Vaya con Dios   »  Eurovision 2003  »  Tatu - Russia	Русский

    Tatu

Country:   Russia   Song:        Ne veri, Ne boisi (Don’t trust, Don’t be afraid)   Number of performance:   11   Rating:    1   Place:      3   web-site:   http://www.taty.ru/

    May, 16-th, 2001 Universal Music Russia has recorded Tatu group, which critics, musical journalists and the sound recording companies name the most shocking and scandalous group ever appeared in the Russian show-business. That, generally speaking, not absolutely corresponds to the validity. We and earlier had not less causing collectives. The same “Police of Customs” in the middle of 90th years, lesbo-fetish group, if who remembers. If to go further away to the past at the end of 80th two were rather popular punk groups, “Mongol Shudan” and “Sector Gaza”. Scandalous (and scandalous-political, by the way) texts was much more at them. By the way, scandalous texts at Gorbachev and now are two big differences. Then at us still censorship was. And sense in their texts was much more... To tell the truth, these groups by radio and TV then did not rotated each half an hour. However, and time was not like now, and show-business at our country at that time was not exist yet. Thouse people just did that was pleasant to them, instead of big money tried to get... But it so, to a word. At present time Tatu - the most known group in the Russian pop-music.

    Tatu group - it is two girls, Julia Volkova and Lena Katina, one of  them is 18, and to another - 19 years old. Both they have casually got in this in this project. It was about 14 years old to each girls when they were found in Moscow by Ivan Shapovalov, the children’s psychologist and the advertising agent. He has recognized, that Tatu is “ young sexual project ”, specially developed to address to low instincts of the men, which are looking “ the pedophilic entertainment ”. Well. The wind of  freedom is breathed in our back, and well-known Freud has consecrated the way to us… (the comment of the Web-master ;-)

    Lena Katina, which has been born on October, 4, 1984 - the student of psychological faculty of the Moscow Humanitarian College. Julia Volkova, who has born on February, 20, 1985 now the student of vocal branch of the State Musical School of Pop-and-Jazz Arts. Both girls began the musical career in children’s group “Fidget”. Julia had been expelled therefrom for “ unworthy behaviour and depravity of the collective ” (the citation from Tatu’s web-site). Girls have together come on casting, which was lead out at the Mosfilm cinema studio with the purpose to create the new group Tatu. In total in this casting about 500 applicants has taken part. But Julia and Lena had chosen for the group.

    After Tatu’s creation Ivan Shapovalov also has created the producer center “Unformat” engaged in creation both musical and video data and the organization of concert activity as well. As a matter of fact, “Unformat” not only owns the rights to the Tatu’s brand and a musical material of the group, but also is the organizer of all group’s creative process.

The brief history of Tatu:

     At September, 2000 the first song of group Tatu - “I have gone mad ” - have got on radio. Up to the end of year the song was rather popular on radio stations “Europe +”, “Russian Radio”, “HIT - FM” and “Dynamite”. At October of the same year a videoclip on a song “I have gone mad ” had benn rotated on musical channel MTV Russia. For shooting this clip Lena had to lose almost 10 kg, and Julia - to truncate hair and to paint them in black color. After one week of displays on MTV Russia the clip has won first place in the international charts “20 most - most” and in Russian top-chart “Russian ten”. Video have been named “the Best Video of Year” at September, 2001 by spectators of Russian MTV channel. At 2001, on September, 6 in the Mertopolitan Opera at New York Tatu had received MTV Music Video Award, for “the Best Russian Video - a choice of the spectator”.

     At May, 2001 on radio and on MTV Russia channel the second song of  Tatu had been rotated - “Us will not catch up”. Then, at May, Universal Music Russia company had been released a debut album of  Tatu duet - “200 on a passer”. In August, after several successful hits, released in Russia, girls have excited the international market, having got in charts with a song “All The Things She Said” (the English version of the song “I have gone mad”). The videoclip of  this songs in which the girls dressed in a school uniform, kiss each other, has led to to appeals “ to forbid and not pass ”. Also accusations of propagation “ pedophilic pops ” fell down on Tatu. Except for records of albums, at 2001 group Tatu has travelled with performances many cities in Russia, Germany, Bulgaria, Slovakia.

     At January, 2002 Tatu start to work on a debut album in English for release in the USA and Germany. Rewriting of songs of a duet was in English leaded under the direction of producer Trevor Horn in London and Manchester, under management of F.A.F./Cap Com Productions (producers of  Moby, Rammstein, Sonique remixes). This album - “200 км/h In The Wrong Lane” (“200 on a passer”) - has shown that the girls, which had made the Russian pop-music popular abroad, still had some potential. For the first week this album has been sold more than 60 000 copies. Now sales of  Tatu’s albums had exceeded about one million copies. One of reviewers so has told about group Tatu - “ Ignore all headings - this intriguing Russian collective has abilities to surpass all right notes with their music, and they can offer more, than one mamontic impact ”.

     Despite of the ambiguous relation of critics to their group, Tatu continue to be engaged in the creativity and wanted to add the pop-punk style in the song with which they had represented Russia at Eurovision Song Contest 2003. But, as at a pop-music with the punk always was not good situation (that completely not surprisingly, in fact the punk is not craft, and a condition of the mind;-) it was added only more pop.

    Duet Tatu has executed on Eurovision Song Contest 2003 song  Do not trust, not be afraid, do not ask  in Russian. Ivan Shapovalov so has explained a choice of language: - “ The song is executed in Russian, because we are Russians ”. Julia Volkova on a question on participation of duet Tatu in Eurovision Song Contest 2003 has declared the following: - “ If our country has asked and has put forward us why to not participate? ”. “ Tatu had been offered because now it is the most popular group in America and in Europe. It would be supernatural, if Russia would not be submitted by the best and popular group which it has ” - has continued Igor Boerenkov, the PR-manager . Well, what about that Tatu is the best group, all the same, a question disputable (again the comment of the Web-master).