By 1997 Russian pop idol Alla Pugacheva had reportedly sold as many as 250 million records--perhaps more than the amount sold by U.S. pop stars Michael Jackson or Madonna--but they were nearly all in Russia and the other countries of the former Soviet Union. Widely admired at home, she was still little known elsewhere.
Background information
Birth name Alla Borisovna Pugachova
Born April 15, 1949 (1949-04-15) (age 58)
Origin Moscow, USSR
Genre(s) Russian pop
Occupation(s) Singer, actress
Years active 1965 – present
Label(s) Melodiya
Alla Borisovna Pugachova (),
pronounced "Pougachiova", "Pugachova" and commonly anglicized as Pugacheva, born 15 April 1949 in Moscow, USSR, is perhaps the best known musical performer in Russia, her career having started in 1965 and continuing to this day. She is certainly the most successful Soviet and Russian performer in terms of rec ord sales and popularity (* see notes about record sales below).
Professional biography
Pugacheva was born to mother Zinaida Arkhipovna Odegova and father Boris Mikhailovich Pugachev in Moscow. At the age of 5, she participated in a concert held in the Kolonnyi Zal Doma Soyuzov (Pillar Hall of House of the Unions) hall, the most prestigious hall in Russia. In 1956 she entered the --31 music school, attached to the Ippolitova-Ivanova music college. She went on to study in the --496 school, finishing her studies there in 1964. She then studied in the choral-conductor department of the Ipolita-Ivanovna music college, and in 1965 she released her first song, titled "Robot". The song was recorded for the State Radio "Good Morning!" programme and was very well received.
In 1966 she finished college and toured with the group "Yunost" ("Youth") in Western Siberia. The following year she started to work as a piano accompanist in the State Circus-Musical college. She provided the leading vocals to a number of bands, including "New Electron", part of the Lipetsk State Philharmonic Society, in 1966; "Moskvichi" in 1971; Oleg Lundstrem's band in 1972-73; and "Vesyoliye Rebyata" in 1974-75. Throughout the period, she also recorded notable songs for numerous movies, including "King-Deer", "My Dear Boy" and "3-Minute Train Stop". In 1974 she received the 3rd place prize in the 5th All-Union competition of music artists, which was somewhat of a disappointment for her. However, her steep rise to stardom was soon to follow, and in 1975 she received the prestigious Bulgarian "Golden Orpheus" prize for her song "Harlequin". Following her success in Bulgaria, Alla released a record called "Alla Pugacheva Singing" in that country.
In 1977-80 she worked with the group "Ritm" and played the leading role in the movie "A Woman That Sings". The film was very popular, reaching out to an audience of 55 million people. In 1978 she also received the "Amber Nightingale" prize at the Sopot International Song Festival in Poland for the song "Kings Can Do Anything" from the movie. From this time, her rivalry with the Moldavian superstar Sophia Rotaru has been notorious.
Many awards, records, movie roles, and growth of popularity followed, most notably the title of "People's Artist of the USSR", the highest honour that could be bestowed to a musical artist, awarded to her in 1991. While the lesser titles of "Accomplished Artist of the Russian SFSR", and "People's Artist of the Russian SFSR" had been already awarded to her in 1980 and 1985 respectively, the government was hesitant to award the highest honour for a long time. This was mainly because of numerous statements and actions on her part that were inconsistent with the Party's agenda. While never directly opposing the Soviet regime, her outspoken and unrestrained manner of behaviour, such as saying "Cheer up! Ho Chi Minh may be dead, but I'm still alive!", at a concert held on the day of Ho Chi Minh's death, would have constituted grounds for regulatory action. However, because of fears of public retaliation, the government did not risk taking any action, adopting a cautious stance instead.
During the 80s, Alla was also a frequent visitor to Sweden. She started out with loads of guest appearances on popular Swedish radio show "Galaxen" (Galaxy) with famous Swedish star Jacob Dahlin, and later continued in his TV-show Jacobs Stege (Jacob's stair) where she also was a frequent guest. Jacob and Alla used to do various of songs together, for example "Superman", where Dahlin did the vocals of the Superman. It was in connection with this Alla recorded her first and only entire English-speaking record, "Alla Pugacheva in Stockholm", with various hit songs like "Watch Out", "Song-Bird" and "Superman". When Alla participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 with her song "Primadonna", she once stated "This song is for you, Jacob", honoring the by then dead Jacob Dahlin who was a close friend to her.
After the break-up of the Soviet Union, Alla expanded her ventures, launching a magazine called "Alla", "Alla" perfume and the "Alla Pugachova" shoe line. She also received further awards from the government, presented by President Boris Yeltsin, including the "Government Award for Achievement in Literature and Arts" in 1990, and the highest civilian decoration of the Russian Federation ("Service to the Motherland of the 2nd Class Order") in 1999. In 1994, Alla also received a plate with her name on the "Square of Stars" in the city of Yalta in Ukraine. In 1997, she represented Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin and finished 15th with the song "Primadonna".
In recent years, Alla has participated in the popular television reality talent show Star Factory, similar to the Pop Idol format, which has spawned series like American Idol.
Personal history
Alla's personal life has been very public due to her image and popularity, and is often discussed in the tabloid press. Her weight and rumours of extramarital relationships have been particularly popular points of discussion in such publications. However, she has maintained a positive attitude, and on numerous occasions shown that she is willing to discuss personal matters openly and laugh at herself.
In 1969 she married circus performer Mykolas Orbakas, and in 1971 she gave birth to daughter Kristina Orbakaite, who is now also a popular singer. She divorced Mykolas after 4 years of marriage in 1973.
Alla then married film director Aleksandr Stefanovich in 1976, and starred in a few of his movies. The union was dissolved in 1980, after drawn-out legal proceedings on the division of property, with Alla's luxurious flat in Patriarshy Ponds, Moscow being the heart of the debate.
In 1985, after years of living together, Alla married producer Yevgeniy Boldin, with whom she had numerous professional collaborations. They filed for divorce in 1993, stating that their professional lives interfered too much with their personal life.
In 1994 she married one of the most popular pop singers in Russia, Filipp Kirkorov, half her age and of Bulgarian-Armenian ethnicity. His career is said to have benefited significantly from the marriage. Their divorce was announced in November 2005.
She has also recently befriended popular comedian Maksim Galkin, and the relationship between them has been the source of numerous tabloid rumours, even though there is a 27-year age difference between them, and both sides have repeatedly stated that they are just friends. The two often perform together in large celebrity-studded events, such as New Year's day shows, and have even had a few musical collaborations.
Since 2005 she has been a member of the Public Chamber of Russia.
Encyclopædia Britannica repeats a claim on its features website that Pugacheva has sold around 250 million records .Other internet sources claim figures up to 300 million records. Unfortunately there is no official source for this information, even in Russian.
