On the eve of the airing of the 1+1 channel show “I want to go to VIA Gro!” Lady.TSN remembered all its participants for 13 years.
Alena Vinnitskaya. "Number one"
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Alena Vinnitskaya
Alena is Vinnitskaya’s stage name; according to her passport, her name is Olga. In 1993, under the influence of the work of Viktor Tsoi, she created the group “The Last Unicorn”, after the collapse of which she was a presenter on the BIZ-TV channel.
She sang at VIA Gre from 2001 to 2003. She starred in the videos “Attempt number five”, “Hug me”, “Bomb”, “I won’t come back”, “Stop! Stop! Stop!”, “Good morning, dad”. She left VIA Gra to start a solo career, which she is now doing successfully. She is the only glam pop-rock performer in Ukraine and writes her own songs.
Nadezhda Granovskaya. "Long-liver"
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Nadezhda Granovskaya
She managed to stay in the group from 2001 to 2006. And, according to the figurative expression of one of the producers of the project, Dmitry Kostyuk, she played the role of the “main Viagra” - Granovskaya’s incredible sexuality had a stunning effect on men (both directly and figuratively!) impact. After leaving VIA Gra, she became Meikher-Granovskaya. But over time, the second part of the surname was lost somewhere, and now Nadezhda is simply Meikher.
Tatiana Naynik. "Sacrifice"
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Tatyana Naynik
Before VIA Gra, she was a graduate of St. Petersburg University. A. I. Herzen worked as a model for six years, her photographs were published in such well-known publications as Shape, Elle, Top ten. Replaced Nadezhda Granovskaya while she was on maternity leave. She starred in the videos "Stop! Stop! Stop!" and "Good morning, dad."
She left the group after Granovskaya returned. The reasons for leaving were not widely discussed. According to one version, the producers did not need a quartet (there are too many of them in show business), so one of the participants had to be sacrificed. The choice fell on Naynik. Today Tatyana sings in Russian group"Maybe", it was created according to the "VIA Gra" principle - sexy girls on stage in varying degrees of "undress", but the popularity of the latest "Maybe" is still very far away.
Anna Sedokova. "Slave of Love"
She grew up in a single-parent family: her father left when Anya was five years old, she and her brother were raised by their mother, a teacher. Ukrainian language, who worked day and night to provide for the children. Sedokova studied music and dancing almost from the cradle - from the age of six she danced in folk ensemble"Svitanok", graduated with honors music school, and after graduating from general education she entered the Institute of Culture.
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Anna Sedokova
Before VIA Gra, she worked as a model and was a presenter on radio and television. She took part in the first castings at VIA Gro, but did not make it through the selection due to her young age: Anna was only seventeen years old at that time. The producers remembered her when in 2002 they decided to turn the duet into a trio. She left VIA Gro for the sake of love - Sedokova married football player Valentin Belkevich and gave birth to his daughter Alina. However, the first marriage, as well as the second, with, was short-lived - they say that despite the birth of the second daughter Monica, Anna is now free again. Under the pseudonym Annabelle she tried to start a solo career, took part in projects on Russian and Ukrainian television, and acted for men's magazines, but viewers still remember Sedokova primarily as the ex-soloist of VIA Gra.
Vera Brezhneva. Dumpling turned into sex-symbol
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Vera Brezhneva
Perhaps the most striking transformation - from a doll to a butterfly, or rather, from Galushka to a real sex symbol - happened in VIA Gre with Vera Brezhneva. A girl from a large family, who was considered at school to be shy, “ugly” and “bespectacled”, for short time became one of the most attractive and seductive girls on the Russian and Ukrainian stage. Vera sang in VIA Gre, intermittently, from 2002 to 2007. Today she not only makes a solo career, but also acts in films, hosts television shows and takes first place in numerous ratings of “the most beautiful” and “the sexiest”.
Svetlana Loboda. "At VIA Gru"– for a bet"
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Svetlana Loboda
Before "VIA Gra" she sang in the groups "Cappuccino" and "Ketch", performed main party in the musical "Equator", tried to start a solo career, inventing the image of an incognito singer who never takes off her dark glasses and calling herself Alicia Gorn in the Western style.
She became a soloist of "VIA Gra" on a bet. At stake was a red convertible, which was to become Svetlana’s property, but only if she not only got into the group, but also stayed in it for six months. I soon learned that a casting was being held for one of Konstantin Meladze’s projects. About what we're talking about Loboda found out about VIA Gre when, out of five hundred applicants who competed in vocals, dance and acting, twenty remained, including her. "Mercedes wheels are in my pocket!" – Svetlana thought and tripled her efforts. However, already on the first tour of the group, Loboda concluded: “The group is a big machine for big money"Her partners were so tired at concerts that they fell asleep in hotel rooms, literally not having time to get to bed. Then disagreements began with the producers, and Svetlana had to leave. And since she didn’t last six months, the red convertible remained a dream.
Albina Dzhanabaeva. "The second redhead"
After the departure of Anna Sedokova " VIA Gra" needed a new "red-haired" soloist, and the graduate became it music school named after the Gnessins, backing vocalist Valeria Meladze Albina Dzhanabaeva. Since the day before Albina gave birth to Valeria’s son Kostya, her invitation to VIA Gro was perceived ambiguously by many: some considered it a reward, others considered it a way to alienate her mistress, as they say, out of sight, out of mind.”
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Albina Dzhanabaeva
The soloists of VIA-Gra, who had the opportunity to work with Dzhanabaeva, Tatyana Kotova and Meseda Bagaudinova, do not characterize her with the most the best side- they call her harsh and unrestrained, they claim that Albina could cause a scandal over any, even the most insignificant, reason, and took her anger out on the service staff - make-up artists, costume designers, stage workers.
She sang at VIA Gre from 2004 to 2012, and at the same time studied at the Moscow Psychological and Pedagogical University at the Faculty of Psychology. After the official closure of the group, its producer Konstantin Meladze announced the start of Dzhanabaeva’s solo career.
Christina Kots-Gottlieb. The shortest stay at VIA Gre"
Christina Kots-Gottlieb was born in Donetsk. She was involved in dancing and sports - she is a master of sports in rhythmic gymnastics. Winner of the titles "Miss Donetsk", "Miss Donbass 2003", "Miss international Black Sea 2003", "Miss Donbass 2004".
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Christina Kotz-Gottlieb
After Nadezhda Granovskaya left the group and Vera Brezhneva announced her departure, the producers became preoccupied with searching for a new sexy blonde. The contract with Christina was concluded for five years, but in fact she was the lead singer of the group from January to April 2006. After filming the video “Deceive, but stay,” she was fired from VIA Gra. Moreover, according to Christina herself, the producers didn’t even tell her about this - they simply stopped answering phone calls. Kotz-Gottlieb was about to start solo career, even starred in Bogdan Titomir’s video “Do as I do!”, but then returned to her modeling career, becoming the face of the KOLTSO model agency. She took part in the Miss Ukraine Universe 2009 competition, where she won an unconditional victory.
Olga Koryagina. Designer
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Olga Koryagina
A native of Nikolaev, she joined the group in 2006, when Nadezhda Granovskaya once again announced her departure from VIA Gra. She managed to star in two videos of the group – “L.M.L” and “Flower and Knife”. Upon learning of her pregnancy, Olga announced her departure from the group and soon married the father of the unborn child, businessman Andrei Romanovsky. After the birth of the child, producer Maxim Fadeev offered Koryagina to return to show business, but she refused. Today he designs fashionable clothes.
Meseda Bagaudinova. Girl from "Dream"
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Meseda Bagaudinova
The producers of "VIA Gra" have always sympathized with girls with a bright oriental appearance, so in April 2007 Olga Koryagina was replaced by a singer of Avar (on her father's side) and Ukrainian-Belarusian (on her mother's) origin Meseda Bagaudinova. At the beginning of its musical career Meseda was a soloist of the “Dreams” group, quite famous in the south of Russia, but at that time she could not even dream of the glory of “VIA Gra”. Meseda spent a year and a half at VIA Gre, and was forced to leave after Nadezhda Granovskaya announced her return to the group. Bagaudinova returned to the “Dreams” group.
Tatiana Kotova. "False Pregnancy"
Winner of the title "Miss Russia 2006", represented Russia at the Miss World 2007 and Miss Universe 2007 competitions. By education, Tatyana is an economist and anti-crisis manager. She joined VIA Gro in 2008 after Vera Brezhneva left. She starred in the videos "My emancipation", "Antigeisha" and "Crazy".
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Tatyana Kotova
In 2010, the media suddenly began vying with each other to write that Kotova would soon leave VIA Gro due to pregnancy. The rumors turned out to be exactly half true: Tatyana really left the group, but her pregnancy turned out to be false. The singer herself, when asked about the reasons for leaving, answered this way: “We can’t admire the sun around the clock. I got my share of the sun’s rays at VIA Gre, now it’s time to collect the stars. I’m offered to work on television and act in films, I want to realize my creativity to the end, because there is no limit to perfection."
Eva Bushmina. "Girl-accident".
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Eva Bushmina
Star Factory graduate Eva Bushmina replaced Tatyana Kotova in VIA Gre. Eva spent a total of about three years in the group. They say that in order not to “fly out” of the group, like other unlucky participants, she increased her breasts by two sizes - from one to three. In VIA Gre, Bushmina had a reputation as an “accident girl”, with whom something constantly happened, since Eva is a big fan of extreme sports and thrills. After the collapse of the group, despite the birth of a daughter (her father is the son of the ex-Minister of Economy of Ukraine Vladimir Lanovoy), .
Santa Dimopoulos. Destroyer
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Santa Dimopoulos
It was with her arrival in the group that it became clear that the history of VIA Gra in its previous form was coming to an end. Despite numerous advantages - bright appearance, sex appeal and athletic training (Santa is a master of sports in dancing) - the new soloist was just another and, alas, unsuccessful attempt to replace the irreplaceable Granovskaya. In 2012, after spending less than a year in the group, Dimopoulos announced her departure from it and the start of a solo career, as a result of which VIA Gra turned into the duet Albina Dzhanabaeva and Eva Bushmina, which soon broke up.
Taisiya Kondratyeva
In 2018 the composition legendary group « VIA Gra"Updated once again. Konstantin Meladze invited Olga Meganskaya replaced Misha Romanova, and soon began singing in the group instead of Anastasia Kozhevnika Ulyana Sinetskaya.
Generally for 18 years of existence The group featured 18 very different soloists. Some people's stay was limited to months, while others spent time in a group for many years. “VIA Gra” has undergone a lot and even closed for a short time in 2012, but by some miracle the project is still alive.
Our editors invite you to remember the soloists who made the history of one of the most successful female groups in the post-Soviet space.
Alena Vinnitskaya
One of the first soloists, who was at the origins of the creation of the group, stayed in the group for three years. Before her career as a singer, Alena worked on television, and after leaving VIA Gra she began a solo career. Vinnitskaya was replaced by Brezhnev, but fans claim that without Alena the group has lost its charm.
Nadezhda Granovskaya
At first, the group's producer abandoned the idea of a trio and limited himself to a duet. The charming Nadezhda Granovskaya sang together with Vinnitskaya in VIA Gre. In 2006, after Granovskaya left, the group almost closed.
Tatyana Naynik
Tatyana sang in VIA Gre starting in 2002, replacing Nadezhda Granovskaya, who went on maternity leave. She was counting on long-term cooperation, but two brunettes in one group did not fit into the producer’s head. Now Nainik is married and has a daughter.
Anna Sedokova
Many people remember the group solely by Sedokova. She was part of the golden trio, which also included Brezhnev and Granovskaya. Rumor has it that Anna did no less for the group than Konstantin Meladze. She left the team in 2004 due to pregnancy.
Posted by (@annasedokova) Sep 29, 2018 at 1:35 PDT
Vera Brezhneva
Vera got into the group quite by accident, performing one of the songs at the group’s concert. Brezhneva stayed in the team for 4 years, and after her departure in 2007, the group was predicted to fail. In 2015, Vera secretly married Konstantin Meladze.
Svetlana Loboda
Svetlana joined the group in 2004 to replace Sedokova, but a full replacement did not happen. Loboda was criticized for overly provocative behavior, so the singer stayed at VIA Gre for only 4 months.
Albina Dzhanabaeva
A kind of record holder, Albina stayed in the group longer than any other soloist - 8 years. Now she is known not only as successful singer, but also as the beloved Valeria Meladze.
Christina Kotz-Gottlieb
The participant and winner of beauty contests stayed in the group from January to April 2006. Christina “didn’t fit in” with the team and after a short stay at VIA Gre she continued her modeling career.
Olga Koryagina
The singer stayed in the team for two years. Ironically, Koryagina, who replaced Granovskaya, who had again gone on maternity leave, herself left the group due to pregnancy.
Meseda Bagaudinova
After Vera Brezhneva left, Meseda sang for some time in a duet with Dzhanabaeva. It sounds like the plot of a soap opera, but in 2009 Granovskaya returned to the team for the third time, replacing a native of Grozny...
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Tatyana Kotova
After Brezhneva left, the creators of the group played big, inviting the winner of the Miss Russia 2006 contest to VIA Gro. Tatyana won the love of the public not only with her voice, but also with her luxurious forms. Some clips were not censored at all.
Eva Bushmina
Eva Bushmina, or Yana Shvets, also known by the stage name Layah, joined the group in 2010 and stayed in VIA Gre until the fateful closure of the group in 2012.
Santa Dimopoulos
In 2011, Nadezhda Granovskaya, pregnant for the third time, was replaced by world fitness champion Santa Dimopoulos. However, less than a year later she left the group to promote her solo career.
Misha Romanova, Erica Herceg and Anastasia Kozhevnikova
Misha, Anastasia and Erica joined the group after winning the show “I Want V VIA Gro” in 2013. Now Erica is singing in the new lineup, Misha left the group on maternity leave, and Anastasia had enough of a five-year contract and went solo.
Not every pop group can boast of such a long stay in show business. In fact, VIA Gra is a fairly significant group, if not an epoch-making one. However, while the style and presentation practically did not change, there were 19 members singing in the group, so it was both different and the same.
Official website version
“The history of the VIA Gra group is vast and multifaceted; it includes many events that in one way or another influenced the fate of this musical group.
Over time, the release of new songs and albums, the appearance of unusual video clips, participation in the filming of various television programs and magazines, the VIA Gra group continues to steadily move upward, improving itself and improving the quality of its creativity, adding more and more new touches to it.
Each subsequent action of the group is not similar to the previous one, it carries a certain palette of emotions and feelings, thoughts and impressions that are unique to VIA Gre and allow it to differ from most other post-Soviet pop groups working in a similar musical genre.
However, VIA Gra did not immediately reach its current heights. As you know, the path to the top is never smooth; there are many flaws and twists of fate, which in an instant can cancel out all efforts and efforts. It is worth noting that in the history of the group there are no failures of a global scale, only changes in the composition of the participants, which entailed a “change of generations” and left their unique mark on the life of the group. Therefore, we will try to talk about the main events that have occurred since the founding of the group and that continue to occur today.
What will happen next will only be known over time, but for now we can only analyze what has already happened - the history of the VIA Gra group in all its manifestations. Of course, we should start from the very beginning - the birth of the group, which occurred in 2000. On the musical stage there was a lack of something new, unusual, capable of attracting the attention of the listener with its novelty and difference from others. What was needed was a team that could equally successfully win the hearts of the most diverse audience, that could surprise with something new, create a positive mood and, at the same time, awaken a variety of spiritual and lyrical feelings in a person.
The idea of creating such a project came to the mind of the future producer, Dmitry Kostyuk. The starting lineup of the group, the one from which it all began, was two Ukrainian girls, Alena Vinnitskaya and Nadezhda Granovskaya. The story of their arrival in the group turned out to be different. Alena, at that time working for the Ukrainian television company Biz-TV, was invited to participate in the group by Dmitry Kostyuk himself. Another producer was Konstantin Meladze. It was he, together with Dmitry, who was lucky enough to open Nadezhda for the group. The starting point that persuaded him to decide to accept Nadezhda into the team was her amateur photo shoot.
Next came the casting, which Nadya passed brilliantly and the producers did not have the slightest doubt that she was needed to pair with Alena. All that remained was to come up with a name for the new team. “VIA Gra” - that’s what this project was called. There are several versions about why the group was named that way. On the one hand, VIA is an abbreviation that stands for “Vocal-Instrumental Ensemble”, and “Gra” is translated from Ukrainian as “game”. On the other hand, many believe that the name is a derivative of the surnames of the vocalists, in which “VI” is the beginning of the surname “Vinnitskaya”, “A” is the first letter of Alena’s name, and “Gra” is, accordingly, the beginning of the surname of Alena’s partner in group, Nadezhda Granovskaya. There is also a version that “Gra” stands for “Voice, Joy, Artistry.” But the real reason was that all sorts of decodings somehow formed the word “VIA Gra”, which has the same name as pills that increase sexual potency in men, which was fully facilitated by the external image and sex appeal of the vocalists. It is not known for certain how the name of the group is deciphered. It doesn’t matter, everyone can see what they like in the title.
So, the group was named, formed and ready to begin its creative activity. The first step on the path to the current heights was the group's debut video, which marked the beginning of a triumphant march up the ladder of fame. The video was made for the song “Attempt No. 5”. Its first show took place on September 3, 2000 on the Biz-TV channel. After this, interest in the group began to grow sharply; it was necessary to expand the repertoire to reach new positions. “Attempt No. 5” created a slight sensation and immediately became a kind of “ business card” of the collective, it was replicated on pirated discs, it occupied the top positions of various music charts, immediately competing on an equal footing with the hits of that time. When compiling collections of the best songs, the compilers also did not ignore the debut work of the group “VIA Gra”. The song "Attempt No. 5" was included in music collections radio “Hit FM”, “Auto Hit”, “ Greatest Hits Biz-TV" and many others. For the video itself, VIA Gra became the winner of the Golden Weight Award. For example, in 2001, on November 18, the team won the Golden Gramophone award for the same “Attempt No. 5”. As an example, even these two awards are enough to understand that the group’s debut was a success. The composition still leaves its mark on the group - it is regularly performed during concert performances, continuing to remind listeners of the times when everything was just beginning. Without stopping there, instantly consolidating the success, a second video clip appears, filmed for the song “Hug Me.” Together with “Attempt No. 5,” it provides the group with a certain springboard, one might say, ground under its feet, for further actions.
Throughout 2000, the group formed its repertoire and by mid-December it included seven songs. The time has come to organize your own concerts. The debut performance is in Dnepropetrovsk, on the stage of the local “ Ice Palace", which took place on December 20, 2000. About four thousand spectators attended the concert.
Having made a very bright debut, demonstrating part of its enormous potential, in 2001 the VIA Gra group carried out more diversified activities, attracting everyone most of fans. She is invited to participate in awards, concert programs, filming in reputable media publications. The video series is replenished with two more clips - “I won’t return” and “Bomb”. The rapid breakthrough of 2000, from which “VIA Gra” took its start, is ending; it is systematically moving forward into rational progress, covering more and more new areas of activity in which a musical project can be affected.
The group gains nationwide fame and popularity.
From the beginning of spring to the end of summer, the team receives various awards, including a prize from the radio “Hit FM”, as part of the “Stopudovy Hit” ceremony; “Golden feather” at the “Golden Firebird” ceremony, in the categories “ Best Song" and "Discovery of the Year", as well as "Golden Weight" and "Golden Gramophone", received by the group for their first hit - "Attempt No. 5".
The group took part in the filming of the musical “The Night Before Christmas”.
On August 31, 2001, VIA Gra entered into a contract with Sony Music for the release of five albums. At the same time, the group continued to successfully tour with their solo concerts throughout the CIS countries.
The following year, 2002, the VIA Gra group was shocked by some changes. Started new stage in its evolutionary development. The structure was changed - from a duet the team turned into a trio. It all started with the fact that Nadezhda Granovskaya was preparing to become a mother, and accordingly, it was necessary to put an end to her busy touring activities for a while. In order to make up for the temporary loss of Nadezhda, a casting was urgently announced. The producers decided to increase the number of participants to three people, which was successfully done. Ex-TV presenter Anna Sedokova, who worked on the O-TV and " New channel", as well as a model from St. Petersburg - Tatyana Naynik. Without allowing the updates to “take root,” the group continued “right off the bat.” A magnificent video was shot for the song “Stop! Stop! Stop!". He showed that the group was moving in the right direction and the fact that Anna Sedokova was in the group was extremely beneficial.
May 23 in Moscow concert hall The "Russia" group was awarded the "Ovation" prize. There was no point in stopping at the achieved milestones; everyone was looking forward to the continuation.
On September 12, 2002, filming of the video for the song “Good Morning, Dad!” ended. This event was marked by the return to duty of Nadezhda Granovskaya, who less than a month ago gave birth to a son, who was named Igor. Some time after filming the video, Tatyana leaves the group. The team continues to successfully act in various television programs ah, for example, in “The Domino Principle” and “Total Show”. Previously, on the MTV channel alone, “VIA Gra” took part in the programs “VIP-Caprice”, “Banzai!”, “12 Evil Spectators”, “Stilissimo”, “Paparazzi”. It is impossible not to note their participation in the second musical - “Cinderella”, in which the participants played three princesses and sang together with Verka Serduchka.
In 2003 there were changes again. Alena Vinnitskaya decided to start her own solo career. Accordingly, there is another casting, painful elections, as a result of which Vera Brezhneva ends up in the group. The next “era” is being formed, a line-up that is often called the golden line-up among fans of the group. Indeed, such a definition in relation to Vera, Anna and Nadezhda is quite reasonable. This year is becoming very fruitful in terms of the team’s creativity. At the beginning, a video clip for the song “Don’t leave me, darling!” is shot. This is followed by the release of the group's second album, “Stop! Removed!
Events continue to pour in as if from a cornucopia.
In the summer, the video “Kill My Girlfriend” appears. The group rose to the pinnacle of fame, where it remains to this day. She is already ready to conquer the countries of Europe and Asia with her creativity. The English-language video “Stop! Stop! Stop!”, as well as the English-language album of the band with the same name. The first release took place in Japan. "VIA Gra" sweeps across the country like a hurricane rising sun, performing in Tokyo, taking part in various programs on MTV Asia and Fuji TV. Filming for the Japanese magazine “Play Boy” is underway. In the fall of the same year, the album “Biology” was released. A magnificent duet is being formed - “VIA Gra” and Valery Meladze. Collaborative work, which at the end of 2003 - beginning of 2004 bore fruit in the form of the songs “Ocean and Three Rivers” and “There is No More Gravity,” as well as video clips shot on them.
Everything developed rapidly, VIA Gra put up more and more masterpieces for judgement. And then an event happened that plunged the ranks of fans into a slight shock.
In 2004, Anna Sedokova left the group. They urgently look for a replacement for her, who is found in the person of Svetlana Loboda, but the replacement turned out to be a little unequal, despite the fact that on June 4, 2004, VIA Gra won the Muz-TV 2004 award, a video clip for the song “Biology” was shot. . Still, Svetlana is “not accepted” by fans who immediately draw analogies between her and Anna Sedokova. The group continues to perform in various television programs, in particular in the “Total Show”, as well as in the third musical with their participation, called “Sorochinskaya Fair”. By the way, this musical also gave birth to one of the group’s potential hits, “Oh Spoke Pure Water,” which conveys a unique Ukrainian flavor during Russian performances.
In the same year, the pan-European release of the album “Stop! Stop! Stop! Despite this, slight dissatisfaction with Svetlana grew and the decision was made to break up with her. Currently, Svetlana is engaged in a solo career. In Loboda's place they take Albina Dzhanabaeva, who worked for a long time as backing vocals for Valery Meladze and got into the group on his recommendation. The team still works with this composition, Vera, Nadezhda, Albina.
The current lineup, like the previous ones, started very sharply, immediately receiving an award at the RMA-04 ceremony for the song “There is no more attraction,” performed with Valery Meladze. A magnificent, soulful video “The World I Didn’t Know About Before You” is released.
The year 2005 started with trouble. Vera Brezhneva suffered a spinal injury while skiing. Fortunately, the fans' fears did not materialize. Vera had no complications. Another duet work is being presented to the public - with the popular rap team “TNMK” in Ukraine. The clip is called “There is nothing worse than being like everyone else.” As before, programs with the participation of VIA Gra are being released. For example, “The Draw” with Vera, shown on ORT in 2005, “Saturday Night”, “Full Contact”, in which the group “Brilliant” was defeated with a huge advantage in the musical battle, the Big Premiere and many, many others. “VIA Gra” continues to excite the media: filming in the magazines “Maxim”, “7 days”, publications in “Molotok” and “ Komsomolskaya Pravda" The list is updated regularly, so there is no need to list everything. We can safely say one thing - the VIA Gra group is a phenomenon with a lot of positive aspects, distinguishing it from others musical groups. It is able to conquer new heights, amaze and amaze with its novelty. There are still a lot of plans and ideas in the creative plans, so we can safely say that subsequent pages of the group’s history will be no worse than the previous ones.
After all, there is no limit to perfection."
Another version of the history of the Viagra group (version: http://persona.rin.ru)
It all started with the fact that on September 3, the premiere of the group’s debut video, the video “Attempt? 5,” took place on the air of the BIZ-TV television company. After this, events began to develop at maximum speed, exceeding even the wildest expectations of the team’s producers Dmitry Kostyuk and Konstantin Meladze. Already on September 12 (!), the first pirated recording of the band’s debut song appeared. And by the end of the first month of the group’s existence, a lot of “yellow” materials appeared in the press, and on music layouts - cassettes with the illegally published composition “Attempt? 5”. The calm Ukrainian show business was excited by the “Riddle named VIA GRA” (quote from the title of one of the publications about the group).
The team's first hit quickly won the top positions on the charts and was published in many popular Russian and Ukrainian collections. “Attempt? 5” was released on the compilations Hit FM (Moscow), XXL “Dance”, Auto HIT, “Best hits of BIZ-TV. Part 2” and others.
Refuting rumors that this will all end, by the beginning of winter another video for a bright dance composition"Hold me." Interest in the group concentrates, thickens and almost materializes. She is invited to concerts and interviews. The sufferers are still being turned away. The intrigued public is generating countless assumptions about the girls, producers and the future of the team.
By the end of 2000, the group’s repertoire already included 7 songs, with which VIA GRA began to tour. The first concert of the group took place on December 20 in Dnepropetrovsk on the stage of the Ice Palace in the presence of 4 thousand spectators. To date, the group has given more than 70 concerts in Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, Belarus, and Kazakhstan.
2001
During the first year of its existence, VIA GRA received several prestigious awards. The group took part in the “Stop-Blowing Hit” award ceremony from HIT FM radio (Moscow), which took place on June 2, 2001 in the Kremlin, and won the prestigious “golden weight” for the hit “Attempt N5”.
The team performed at the 10th anniversary of the annual all-Ukrainian festival "Tavria Games" and received a "golden feather" at the "Golden Firebird" award ceremony in the categories "Discovery of the Year" and "Best Song".
On April 14, 2001, VIA GRA performed in St. Petersburg in big concert"MUZ-TV Hit Parade" The show was broadcast in 250 cities of Russia.
On April 23, the group became a nominee for the “Star” project Ukrainian stage", held as part of the "Star of Ukraine" campaign, and received the corresponding diploma.
On November 17 and 18, the group "VIA GRA" became the first Ukrainian group to be awarded prestigious award"Golden Gramophone". The team received it for the hit “Attempt N5”.
The group members took part in photo shoots for many magazines. Among them are “XXL” (Moscow), “OM” (Moscow), “Afisha” (Moscow), “Women’s Magazine” (Kyiv), etc. The producers of the group decided to refuse photography for the magazine “PlayBoy” (Moscow). Alena and Nadezhda took part in the filming of the popular television programs "V.I.P. - Caprice", "Banzai!", "12 Evil Spectators", "Stilissimo", "Papaprazzi" (MTV); SV-show (1+1); project "Evenings on a farm near Dikanka"
2002
For the sexiest group in the entire post-Soviet space, the Year of the Horse became a year of great changes and transformations. In the spring the duo turned into a trio. The impetus for changes in the composition was the desire of Nadezhda Granovskaya to become a mother and temporarily leave the group. To fill the vacancy that appeared, the producers of the team - Dmitry Kostyuk and Konstantin Meladze - organized a strict selection of applicants, as a result of which two reached the finals: ex-TV presenter Anya and St. Petersburg model Tanya.
The newly-minted trio immediately got to work, recording new song called "Stop! Stop! Stop!" and starred in a memorable video for it. On May 23, at the Moscow State Central Concert Hall "Russia" the girls took part in the Ovation award ceremony.
On August 15, Nadya gave birth to a cute boy. The boy, very similar to his mother, was born with a weight of 2700 grams and a height of 52 centimeters. The child was named Igor. On September 12, filming of the group’s new video for the song “Good morning, dad!” ended. The main sensation new job was participation in the filming of Nadezhda Granovskaya! The return of the sexy brunette to the team was highly anticipated by the group's fans, its producers, and the executives of Sony Music, with which the group signed a five-year contract a year ago. Some time after filming the video, Tanya left the team to take part in a large-scale television project.
In the fall, Alena, Nadya and Anya took part in the filming of a new screensaver for one of the highest-rated charts on Russian MTV - “Ukrainian Twenty”. Girls in “second skin” overalls, according to the script, robbed a bank, rode around on huge motorcycles, used firearms, a power saw and charm for personal gain.
This year soloists of VIA GRA Anya, Nadya and Alena played the roles of crowned heads for the musical "Cinderella", the next New Year's project of the all-Ukrainian TV channel "Inter". The girls reincarnated as foreign princesses, seducing Baskov’s character to the best of their ability and mentality.
Last year, Anya, Nadya and Alena took part in several television projects. They became the heroines of the programs “Cossacks-Robbers”, “The Domino Principle”, “Total Show” and others. The beauties appeared on the covers of the super popular men's magazines "XXL", "Maxim" and once again refused to undress for "Playboy".
2003
New Year is the best reason to start new life. Our favorite women's team took advantage of this and at the beginning of January they immediately amazed the public with a wholesale portion of super news. First and most importantly, Vera appeared in the group. No religious fanaticism, it’s just the name of the stunning blonde who recently became the soloist of VIA Gra. In addition to his extraordinary appearance, stage talents and beautiful name, young star has the intriguing surname Brezhnev. Vera replaced Alena Vinnitskaya, who left the trio for a solo career.
The renewed and even brighter VIA GRa has thousands of grandiose plans. Some of them have already been implemented. With the participation of Vera, the debut album of the group “Attempt? 5” was rewritten, and work on a new record is almost finished.
Signing a contract with Sony Music:
On August 31, 2001, a contract was signed in Moscow between Sony Music and the VIA GRA group. This is the first international contract of Sony Music Entertainment (RUS), since the charming group is a completely Ukrainian product: all its members are citizens of Ukraine and live in its capital - Kyiv. Thus, in the Sony Music catalog you can now find 5 Russian-speaking artists.
September 27 on the Columbia label, which releases albums by such famous performers How: Ricky Martin, Celine Dion, Destiny's Child, Aerosmith, Jessica Simpson and many others, their debut album was released VIA group GRA called "Attempt?5". It included 11 songs: “Spell”, “Attempt?5”, a comic description of adventures main character in a love hexahedron, which by the end of the song is replenished with friend Masha and her several clones, “I won’t return”, a very lyrical, sad and unusual composition in melody, “Meet my mother, they say that the biggest stupidities in the world are done with serious expressions faces. If you listen to this thing seriously, it will really be a big mistake. Because it is superLight. And in general, a range of positive emotions from a slight smile to a cheerful laugh is guaranteed, “What have I done,” “Bomb,” a protest song, which in itself is already interesting because such feelings are not typical for the post-Soviet stage. Let’s blow up this world with music and fresh energy before it dies of boredom “Would you let me go”, a sensual declaration of love In love! No matter what they say, “Now or never,” in this song there is absolute freedom, as in a dream. So why not take advantage of it, if now you can change everything around, why wait? Let’s urgently begin the positive deconstruction of objective reality,” Hug me,” another confirmation of the rapidly advancing matriarchy and no less inevitably approaching female polygamy. “Thank you for the summer,” autumn inspires not only Pushkin, especially if the summer was spent in the good company of your own dreams, “Every day,” with a creative approach, everyday life becomes no less romantic than the day of the first kiss.
By mid-March 2003, Sony Music Entertainment (RUS) plans to release the group's second album. The future long-play does not yet have a name, but several songs from it have already become super hits. The new material has a more serious theme and is intended for a more adult audience than the previous one. This is evidenced by those compositions from the disc that have already become super hits, “Good morning, dad!”, “Don’t leave me,” “Stop! Stop! Stop!”.
“VIA GRA” – VARIABLE LIKE THE HEART OF A BEAUTIFUL WOMEN
Over more than a decade of existence, the group changed its composition, but did not change its idea. And it was to create something fundamentally new.
One can, of course, argue whether the idea of collecting women's group of girls with a fantastically sexy appearance. Anyway, first appearance "VIA Gra" did not go unnoticed, popularity grew every day, and now no one doubts the success of the idea. A group with such a plan was simply doomed to success: the male half of the audience cannot help but admire the plasticity of perfect female bodies, but the female half has someone to look up to.
Attempt number two or number five?
Dmitry Kostyuk, the producer of the group, wanted to put together a female group, the participants of which should have a stunning sexy appearance to demonstrate shocking performances and, as KVN members like to joke, if these conditions are met, no one will pay attention to their vocal abilities. After the first casting, three girls were selected. We recorded the first song and even started filming a video. But the team did not work well and the team was disbanded. But the idea did not leave the producers.
After some time, “attempt number two” took place. This time the choice was made of two vocalists. They became and. Alena at that time worked at the television company Biz-TV, where Dmitry Kostyuk noticed her and invited her to participate in the team. When he and the second producer of the group, Konstantin Meladze, received a photo shoot of Nadezhda, they invited her to the casting, which confirmed that the girl met all the requirements. To "VIA Gra" By the way, Granovskaya had no vocal experience.
The group received the name, which, as it turned out, means not only an allusion to a well-known drug. Although many believe that this is not an allusion, but the meaning of the name, because the group’s performance has no less effect on the male half of humanity than a well-known medical drug.
In fact, there are several versions explaining the name of the group. One of them: VIA is an abbreviation for “vocal-instrumental ensemble”, and “gra” is translated from Ukrainian as “game”. According to another version, the name is the initial letters of the vocalists’ surnames: “VI” - from “Vinnitskaya”, and “Gra” - from “Granovskaya”. Another version: “Gra” is the first letters of the words “Voice, Joy, Artistry.” The latest version is most likely far-fetched. The external image of sexy vocalists is more likely associated with pills that improve sexual potency in men. Probably everyone can decipher the name as they like.
First steps and immediate success
Nadya and Alena (2000)
So, the group was formed, the name was invented. The debut of the first video for the song “Attempt No. 5” took place on the Biz-TV channel in 2000. This date is considered the beginning of the creative activity of the team. The clip created a certain sensation, the group was not only noticed, they started talking about it as a new bright phenomenon on the domestic pop scene. A successful song with a corresponding video clip became an excellent application and even, in some way, the “calling card” of the group. Thus, with the song “Attempt No. 5”, on the second attempt the group hit the top of various music charts. The song was liked not only by listeners, but was also noticed music critics and producers. At the end of the year, the group received several music awards for this song alone: “Stopudovy Hit”, “Golden Gramophone”, “Golden Firebird”, and the video was awarded the “Golden Weight” award.
The debut video became the starting point on the path to popularity. Moreover, this song is still popular; the group regularly performs it during concert performances, reminding the audience of how it all began. The successful debut was followed by months of hard work. Following “Attempt No. 5,” the composition “Meet My Mom” was released. The filming of the video, however, was not completed. The plot of the video for the song “Hug Me” is in many ways similar to the plot of the unfinished video; the directors even used some fragments of the video for the song “Meet My Mom.”
The path to the top
Tatyana, Alena, Anna (2002)
For a whole year the group worked hard on their repertoire, and by the end of 2000 seven songs had already been recorded. And in December the debut first concert took place. The band's fame grew every day. More and more often - welcome guests at various television shows, they are bombarded with offers to participate in national concerts. Two more videos delight fans - “I won’t come back” and “Bomb”. Every new song, album, video, appearance in a television program or on the pages of magazines (photographs of the group are carried out by “Playboy”, “Maxim”, “7 Days”) - contributes to the growing popularity of the group, which successfully tours throughout the country. The same time was marked by another event - the group was invited to take part in the filming of the musical.
The trio of Brezhnev, Granovskaya and Sedokova is often called the “golden line-up” by fans, because in this composition the group was more productive than ever. A video for the song “Don’t leave me, darling!” was released, followed by the second album, “Stop! Removed! In the summer, the video “Kill My Girlfriend” appears.
Having conquered the domestic stage, she is ready to show herself to the countries of Europe and Asia. The English-language video “Stop! Stop! Stop!”, as well as the band’s English-language album of the same name. The first release took place in Japan, where she performed in the capital with great success. And already in the fall of the same year the album “Biology” was released. Valery Meladze recorded together with "VIA Groy" compositions “Ocean and Three Rivers” and “There is No More Attraction”.
Diamond composition "VIA Gra"
Svetlana, Nadezhda, Vera (2004)
Quite unexpectedly, in May 2004, Anna Sedokova shocked not only fans, but also producers - she left the group due to her pregnancy. Producers are urgently looking for a replacement for Sedokova, this time the choice fell on Svetlana Loboda. Svetlana is a sexy and attractive girl, the owner of an unusual jazz voice with a range of 2.5 octaves. But for some reason the fans “didn’t accept” the replacement.
2004 was awarded the Muz-TV 2004 award. In the same year, the pan-European release of the album “Stop! Stop! Stop! The vocalists took part in the filming of another musical “Sorochinskaya Fair”. It should be noted that this musical gave birth to one of the group’s hits, “Oh, the clear water spoke.”
Nadezhda, Albina, Vera
The group maintained its popularity and was active on stage and in the studio. But dissatisfaction with Svetlana grew, conflicts arose between the vocalists, and as a result, the decision was made to part with Loboda. Instead, they took Albina Dzhanabaeva, who had already worked for a long time with Valery Meladze as a backing vocalist. Fans nicknamed this lineup “diamond” after the release of the video for the song “Diamonds.” Everyone loved the composition due to its lightness and jazz motif. The Diamond lineup recorded a collaboration with the popular Ukrainian rap team “TNMK”, “There is nothing worse than being like everyone else.”
In 2006, two vocalists at once, Vera Brezhneva and Nadezhda Granovskaya, announced their desire to leave the group. Brezhneva wanted to start a solo career, and Granovskaya decided to try something new. This statement caused confusion among the group's fans and took producers Konstantin Meladze and Dmitry Kostyuk by surprise.
Creative crisis or another line-up change
The departure of two soloists at once did not bode well. The producers had two options: close the project or try to find a replacement. Moreover, both options had their weaknesses. What it means to close a well-promoted, extremely popular project is not worth explaining. But finding vocalists for the well-coordinated work of the team is also not an easy task. Fans have almost come to terms with the collapse of the team. Although rumors that the “farewell” to the group was only a successful PR move, they warmed the hope that the girls would still please with new songs and tours. But no one knew whether it would be perfect new line-up or someone from the old one will remain.
Christina Kots-Gottlieb joined the group instead of Granovskaya. With the new lineup, the group released a new lyrical song, “Deceive, but stay,” in which many listeners saw a parallel with the current events in the team. But new format did not last long, the relationship between the soloists did not work out right away, and instead of Christina, the producers invited Olga Koryagina.
It seemed that the appearance of a new soloist would allow us to continue working calmly, and all the problems would be behind us. It looks as if the group had no plans to stop. continued to delight her fans with new releases and give concerts. In May 2006 there was a big solo concert in St. Petersburg, dedicated to the fifth anniversary of the team.
Meseda and Albina (2007)
Despite the confusion in the lineup, she recorded new songs: “L. M. L.”, which became a hit in the summer of 2006, “Bomb”, released in September, “Flower and Knife”, released in November. Moreover, the songs were recorded in two languages - Russian and English, which predetermined the release of the second English-language album, the name of which coincided with the title of the song “L. M.L." This song by that time was already a real hit and sounded in all music programs, taking first places in music tops and chats. However, the second English-language album was not successful. According to already established tradition, the group starred in New Year's musical“Channel One”, with the Russian version of the song “It’s raining man”.
Duet, trio, duet again
Meseda, Tatyana, Albina (2008)
But here, for a reason already familiar to the group - pregnancy, Olga Koryagina leaves the team. The producers allow her to leave the team without fulfilling obligations, but also without the opportunity to return. And after Koryagina, Vera Brezhneva still leaves the group. The next casting brought Meseda Bagaudinova into the group. The duo recorded the songs “Kisses” and “I’m Not Afraid.” The video for the latter was filmed at a time when the producers decided to return the trio format to the team. In the new video for the song “I'm not afraid” fans "VIA Gra" we saw the new soloist of the project - Tatyana Kotova.
The next year for the group was more productive than 2007. New songs and new successes appeared. Already in the summer at the Muz-TV Awards she was named “ Best pop group of the Year", and their video for the song "Kisses" won in the category " Best Video" In the fall, the team shot the video “American Wife” for the soundtrack to the film “Hipsters,” released a third collection of songs, “Emancipation,” and participated in creative evening Konstantin Meladze, and, of course, in New Year's concerts.
"Old Love Never Rusts"
Tatyana, Nadezhda, Albina (2009)
Fans of the group are already accustomed to the fact that every year there are changes in the composition of the group. 2009 was no exception, but the change in composition surprised everyone - Nadezhda Granovskaya returned to the group. In this regard, Meseda Bagaudinova had to leave; there was no place for two brunettes on the same team. The girls immediately went on tour around Europe and North America with the program “My emancipation”, and Meseda Bagaudinova was still on many posters.
A presentation took place at Russian Radio new song called "Antigeisha". At the end of the video filmed for this composition, the group's lead singers played real anti-geishas: no chic outfits, no bouffant hairstyles– an unexpected image for the team. at the Russian Movie Awards 2009 they were presented with an award for best actor and received an award for best soundtrack - "American Wife", and 2009 - the group received a Golden Gramophone statuette for the song "Antigeisha".
In mid-March 2010, Tatyana Kotova left the group “for certain reasons.” Her place was taken by Eva Bushmina (Yana Shvets). The premiere of the new trio was the song “Get Out!” But already in 2011 it was announced that Nadezhda Meikher-Granovskaya was leaving the group, and Santa Dimopoulos would take her place.
The end of VIA Gra or the beginning of modern history?
Eva, Nadezhda, Albina (2010)
Since September 2012, the group again became a duet, consisting of Albina Dzhanabaeva and Eva Bushmina. And again rumors are swirling that the group is now really on the verge of collapse. Konstantin Meladze officially confirmed that Santa left the team due to “professional unsuitability.” He also stated that the group will soon record a new song and film new clip with a new soloist. Who it will be is not yet known.
Thus, over the eleven years of its existence, the composition of the group changed more than ten times. And everything looks like this is not the last, or even the penultimate composition "VIA Gra". But one thing can be said with confidence: the group is a phenomenon in many respects. They have achieved enormous popularity, won many awards, and are still ready to conquer new heights, able to amaze and amaze with their songs. There are still a lot of plans and ideas in our creative plans, but for now we can safely say that we continue to successfully win the hearts of viewers and even listeners.
Santa, Eva, Albina (2011)
FACTS
Song "Don't leave me, darling!" became one of the most significant singles in the group's history. It stayed on the charts for almost 7 months, becoming a mega-hit in 2003.
The “Emancipation” video is the most expensive that Alan Badoev has made in his entire directorial career. Newfangled erotic video went well "VIA Gre" almost $120,000 – “women’s emancipation” is expensive!
Abroad, the group cannot use its name due to the threat of a lawsuit from the manufacturer of the same name. medicinal product, therefore appears under the name NU VIRGOS.
Eva and Albina (2012)
Almost all ex-soloists "VIA Gra" After leaving the group, they continued their career in show business. Vera Brezhneva can rightfully be considered the most successful. The song “Love will save the world” brought the singer unprecedented fame, and at the moment its popularity is even higher than the popularity of the group itself. Following Vera is Svetlana Loboda, a participant. Svetlana is already mega-popular in Ukraine and is now trying to break through to the top of Olympus in Russia. Alena Vinnitskaya is not far behind Vera and Svetlana, followed by Ana Sedokova.
Updated: November 25, 2017 by: Elena
Surprisingly, the latest lineup of the VIA-Gra group lasted the longest in the history of the female band. The lineup of Misha Romanova, Anastasia Kozhevnikova and Erica Hertz lasted together for more than five years. But recently information appeared on the Internet that the lead singer of the group decided to leave it.
Misha Romanova (real name Natalya Mogilyanets) is finally leaving the female pop group VIA-Gra, but the producers have already managed to find a replacement for her.
New soloist of Viagra instead of Misha: what happened
Misha Romanova made an official statement that she is indeed no longer the lead singer of the group “VIA-Gra”, and a replacement has already been found for her, however, the lineup has not been updated on the group’s website, and fans are confused and eager to find out: who is new member.
Back in 2014, the media reported that there was a conflict among the girls in the team, despite the fact that Misha Romanova was quarreling with Nastya and Erica, that is, both participants were negatively disposed towards the girl.
But despite all this, the group’s producer denied all this news, telling the media that the girls are friends not only at work, but also in life, and there can be no conflicts between them.
Apparently, these were really just rumors, because during the 5 years of collaboration, the general public was not aware of a single scandal among the members of the pop group.
New soloist of Viagra instead of Misha: the reason for Romanova’s departure
Fans of the female pop group were stunned by the news of Romanova's departure. There are many versions about Misha’s departure, but the girl herself said on her Instagram that she has changed her priorities in life, and now love comes first for her, which is why she is leaving the team.
“The most important calling of a woman is love. And sometimes she needs a firm decision. For some time, the artist in me gave in to the woman... Therefore, I am leaving the group, but leaving a piece of my soul in it,” the girl wrote.
“These were years filled with wonderful music of a brilliant man, the adored producer Konstantin Meladze. Thank you, Kostya, for this chance, for your faith and support, for the wonderful songs that warm the hearts of many listeners! Erica and Nastya, we were a team, one whole , I will miss you very, very much! This page from my life will forever remain in my memory,” she concluded.
But fans are sure that Romanovskaya simply decided to pursue her solo career, since it was for this reason that all the ex-members of VIA-Gra left.
New soloist of Viagra instead of Misha: who is new
Information has appeared in the media that a replacement has already been found for Romanova and VIA-Gra will not turn into a dupe. Olga Meganskaya from St. Petersburg became the new soloist of Via-Gra.
VIA-Gra fans learned about this the day before yesterday at the band’s concert at Casino Iveria at the Republic center in Tbilisi (Georgia). Instead of Misha, a new girl appeared on the stage.
It is known that in the near future “VIA-Gra” will perform with a new line-up: on March 30 in Moscow, and on March 31 in Kyiv at the Alaska restaurant.
