The Laima Vaikule music festival “Lima. Rendezvous. Jurmala", which brought together almost all the CIS pop stars under its banner. In total, almost 200 artists from neighboring countries - Latvia, Russia, Ukraine and other countries - took part in the event.
The project was originally conceived as a replacement for the annual international competition young pop music performers "New Wave", which took place in Jurmala from 2002 to 2014, and has recently been based in Sochi for political reasons - and "Rendezvous 2018", following simple calculations, has become the fourth festival of the people's artist Latvia.
Last year, one of the main newsmakers of the event was Alla Pugacheva, who decided to attend the Rendezvous after a high-profile failure to attend the festival in 2016, where her husband Maxim Galkin was among others.
Last July, it is noteworthy that the intrigue regarding the Prima Donna persisted until the last: everyone knew that People's Artist The USSR is visiting Jurmala these days, but they could not say for sure whether Alla Borisovna would deign to come out. All the more impressive was the singer’s appearance in public - Pugacheva appeared before the cameras, as fans and casual observers noted, “incredibly prettier, tanned and lost weight,” while her black miniskirt created a real sensation.
Diva’s fans also emphasized to themselves that neither she nor Galkin were bored at the festival: such a conclusion could be drawn at least from the short video posted by Maxim on Instagram. It was filmed during the performance MBAND groups with the song “She’ll Come Back,” to which the couple, according to the comedian himself, decided to “punish.”
Based on all this, one could assume that there would be Pugachev’s Rendezvous in 2018, but such expectations were considered unjustified back in the spring, when Vaikule herself spoke about the artist’s absence from the festival.
According to Laima, she did not specifically invite Alla Borisovna to the event, but she inquired about her plans for the summer. The prima donna responded by saying that she would be at the resort only in August, explaining this by caring for the children - supposedly the warmest water in Jurmala would be during last month summer, and the couple really wants their kids to have plenty of fun.
“Alla now has an alternative to Jurmala - a house in Cyprus,” the singer added in an interview with Dni.Ru. “Although it’s in vain that they want to go there: there are cold winds there that poison everything in the world.” Because of them, maybe they will get to the Riga seaside faster. But I will wait for them!”
However, even in Pugacheva’s absence, festival guests had something to see. So, for example, the audience was amazed by the unexpected collaboration of Vaikule and Andrei Makarevich, who performed the famous “Changeable World” and “Three Windows”. Speaking later with representatives of the media, the leader of “Time Machine” expressed words of admiration for Vaikule, calling her “refined” and “always on brand.”
The performance of Verka Serduchka, who last week frightened fans with statements about her imminent departure from the stage due to politics, caused no less excitement:
according to Andrey Danilko (real name Ukrainian musician), his further appearances on the stage will be exclusively “local”, and for the last time all his listeners will be able to enjoy the artist’s work in the upcoming “farewell tour”.
Manifesto of love: how the Laima Vaikule festival “Rendezvous” takes place in Jurmala
Laima Vaikule's Rendezvous festival, taking place right now in Jurmala, has crossed the equator: two bright days are behind us, two more equally enchanting concerts are ahead. What is happening on the Riga seaside - in a report from the site HELLO.RU from the scene.
On the occasion of the festival, many media personalities arrived in Latvia. Among them are Andrei Makarevich, Ani Lorak, Lolita, Semyon Slepakov, Alexander Revva and many others. Jurmala greeted the guests with incredibly hot weather - the thermometer rose to 30 degrees. The artists and spectators, both famous and beginners, were warmly greeted. The hostess of the festival prepared a portion of new duets for each day, which became a kind of “feature” of her event. At the opening on July 19, she performed “Accident” with the group UMA2RMAN, and also joined the Kristovsky brothers on the song “Forgive.”
The second day of the festival was themed and called “Evening of Love”. Unexpectedly, Andrei Makarevich became the headliner, and, what is even more surprising, with his proven hits in a jazz arrangement, he organically fit into the big picture events. The words “We shouldn’t bend to the changing world / Let it bend to us better” from the lips of Laima and Andrei Vadimovich acquired a special sound and authenticity.
UMA2RMAN
At the rehearsal, Vaikule and Makarevich immediately came to a version that suited both of them; it seemed that the artists had been singing this song together for many years. “It turned out very beautiful,” said the musician, pleased with the result. It turned out that he met Laima back in 1980, when he came to Jurmala on tour with “Time Machine”. Andrei Makarevich saw Laima’s performance at the Juras Perle bar, after which he expressed his admiration and advised her to conquer the big stage. “Even then it was obvious that the scale of her talent did not correspond to the scale of the nightclub,” he says.
Alexander Kogan at a show rehearsal
Lolita Milyavskaya at a show rehearsal
The regular guest of the festival, Lolita, also performed at the “Evening of Love”.
Every year I think with trepidation that Laima may not invite me - the festival needs new faces, the audience wants diversity, and from the point of view of the producer this would be a reasonable step,” says Lolita. - And with great relief and joy I receive an invitation from Laima.
The artist arrived at the festival early and came backstage to the opening as a friend and fan of the festival. While preparing the program for her performance, she included her hit, which suited the theme of the evening, “On the Titanic,” although in her repertoire all the songs are in one way or another about love.
What can I say about this feeling? A woman with five marriages behind her... Today, for me, love is when you are calm. Calm in relationships with a partner. In general, we all need to practice loving our neighbors. Not to the one who is pleasant and nice, but to the one who is annoying. Try to love the one who pisses you off. Then the world will immediately become better and kinder,” the artist concluded philosophically.
Pretty soon Lolita herself will find herself hosting her own show. From Jurmala, Lolita went straight to her dacha near Moscow.
There I will meet people working on preparing a concert for my 55th birthday. I don't want to plagiarize, use templates and proven moves. Expect something new from me in November! - she boldly declared.
The evening ended with an atomic performance by Verka Serduchka. The team managed to bring not only the entire first row to their feet, but also the audience sitting far from the stage. Perhaps the guests of Latvia saw one of the last concerts of the group from Kyiv. Andrei Danilko said that he is no longer ready to perform as Verka Serduchka.
I would really like to perform in Russia. But a situation has arisen where many are simply afraid to invite us,” he said backstage.
Andrey Danilko as Verka Serduchka at the Rendezvous concert
Next year the team goes on a farewell tour.
I miss the time when people came to a concert just to relax, and not look closely and think: is this good or bad? - Andrey Danilko said after the speech.
Atmosphere and guests of the festival "Lima. Rendezvous. Jurmala"
Atmosphere and guests of the festival "Lima. Rendezvous. Jurmala"
Atmosphere and guests of the festival "Lima. Rendezvous. Jurmala"
From the very beginning, the Laima Vaikule Festival declared itself as a territory free from a political agenda, and the concerns of some artists at the Rendezvous were not justified. The audience was friendly and warmly received. "Evening of Love" was a success, giving way to .
Festival "Laima. Rendezvous. Jurmala"
RIGA, July 5. /Corr. TASS Evgeny Antonov/. Large international festival"Laima Vaikule. Jurmala. Rendezvous", which will bring together several dozen performers from Russia, Latvia, Georgia and Ukraine, opens on Tuesday in Jurmala. It will be the first large-scale musical event with the participation Russian artists in the Latvian city after the departure of the New Wave competition from there in 2014.
Festival participants
As Vaikule said, the idea was to hold a large four-day festival with representatives different countries She got it last year. After sources of funding were found, she herself took on the task of inviting participants and solving other organizational issues.
Guests of this year's show will be Grigory Leps, Maxim Galkin, Elena Vaenga, Kristina Orbakaite, Verka Serduchka, Lolita, Edita Piekha, Stas Piekha, Soso Pavliashvili, Intars Busulis, Maria Naumova, Olga Raetska, groups " VIA Gra", "Silver", MBAND, "Time and Glass", Musiqq and others.
“These are my friends, whose work I love,” Vaikule noted. According to her, all the artists agreed to perform for free.
Festival producer Elita Milgrave said that on stage concert hall"Dzintari" will install the best light and sound equipment, including 60 tons of screens. The event will be broadcast by 10 TV channels for residents of the Baltic countries, Russia, Germany, Israel, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and the USA. “That’s 100 million potential viewers,” Milgrave emphasized.
Latvian interest
President of Latvia Raimonds Vējonis sent a greeting to the participants and guests. "I believe that this festival will become a place of interesting meetings and creative discoveries, and will make a significant contribution to strengthening international cultural relations", he pointed out. The head of state met with Vaikule and other organizers of the show at the end of last week.
At the opening ceremony, as the chairman of the organizing committee Alexander Shenkman told TASS, the Minister of Culture of Latvia Dace Melbarde, the Minister of Transport Uldis Augulis, the mayor of Jurmala Gatis Truksnis, the mayor of Ventspils Aivars Lembergs, and the vice-mayor of Riga Andris Ameriks are expected.
"We hope that the success of this festival will lead some politicians to think that we need to get closer. This event is a cultural bridge between our countries," Shenkman said.
After the "New Wave"
Previously, every summer various events were held in Jurmala Russian festivals. In 2014, on the eve of " New wave" Joseph Kobzon, Oleg Gazmanov and Alla Perfilova, known under the stage name Valeria, were also included in the list of persons who are prohibited from entering the territory of Latvia, by the decision of the head of the country's Foreign Ministry Edgars Rinkevich. In the fall, they were also included in this list Russian actors Ivan Okhlobystin and Mikhail Porechenkov. After this, it was decided that the New Wave competition, which for many years was held in Jurmala, will now be held in Sochi.
The Latvian resort city no longer hosts other annual Russian cultural events- humorous festivals of the “Club of the Cheerful and Resourceful” (KVN) “Voting KiViN” and “Yurmalina”.
A big scandal is breaking out around music festival"Rendezvous" by Laima Vaikule in Jurmala, starting on July 5th. Songwriter Ilya Reznik expressed his indignation at the participation of representatives of Russian show business in the event organized by the Latvian authorities. The 78-year-old author of hits for Pugacheva, Kirkorov and other stars said in an interview with Life that he considers the arrival of artists from Russia to Jurmala unacceptable.
Let us recall, as Life already wrote, this year the authorities of the Latvian resort, which the year before lost the legendary “New Wave”, . The organizers of the "Rendezvous" invited the regulars of the "New Wave" there - Maxim Galkin, Kristina Orbakaite, Elena Vaenga, Lolita, Alexander Buinov, Vladimir Presnyakov and many other stars, whose performances in past years tourists flowed like a river, bringing money to the city budget. The producers of "Rendezvous", led by Laima Vaikule, even invited Alla Pugacheva as a special guest, who throughout many years was the muse of the New Wave. It is noteworthy that two years later, none of the invitees even remembered loud scandal, When Russian stars- Valeria, Oleg Gazmanov and Joseph Kobzon were denied entry to Jurmala, thereby provoking our country to abandon the “New Wave” in Latvia and move it to Sochi. The current headliners of the Jurmala “Rendezvous” were not embarrassed by the close “neighborhood” of Vladimir Zelensky’s festival “Quarter 95,” which starts in the city this same month and positions itself as “a festival designed to promote Ukraine in Europe.” However, it's complete Ukrainian stars and in the Laima Vaikule festival poster: next to Russian names neighbors Verka Serduchka, the duet "Potap and Nastya" and even the group "Time and Glass", whose soloist not so long ago
This is the essence of acting - corrupt. Most of our artists are unprincipled! - Ilya Reznik was hotly indignant at what was happening in Jurmala. - This unscrupulousness and desire to make money ultimately leads to such “little betrayals.” When our great Kobzon was offended in Jurmala two years ago, our artists should have already packed up and left, it would have been humane and Russian! Well, what can you do, this is our show business! Fee is a word with a capital letter.
The main reason for the stars’ agreement to return to Jurmala, according to the poet, was the crisis in Russian show business and a significant decline in artist income.
Igor Krutoy, who made “New Wave,” was replaced there by Limochka, that’s all. Show business is in crisis; many artists have no fees. Of course, this is a reason for them to make money. Especially when the Latvian government allocated a million dollars. Now our stars will also replenish their budget there. Alas, patriotic people, in the highest sense, can be counted on one hand! Those who truly love their Fatherland, respect their people and will never betray them.
Reznik admitted that he considers all possible arguments Russian stars about why they returned to Jurmala, "talks in favor of the poor."
They can find any explanation: let's be friends and so on. This doesn't give me any respect. They revealed their essence, you know? This is greed. Many have built palaces and mansions there, in Jurmala, and they also need to be maintained. I don't want to denounce them, but for me this festival is a regrettable event.
