in the list of “One Hundred Most influential women Russia."
There were always a lot of rumors about Zemfira’s personal life, but she was in no hurry to refute them and clarify them.
Moreover, the singer herself misled journalists and her fans by saying that she was marrying the leader of the group “Dancing Minus,” but this was just an attempt attract attention.
Someone said that Zemfira had a relationship with a woman and was engaged to Renata Litvinova. But both girls prefer not to talk about this topic, avoiding it in interviews.
In 2010, Zemfira suffered a misfortune: her beloved brother died and drowned in the river. The father died from the disease, and then the mother. This crippled state of mind singers. From that time on she decided that main task is taking care of nephews. Therefore, for now the singer does not have her own children, and her personal life remains under seven locks.
Although Zemfira mentions her status as “In Love” in interviews with journalists, she does not reveal all the secrets of her personal life.
Zemfira’s huge tour has started “ Little man”, within the framework of which she visited 20 cities of Russia and several foreign countries. Driving around the cities, the singer reported the sad news that her music career is over, thereby greatly upsetting the loyal fans who were inspired by her music.
But the singer does not stop spreading her songs. A I even recorded it in 2016 new song “Come home.” Loyal fans are still waiting for Zemfira to return to music and have not lost hope.
In the late nineties, she became the main pop and rock star in Russia. More than 17 years have passed since the release of Zemfira’s first album, and her music is still beyond competition. ELLE - oh really People's Artist countries.
Despite comparisons with Pugacheva - not musical, but in terms of the scale and significance of the figures - he does not perceive his older colleague. Zemfira didn’t listen to Alla Borisovna’s songs even as a child, and Pugacheva’s work never affected her. Zemfira calls the songs of Viktor Tsoi, one of the most important musicians for her, her true childhood love.
Little is known about Zemfira’s personal life. Wrote about young man named Vlad Kolchin, with whom the future star studied at music school. Their romance ended when Kolchin left Ufa for St. Petersburg to try to achieve success there. You can also find references to another man in Zemfira’s life - Sergei Anatsky, who, according to media reports, was at that time the head of the Europa Plus radio station in Ufa.
As for the novels in Zemfira’s “star” era, when everyone’s attention began to be focused on her, at first, for the amusement of the public and for PR, a rumor was “planted” about a relationship with the leader of the group “Dancing Minus” Vyacheslav Petkun. Vague hints about their romance, heard from different sides, ended quite quickly. Then the press began to exaggerate with all its might the relationship - a business one, however - with Roman Abramovich. The oligarch was among those to whom Zemfira performed once in Courchevel, then unexpectedly appeared at the presentation of the singer’s album “Vendetta” in 2005. According to another version, which the tabloids wrote about, the couple knew each other from the very beginning of Zemfira’s career in Moscow, and Abramovich helped the young artist with promotion. It is not surprising that when the singer mentioned that the working version of the title of the album “Vendetta” was the word “Oil,” the public immediately saw this as confirmation of contacts with the oligarch. Alexander Mamut, who has a reputation as a philanthropist and connoisseur of the arts, also helped Zemfira. Mamut supported the singer financially, paying for the services of Dutch specialists who worked on Zemfira’s tour. In addition, as the owner of Euroset, the businessman contributed to a bold project related to the album “Vendetta,” which was distributed in the stores of this network. Contacts with business people of this level automatically transferred the artist to the rank of an elite - after all, not every pop and rock singer enjoys the favor richest people countries.
Renata Litvinova began communicating in the mid-2000s. The couple was immediately credited with having too close a relationship, and even managed to get married - allegedly this happened during a trip to Stockholm.
Since then, they have worked together several times - on Zemfira’s videos, a concert film about her, and Zemfira herself helped with the music for Litvinova’s films. What is happening inside this couple is unknown to the public - both call each other close people and friends.
By the way, the year before last Renata Litvinova congratulated Zemfira on her birthday, posting in her Instagram photo romantic singer. The photo was accompanied by a personal text: “Weightless, independent of gravity, impossible, unthinkable, unacceptable... without skin, the only one, fearless... Happy Birthday, Zemfira!” The post appeared on the blog at about two o’clock in the morning, and, as some media outlets write, the congratulations initially contained the word “beloved”, later “removed”.
Zemfira is not bothered by loneliness. The singer has no friends and Zemfira is not attracted to noisy companies. “I have one person, Renata, that’s enough for me,” says the singer.
In 2007, the press wrote about the scandal that happened at the Norilsk airport, when Zemfira allegedly refused to fly on the same plane with the Zveri group. As reported, upon learning that she would have to fly on the same plane as the “Beasts,” the singer announced that she would not board the plane. She did not explain the reason for such an increased reaction to the presence of her colleagues; she went to the ticket office, where she bought a ticket for the next flight.
At the opening ceremony of the Olympics in Sochi, among other things, Zemfira’s song was performed. The artist was indignant that her consent was not asked, and publicly expressed complaints to the head of Channel One, who was responsible for staging the show, Konstantin Ernst. He responded by calling Zemfira petty: “I think that I have done a lot for Zemfira, for her career. And such pettiness, it seems to me, simply disgraces such an outstanding singer.” Ernst also warned that in the event of a lawsuit on her part, a counterclaim would follow. It turns out that Zemfira at one time violated the terms of the contract with the Real Records label, the head of which was then Ernst.
In 2008, Zemfira became a participant in the conflict that arose, in general, out of nowhere, between Ksenia Sobchak and Renata Litvinova. At one of the social events hosted by Sobchak, Litvinova got into a public argument with her. The story continued that evening at The Most club: Sobchak ironically reproached the director for her tactlessness, Renata Litvinova reacted emotionally, and even called Zemfira for help. The latter, as the tabloids reported, gave a vivid and not devoid of strong expressions monologue.
In 2008, for asking about her personal life, a Muz-TV journalist was hit in the face by Zemfira. It was at a press conference, the question about the relationship was asked to Renata Litvinova, who was also present, but did not answer. At the end of the press conference, Zemfira hit the journalist, calling her “dirt from under her nails.” wrote the media.
The song “Do you want”, in which famous people “sing” instead of Zemfira Soviet artists(almost every word is painstakingly chosen from different films) blew up the Internet last spring. The video for the song became an online hit, collecting more than 800,000 views on the Vimeo service in the first five days.
Zemfira’s album “Live in Your Head,” posted on Yandex on February 14, 2013, received more than a million plays in the first 14 hours.
In October 2013, a scandal occurred at a concert in Rostov. Tired of the public’s demands (“Come on “Daisies”!”), Zemfira expressed in a harsh manner what she thought about this, and in the song “Arivederchi” she sang “I will never return to Rostov.”
She is not a revolutionary, and considers this to be the same civic position as any other. “I am for the revolution within us,” said Zemfira. Music, she believes, is stronger than any politics. At the same time, the artist expresses her position on current events one way or another: in March, a song by the Ukrainian group “Okean Elzy”, performed by the singer, was posted on Zemfira’s website. And this summer, a scandal erupted around Zemfira’s act at a concert in Tbilisi, where she, having accepted the flag of Ukraine from the hands of the audience in the hall, waved it from the stage.
In 2011, Zemfira starred in an album of candid photographs taken by Mikhail Korolev.
In his old age he sees himself “definitely” in America.
Quotes
“It seems to me that all girls are feminine and men are masculine.”
“Overly smooth faces confuse me. I can’t tell them apart at all.”
“Love is almost the only thing that really exists in this stupid reality.”
“I may not be the most flexible artist, but you have no other choice.”
Full name: Zemfira Talgatovna Ramazanova
Stage names: Zemfira
Age: 42 years old
Zodiac sign: ♍ Virgo
Place of birth: Russia, Bashkortostan, Ufa
Nationality: Tatar
Height: 172 cm
Marital status: not married
Activity: singer, composer, songwriter, writer
Instagram:@zemfiralive
Biography of Zemfira
Zemfira is a singer whom many call “the voice of a generation” and the founder of “ female rock" She was born in the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan, Ufa, on August 26, 1976. The girl's full name is Ramazanova Zemfira Talgatovna.
Zemfira's family: parents and brother
Zemfira grew up in a prosperous, loving family. The girl’s father, Talgat Talkhovich, was a history teacher, and her mother, Florida Khakievna, worked as a specialist in physical therapy.
Photo of little Zemfira with her mother
Zemfira had an older brother whose name was Ramil. Since childhood, the singer and her brother have developed a very warm relationship. Ramil was a major entrepreneur, director of the Polushka retail chain.
Zemfira with her parents and brother
Unfortunately, he passed away in June 2010 - the man drowned in the river while spearfishing. The singer’s parents are also no longer alive.
Zemfira in childhood
Zemfira remembers that as a child she hated bows; at school she often took them off her head and hid them in her briefcase, next to her older brother’s toy gun. Ramazanova was more interested in games in the company of boys than in the “cares” of girls. At school they called her “Ramadan the Partisan” - for short haircut, jeans, sweaters and T-shirts.
Childhood photo of Zemfira
The singer has been interested in music since childhood, and those around her noted that the girl is talented. At the age of five, Zemfira was sent to study at music school in piano class. The girl once appeared on local television, singing a funny children's song. Zemfira wrote her first song at the age of seven and did not hesitate to sing it at her mother’s work.
Zemfira at school age
It is known that Zemfira listened to the songs of Viktor Tsoi and Thom Yorke, she learned to play the guitar and often performed compositions by “Kino”, “Aquarium”, “Nautilus Pompilius” and foreign performers– George Michael and Freddie Mercury.
Zemfira in her youth
When the girl graduated from school, she had to choose between music and basketball, which she was also seriously interested in. Zemfira decided to connect her life with creativity and immediately entered the 2nd year at the local art school.
Singer Zemfira's career
It was Zemfira who was destined to open in Russian rock new page and become the “breakthrough voice of a generation.” Back in student years she worked part-time as a singer in Ufa restaurants.
Zemfira Ramazanova, 1999
After college, she got a job at the Bashkir branch of the Europe Plus radio station, where she recorded her first demos. Then Zemfira’s career developed rapidly.
1997-1999: release of the album “Zemfira”
Thanks to some journalists she knew, her recordings got to Leonid Burlakov (producer of the Mumiy Troll group). In 1998, the girl recorded her first album, “Zemfira,” whose music producer was Ilya Lagutenko. In the spring of 1999, a presentation of the album took place at the 16 Ton club. The success was stunning; in the first six months, 700 thousand copies were sold, and videos were shot for three compositions.
Zemfira and Mumiy Troll: first concerts
In February of the same year, the composition “Speed” was constantly heard in the broadcasts of the radio stations “Nashe Radio” and “M-Radio”. On September 1, Zemfira’s first tour started in Moscow; she traveled throughout Russia and several neighboring cities.
2000-2001: recording of the collection “PMML”
In 2000, the singer recorded her second collection, “Forgive Me, My Love,” which became the most popular disc in Russia. The song “Iskala” was performed in cult painting"Brother-2".
Zemfira, “Forgive me, my love”
In 2000, OM magazine recognized Zemfira as “Performer of the Year.” In 2001, due to overexertion, she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown and took a sabbatical.
2002-2006: release of "Fourteen Weeks of Silence" and "Vendetta"
In 2002, the third album “Fourteen Weeks of Silence” was released, and in 2003 the singer won the Triumph Award. Zemfira presented her new album “Vendetta” in 2005, it turned out to be the best-selling release in the country.
Zemfira's album "Vendetta"
The collection won the “Domestic Album of the Year” nomination at the “Record” awards in 2006. Soon the singer began collaborating with director Renata Litvinova, writing music for her film “Goddess: How I Fell in Love.”
2007-2010: release of the album “Thank You”
In 2007, the next album “Thank You” was released, and a year later a large tour took place in support of it. In 2009, a collection of B-sides “Z-Sides” appeared on the Internet, and under New Year 2010, the singer presented the “live” album “Zemfira.Live”.
2011-2014: recording the album “Live in Your Head”
In 2011, “Our Radio” presented the premiere of the song “Without a Chance”, which was later included in new album. In the spring, Zemfira performed with her songs at the Maxidrom 2011 festival, and in the summer she took part in the Muz-TV Prize as a headliner. 2012 – participated in the concert of the group “Queen” at the Olympic Stadium, performed at the “Invasion-2012” festival.
Concert of Zemfira and Queen, 2012
In 2013, the official release of Zemfira’s sixth studio album “Live in Your Head” and the tour “Zemfira. Tour 2013”, there was a performance with the composition “We are breaking” at the closing of the World Summer Universiade in Kazan.
2015-2016: release of the album “Little Man”
The longest tour – the “Little Man” tour, announced in the fall of 2015, began in February 2016. During the tour, the singer announced that she was ending her concert career.
Zemfira's album "Little Man"
At the end of the year, Zemfira released the album “Little Man. Live." Since 2017, Zemfira has given few concerts; in the summer of 2018 she took part in the Wild Mint festival.
Personal life
There are a lot of rumors and speculations about Zemfira’s personal life in the media. It is interesting that some of them were provoked by the singer herself in order to draw attention to her person, as was the case with the story of the wedding of Zemfira and Vyacheslav Petkun.
Zemfira and Renata Litvinova
Her relationship with Renata Litvinova is of great interest to the singer’s fans. Celebrities have repeatedly explained that they are connected by strong female friendship. So, Zemfira declares that Litvinova is her only friend, and that’s enough for the girl.
Zemfira and Renata Litvinova
The singer does not like company - this is not her style. But Zemfira considers Renata multifaceted and interesting person, with whom you are never bored. The girls have a long-term collaboration - together they released several videos, recorded the soundtrack to Renata’s film “ The Last Tale Rita" and created the film " Green Theater in Zemfira.
Zemfira's novels
Zemfira's first love was Vlad Kolchin, with whom the girl studied at the Ufa School of Arts. In the mid-nineties, they worked together in one of the restaurants in Ufa - “Zhespar”. The romance between Zemfira and Kolchin lasted several years until the guy moved to St. Petersburg.
In the photo: Zemfira and Vlad Kolchin (right)
Afterwards, Zemfira began dating Sergei Anatsky, who was her boss at the Europe Plus radio station. The man was married, and when Zemfira moved to Moscow, their relationship ended. In the capital, Zemfira lived with sound engineer Arkady Mukhtarov. It was this man who helped the aspiring singer record her first “demos” and played a role in the girl’s “Macho” video.
Arkady Mukhtarov in Zemfira's video "Macho"
In 1999, Zemfira announced an affair with the leader of the group “Dancing Minus” Vyacheslav Petkun. They even shared their wedding plans with the media. After 5 months, it became known that the relationship between Zemfira and Petkun was a PR stunt.
Romance of Zemfira and Vyacheslav Petkun
The press also talked about the relationship between Zemfira and Roman Abramovich, thanks to whom, supposedly, the girl became incredibly popular. The singer’s romantic relationship with the oligarch, according to media reports, lasted several years. Afterwards the man became interested in Dasha Zhukova. The singer does not comment on these rumors.
Husband and children
Zemfira is not married, and she does not yet have her own children. True, the girl has been taking care of her nephews, who were left without a father, Arthur and Artem, for many years.
Zemfira with her nephew Arthur
Together with them, Zemfira created a rock The group Uchpochmack and recorded several musical compositions.
Interview with Zemfira
The singer rarely agrees to an interview; this method of communication is real stress for her. She feels much more comfortable performing in concert hall or at the stadium among fans, rather than talking with someone under the gun of many cameras. However, Vladimir Pozner and Ivan Urgant managed to invite Zemfira to their programs.
Vladimir Pozner
In December 2015, before the “Little Man” concert tour, the singer visited author's program Vladimir Pozner. She said that she first sang a song about a worm on Ufa television at the age of five. And the beginning of my professional musical career considers entering art school after school.
To the presenter’s question: “Zemfira is a glamorous person?” she answered with a categorical “no,” adding that she is more suitable for an informal party.
Once again she admitted that her favorite performers are Viktor Tsoi and Paul McCartney. She said that she spends a lot of time on the Internet, and starts her morning by watching sports and political news.
Zemfira from Vladimir Pozner
After this interview, fans left about two million comments. Many wrote that during the conversation Zemfira looked bored, to which the singer replied: “It’s convenient for me to be like that, there’s more demand from smart people.”
Ivan Urgant
In October 2016, Zemfira was a guest on Channel One in the show “Evening Urgant”. The singer said that the audience who come to her concerts always have the right to count on a good evening; she never lets her fans down.
Zemfira in the TV show “Evening Urgant”
IN lately During her performances, Zemfira jumped from the stage into the crowd several times. When she does this, she tries to tuck her feet tightly so as not to hurt anyone with her shoes. In addition, the singer shared that her favorite sports activities are running and fitness. She doesn’t like training in silence; she always listens to “running” music.
Yuri Dud
The famous video blogger and journalist Yuri Dud, who interviewed many famous personalities, has long dreamed of communicating with Zemfira. But the singer refused him, explaining that she didn’t need it, now she doesn’t give interviews to anyone, including Dudu.
The girl, unexpectedly for fans, became more active in social networks, answered some of their questions and shared several posts on her official page on Facebook.
How much does Zemfira earn?
Despite the rather modest environment in which Zemfira lives, she is one of the richest and highly paid stars domestic show business.
Financial condition according to Forbes
IN recent years the singer is firmly entrenched in the TOP 50 Russian celebrities according to Forbes magazine. Her name first appeared on this list in 2005. In 2016, she entered the top ten with an income of $6 million.
In 2017, the amount decreased slightly; according to the magazine, Zemfira earned about $5 million. In 2018 - $1.5 million. Main sources of income: concerts, performances at corporate events, tracks on the Internet.
How much does Zemfira's concert cost?
In 2003, the singer bought an apartment in Moscow on Frunzenskaya Embankment. She managed to earn the necessary amount to purchase housing in one of the most elite areas of the capital from fees for performances. 1 hour of her concert cost about $50 thousand.
Concerts are Zemfira’s main source of income
Since then . For example, Zemfira’s performance at a corporate party on New Year’s Eve 2017 cost businessman Suleiman Kerimov, a big fan of her work, 150 thousand euros. The most profitable tour of her career was the “Little Man” tour. Tickets for the performances ranged from $65 to $150. The collections from just two Moscow concerts exceeded 150 million rubles.
Zemfira: height, weight, eye color
Zemfira has never had problems with excess weight, but in recent years she has seriously lost weight. The singer is tall for a girl, and in her youth she was the captain of the junior women's basketball team.
Zemfira's figure parameters:
- Age: 42 years (as of October 2018)
- Height: 172 cm
- Weight: 47 kg
- Dimensions: 78/56/81
- Foot size: 39
- Eye color: brown
- Hair color: brunette
A few years ago, the singer weighed 58 kg, but quickly lost weight. The girl recalls that in 2006 she plunged headlong into work and lived at a grueling pace. Ramazanova lost about 10 kg, and she liked it.
Zemfira is tall and has an athletic figure
The singer began to move more and get tired less. Zemfira stopped eating dinner, gave up alcohol, and started running in the morning. In addition, Zemfira included in her rider a request to provide her and the musicians with mineral water, freshly squeezed juices and fruits.
Zemfira has lost weight and she likes it
The girl does not consume dairy products - she considers them harmful. The singer is very concerned about how she looks. That's why Zemfira often looks in the mirror. Even at the age of 13, she watched her reflection in the top of the piano and imagined how she would look on stage - she perfected winning poses.
Zemfira does not consume harmful foods
But when a girl starts, in her opinion, eating too much, she tries not to look at her reflection. Some people think Zemfira is too thin, but she strives to maintain her weight and not gain weight.
Zemfira now – latest news
After a grandiose tour with the “Little Man” program, the singer rarely appears on stage, performing only for a select few. So in May 2018, she sang at a closed party for Kommersant as part of the SPIEF, where representatives of Russian secular society gathered.
“... I will write an album. I don’t understand how long this will last...”
And in August 2018 she performed in Sochi at Rosa Khutor as part of the Live Fest Summer music festival. Zemfira sang in the mountains at an altitude of 1600 m and called this concert her last in the foreseeable future. She still communicates with fans on the social network “VKontakte”, where she recently described the singers Monetochka and Grechka.
Fans are waiting for Zemfira's new concerts
Admirers of her talent do not want to believe that the “Little Man” tour was the final one, and there will no longer be such cosmic concerts from a sincere singer with a “magnetic” voice. After all, over 20 years of creativity, the girl managed to create her own galaxy in the musical universe, and in each of her albums there is a new Zemfira.
Photo: Instagram, youtube.com, artchange.ru, kp.ru, wday.ru
Zemfira Ramazanova is a famous rock singer, author and performer of her own songs, and producer. Zemfira's biography began on August 26, 1976. Talgat Talkhoevich, the singer’s father, taught history to schoolchildren, her mother, Florida Khakievna, was a doctor and physical therapy instructor. Zemfira is Tatar by nationality. By now her parents and brother have died. The only close relatives are nephews Artur and Artem Ramazanov, musicians who studied to become directors and now live in the UK.
The beginning of a creative journey
The girl became interested in music early childhood and at the age of five she was enrolled in a music school to study piano. Zemfira's family supported an active life position future star. While studying at school, the future singer took part not only in music concerts, but also actively participated in basketball matches, practiced choral singing and was a member of seven other clubs.
As a child she made her debut in the local music program on television. In 1990, Zemfira graduated from music school with honors, and in the same year she was elected captain of the Russian women's junior basketball team.
At this time, the future rock star turned her attention to the guitar and began taking lessons on this instrument. Performing compositions by her favorite singers right on the street became both a rehearsal for her and a kind of preparation for the future.
After graduating from school, after much thought, Zemfira decided to continue professional music studies and entered the specialty “Pop Vocals”, and she was accepted into the art school immediately as a 2nd year student.
After graduating with honors, the girl worked for a short time as a restaurant musician, and then got a job at the Europe Plus Ufa radio company.
There she worked as a sound engineer and gradually mastered the latest computer programs on creating and arranging music. After recording several commercials, Zemfira tried her hand at writing her own songs and tracks. Subsequently, some of these compositions, in particular “Snow”, “Rockets”, “Why”, were included in Zemfira’s albums.
The beginning of the singer’s career coincided with her work at the radio station.. Her first demo disc was recorded here. The sound engineer was the famous Ufa musician Arkady Mukhtarov. To conquer musical Olympus Zemfira assembled her own team. With him she went to conquer Moscow and all of Russia.
Moscow and first success
Since 1997, from the moment of the first publication in the press about the group, Zemfira began promoting the group and left for Moscow. One of the copies of the recordings accidentally fell into the hands of the Mumiy Troll producer. Leonid Burlakov took the risk of starting cooperation with little known group and record their first album.
At that time, Zemfira worked with the following musicians:
- Akhmadiev Rinat (bass guitar);
- Sozinov Sergey (drummer);
- Mirolyubov Sergey (keys);
- Soloviev Vadim (guitarist).
The singer herself was the lead singer of the group. She attracted the attention of the public and the press - the group experimented with genres, developed their own style, which helped Zemfira's songs become real hits.
After the release of her first album, the young performer became an idol of youth in the late 90s. Recorded the album with the assistance of professional musicians popular group“Mumiy Troll”, mixed the material at their home studio in London, Ilya Lagutenko personally participated in the work on the sound of the album. It all ended with the release of an original music product.
With this album, the singer made her debut in front of the Moscow public at the 16 Ton club. It was May outside the windows, and the musicians in the hall created the illusion of the coming spring. Zemfira performed the song “Chamomile” with a chamomile woven into her hair, tearing off the petals in front of the audience, as if during fortune telling. With their debut album, the group went on concerts throughout the CIS cities. Musicians began to earn decent fees.
Significant promotional milestones
The year 2000 was significant for the group and its leader. The team was noted by the press as best group, and was favored by the public for the best debut album. According to the media, Zemfira became the winner in 4 more categories. She became breakthrough of the year, brawler of the year, performer of the year. Her songs attracted ordinary listeners so much that the famous film director Alexei Balabanov drew attention to this, who included the composition “Iskala” in the cult film “Brother-2”.
The performer actively worked on the group’s image, participated in photo shoots, and received the title “Person of the Year.” In the same year, one of the landmark albums, “Forgive Me, My Love,” was released, after the release of which Zemfira went on a concert tour. The start of the tour marked solo concert at the Olimpiyskiy.
The album sold thousands of copies and became the most financially successful in the singer's career. The songs were among the ten most popular compositions of the year. The group was awarded the Ovation Prize, Zemfira was awarded the State Youth Prize of the Republic of Bashkortostan in the field of culture.
The concerts brought massive popularity, from which the singer simply got tired, canceled the remaining concerts and went on sabbatical. At the end of 2000, the team took part in a project dedicated to the memory of Viktor Tsoi, and recorded the songs “Every Night” and “Cuckoo” for him.
Over the next two years, Zemfira worked on her next album, which was released in 2002. Extreme fatigue from the incessant, exhausting tours and aggressive behavior of the public at concerts gives Zemfira doubts about the very possibility of releasing this disc. The opinions of critics after the release of the album also differed.
However, the compositions “Infinity” and “Traffic” once again proved Zemfira’s inexhaustible creative potential as a composer, lyricist and performer. By the summer of 2002, the album had sold a million copies and became another bestseller for the Russian rock legend.
Over the following years, Zemfira released albums:
- "Venedetta" (2005);
- “Thank you” (2007);
- collection of b-sides “Z-Sides” (2009);
- “Live in your head” (2013).
After this, the list of studio albums has not yet been replenished. In 2016, during the “Little Man” tour, a live album was recorded.
Introduction to the world of cinema
In 2004, the singer met with director, screenwriter and writer Renata Litvinova. Work on the soundtrack for her film “Goddess: How I Fell in Love” became turning point in the work of a rock star. Collaboration with Renata Litvinova opened the world of musical cinema to the singer, and her acquaintance and collaboration with arranger Igor Vdovin opened new horizons of professionalism.
The artist’s filmography includes the following films:
- “Green Theater in Zemfira” (2008) - music, producer;
- “Bird-Gogol” (2009) - voice acting;
- “Rita’s Last Fairy Tale” (2012) - music, co-producer.
The music of a rock star sounds not only in the films of Renata Litvinova. Kira Muratova used several songs in her films.
Experiments in the genres of rock music, indie rock and pop rock made her work in demand among different categories of listeners. The influence of blues was expressed in the appearance of jazz harmonies. Zemfira also uses the bossa nova style, and this brings rhythmic variety to her music. By synthesizing genres and styles, the performer finds new fans.
Communication with Renata Litvinova and Nastya Kalmanovich led to changes in appearance singers. According to her, during this period she became more feminine and beautiful. A performance at the Maxidrom festival, where she performed the song “Bear” together with Ilya Lagutenko, led the singer into complete delight with high-heeled shoes and a bright dress, unusual for her wardrobe. During this period, she conducted a photo shoot for Citizen K magazine, where she appeared on the cover in a feminine and sexy image. The magazine's editors noted Zemfira's high performance during filming.
Personal
Zemfira carefully hides her personal life from prying eyes. Fans were always interested in when her husband and children would appear in her life, what sexual orientation she had, and whether she had a true love. Famous for her shocking actions, Zemfira constantly misleads everyone. She was credited with having affairs with both men and women.
According to popular rumor, Zemfira’s lovers were: oligarch Roman Abramovich, saxophonist Vlad Kolchin, film screenwriter Renata Litvinova. However, none of the rumors were fully confirmed, and the facts of an unconventional approach to sexual relations were not confirmed. Fate decreed that Zemfira never managed to find happiness in marriage and create her own family.
While working with Renata Litvinova, in the mid-2000s, Zemfira sharply lost weight. Her height is 173 cm, weight is 58 kg. The pages of the yellow press were full of headlines about incurable disease singers. Living at the pace that Zemfira lived in those years is not easy. Youth passes, and it becomes difficult for the body to cope with the stress of constant concerts and tours. But over time, rumors about the disease died down.
With age, the story of Zemfira’s creativity acquired an increasingly mature character.. She is no longer compared to representatives of the domestic rock scene Nastya Poleva and Yanka Diaghileva. She is no longer a “girl with a player.” Now Zemfira is a legend, the ancestor own style in "female rock".
It is difficult to overestimate the significance and influence of her songs on an entire generation of youth in the 2000s. A complex character, an open voice that conveys the meaning of words to the very heart - this is not just music, it is a lifestyle. Zemfira recalled her childhood: “I was small, but the most important.” The singer remains like this even now. It was she who set the bar to which young talents are measured today. For example, the young Tatar performer Hakim, in whose work critics find motifs first discovered by his great fellow tribesman.
Homeland future singer became Ufa, where she was born in August 1976, into an intelligent Tatar-Bashkir family. The girl's father worked as a history teacher, and her mother taught physical therapy.
Music and sports
Zemfira's musical talent was revealed very early, and at the age of five she began attending music school, where she learned the intricacies of vocals and piano playing. Even then, Zemfira stood out among her peers so much that she was chosen to perform a children's song on local television.
When the girl was seven years old, she wrote her first song. IN school years The work of the Kino group had a great influence on Zemfira’s development as a future musician. Her idols were Viktor Tsoi and Thom Yorke, and later this love was reflected in music, which Zemfira wrote.
While still at school, Zemfira's leadership qualities emerged. She played excellent basketball and, being shorter than everyone else on the team, deservedly became the captain of the Russian junior team. In high school, Zemfira faced a difficult choice: to play sports or music. The girl chose the latter and after graduating from school she became a student at the Ufa College of Arts.
In order not to burden her parents with her problems, Zemfira, in parallel with her studies, began working as a vocalist in Ufa restaurants. However, such activity was clearly not to her liking, and in 1996 she got a job on the radio, where she recorded her first demos.
Career and quick recognition
Zemfira's life changed dramatically in 1997, when a cassette with recordings of her songs fell into the hands of the producer of the Mumiy Troll group, Leonid Burlakov. Impressed by what he heard, he invited the aspiring singer to Moscow and recorded her first solo album called “Zemfira”. By the way, Ilya Lagutenko, as well as the drummer and guitarist of the Mumiy Troll groups, took a direct part in the work on this album.
Before the album's release, some of his songs began to be broadcast on the radio, and the public was already prepared for the appearance nova on the domestic stage.
The song “Arivederchi” gained incredible popularity, which literally blew up the Russian rock scene.
The presentation of the album took place in May at the 16 Ton club. It included songs such as “Daisies”, “Why”, “Forecaster”, “Rumba” and others. Zemfira's start turned out to be incredibly successful - in the first six months, more than seven hundred thousand copies of the album were sold, very provocative video clips were shot for three compositions, which further cemented the singer's popularity.
Interesting notes:
Zemfira went on her first tour three months after the presentation of the album. The tour exceeded all the expectations of the singer and her producer - in every city her concerts were invariably sold out. The end of the tour was marked by the fact that Zemfira became the headliner of the first music festival “Invasion”.
At the end of the tour, the singer immediately began work on recording her second album, named after one of the songs - “Forgive me, my love.” This album repeated the unprecedented success of its predecessor, becoming the most popular in Russia and neighboring countries in 2000. The composition called “Iskala” was performed in the cult film “Brother 2”.
The album included songs that quickly became real hits: “City”, “Ripe”, “Dawns”, “Proven”, “Do you want?”, “London”, “Don’t let go”. Similar success among the audience became the reason that Zemfira was named “Performer of the Year” according to the music publication “OM”.
However, Zemfira was openly burdened by the increased interest in her person, and at the end of 2000 she went on sabbatical. The singer made only one exception, performing at a concert dedicated to her idol Viktor Tsoi and performing his famous song “Cuckoo”.
Having had a good rest and gained strength, Zemfira returned to work. In 2002, she delighted her fans by releasing her next album, “Fourteen Weeks of Silence.” During this time, the singer’s creativity reached another level - it was noticeable that she had “matured” and rethought a lot.
The new album, so different from the previous one, became confirmation that Zemfira managed to break out of the musical framework that Burlakov imposed on her.
The album included songs that were destined to become national hits: “Macho”, “Fairy Tales”, “Webgirl”. This time the circulation of records exceeded a million copies, and the singer herself in 2003 received prestigious award"Taffy." A truly bright and memorable year in Zemfira’s work was 2004, when at the MTV Russia Music ceremony the singer performed Freddie Mercury’s immortal song “We are the Champions” together with the group Queen.
The following year, Zemfira was invited by the director and actress to write music for her new film “Goddess: How I Fell in Love.” The soundtrack of the film included a composition by Zemfira called “Love is like an accidental death.”
In 2005, Zemfira released a new album, “Vendetta,” in which, according to the singer, the main themes were anxiety and the search for a path in life.
2007 was marked by the release of another album called “Thank You,” as well as the singer’s statement about the breakup of the Zemfira group. From that moment on, Zemfira began performing as a separate independent singer - Zemfira Ramazanova. She went on tour in support of the new album, which included such compositions as “On the Subway,” “Boy,” “We Are Breaking.” The end of the tour was marked by the final concert at the Olimpiysky.
In 2009, the singer toured extensively in Russia and abroad, released the collection “Z-sides,” and collaborated with Renata Litvinova while working on the film “Rita’s Last Fairytale.”
Zemfira’s next album, entitled “Live in Your Head,” became a real breakthrough in the history of Russian rock. The harmonious combination of impeccable style, minimalism and sound quality was noted by both ordinary listeners and music critics.
In addition, in 2013, the singer embarked on a new experiment - she created the group The Uchpochmack (translated from Bashkir as “triangle”, as well as a traditional dish of Tatar and Bashkir cuisine). The mysterious online image of the group was quickly revealed by the singer’s fans, who recognized Zemfira’s vocals. In the same year, she received the MTV Europe Music Awards in the category “Best Russian Performer”.
In 2015, Zemfira went on a large-scale “Little Man” tour, visiting not only major Russian cities, but also countries near and far abroad. During this tour, the singer announced that she was ending her touring activities. However, Zemfira does not stop working on recording new tracks. So, in 2016, she recorded a new song called “Come Home.”
In addition, in 2016, Channel One released a recording of Zemfira’s two-hour concert. The grandiose performance was remembered by many spectators and fans of the singer.
Personal life
The incredible success of the singer could not but affect the increased interest in her personal life. Throughout Zemfira’s musical career, many rumors and speculations swirled around her name; she was credited with having affairs with Roman Abramovich and Vyacheslav Petkun.
In recent years, the friendship of Zemfira and Renata Litvinova has attracted particular interest in the media. It was alleged that they even got married in Stockholm, but neither the singer nor the actress confirmed these rumors in any way.
Zemfira early had to experience the bitterness of losing loved ones: her father died from a debilitating illness, a year later her brother Ramil drowned in the river, and a few years later her mother died. Since then, Zemfira has taken custody of her two nephews, Artem and Arthur, and helps them in every possible way. The singer does not have her own children.
Zemfira now
The singer has long had a constant audience of listeners; she does not refuse to take part in music festivals, but remains not a particularly media person. Her interviews can be counted on one hand - one of the most memorable was the conversation with Vladimir Pozner.
IN further singer shared with fans her opinion that this interview was a mistake and she considers it a failure. In 2018, the singer wrote a post on social networks about young stars Russian stage- Buckwheat and Monetochka.
Her publication not only became a meme, but also outraged many social media users. The post itself appeared after an interview with Monetochka on the YouTube channel “Vpiska”, the presenters noted the similarity of Grechka and Monetochka with the duet of Zemfira and Renata Litvinova. To which Monetochka said that her friend, singer Grechka, has great potential, and she considers Zemfira a closed and incomprehensible person.
The singer was criticized for lack of self-confidence and self-affirmation at the expense of novice performers. Even some fans of the singer considered Zemfira’s statements about Monetochka and Buckwheat incorrect. In their opinion, judging someone’s appearance is tactless, especially for artists of this level. Zemfira remained unconvinced and does not believe that she said anything wrong.
