t.A.T.u.
A Real or Fake Scandal?
We adore "All the Things She Said", t.A.T.u.'s first single. These two little Russians have decided to shock the whole world with their provocative attitudes, proudly wearing their (pseudo?) homosexuality and burning up the world's charts. What exactly can have Julia and Elena running for their money? (This is the first time I see a magazine using "Elena" as a name for "Lena". Funkeh. -E.)
First Encounters
Once upon a time, Elena and Julia, two little Russian girls, took piano lessons and dreamt of become singers. They ended up being accepted into a children's choir, "Neposedy", in which Julia was expulsed at the end of two years, in 1998, for having molested the other girls and, they say, for having made misplaced advances. This is starting out well!
Finding Each Other
In 1999, after Elena, following suit, left Neposedy, we now find our two young ladies at a casting for the formation of a duo, "Tatu". It was these girls that Ivan Shapovalov would choose (the quirks of life?). He promises them they would become stars in a very short period of time. Which is just fine for the girls... In September 2000, they record their first single, "Ya Soshla S Uma" (I've Lost My Mind", that tells of a story between two girls who fall in love with one another. Muscovite radios are victims to this enchanting song... It's a hit! Thus, they follow up with "Nas Ne Dogoniat" (They're Not Gonna Get Us), in May 2001, and then, it's apotheosis! Along for a good ride, Universal Music Russia sign a contract with them. From this association is born "200 km/h In The Wrong Lane" half-Russian and half-English... Which, in January 2002, is at the top of the charts in Russia. Tatu (the most outrageous and scandalous group to have ever existed in Russian show business, according to the Russian press) is born!
The Scandal
We asked them if they were ready to play the game. They said, "Yes." Already with their first single, they had tremendous fun showing off their homosexuality. In their second video, they add another layer: Julia builds a huge bomb, threatening to blow everything up the day that Elena would cheat on her with a boy... (Silly, silly reporters. That's their THIRD video. -E.) During their concerts, they exchange long and langorous kisses... that causes a riot in Romania: the concert is abruptly ended. (No... They're playback CD "accidentally" broke. I thought the Romanian crowd looked rather... quiet. Crazy journalists. -E.) When they arrive in Italy, the show's organizer asks them not to kiss on stage, so as to not shock anyone. This time, the kiss is even more intense and brings in a phenomenal success. (Exaggerating. The kiss was not any different, but yes, the success was greater. These writers are dubious characters, they are... -E.) Tatu are launched! They sign autographs by the thousand, and achieve an astonishing success among teenagers, those impressionable souls that were meant to be shielded. Nothing too reprehensible, you would tell me? Yes! Just a little detail: in Russian, not so long ago, homosexuality was illegal!
The Rumour
True or false, this scandal? While the girls do not cease in their games of ambiguity, Julia's grand-parents are formal: their grand-daughter has always had boyfriends! The last one that they know of (before she became famous) was called Antan. But when she signed up for Tatu, the pretty brunette dropped her beau to fall into the arms of a certain... Pasha. And even if, during all of her adolescence, she abused vodka, sang rowdy songs with her friends, she seems to have found perfect harmony with Pasha: he could be the one person she could really share her soul with... (Are tabloids international? Do they share their stories or something? Tsk. Gossip-mongering is not gooooood... -E.)
The Producer
It is Ivan Shapovalov. Before having created Tatu, he did not belong in the music industry. He only filmed a few commercial spots on TV. But his initial formation was... child psychology! Priceless!!! (It always ends up being too easy a target to criticize. Tsk. -E.)
Artists or Products?
People are saying that Tatu are real little brats, that they don't talk during interviews and go so far as to even be offending in photographs... On the web, they throw a real good one: "They made us sign a contract in which we do not have the right to say anything. We can only do what they tell us to!" Like, for Elena, to lose 10 kilos... for Julia, to cut her hair really short... and for both, to shave their eyebrows completely... But they accepted all of it (including the ultra-short school uniforms) willingly... because, they will sacrifice anything to get what they want, and that's glory!
Elena
Name: Sergeevna.
Given Name: Katina Elena
Born: Oct. 4th, 1984, Moscow.
Likes: Horse-back riding, gymnastics and clubbing.
Julia
Name: Olegovna.
Given Name: Volkova Yulia (Julia in Russian).
Born: Feb. 20th, 1985, Moscow.
Likes: Swimming, tennis and clubbing.
Translation by Echoed.
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