Who is Vaenga? Biography of Elena Vaenga: not like everyone else
Elena Vaenga is one of the brightest stars of Russian show business today. Many people argue about the secret of its phenomenon. Why did she become so popular? Why do people like her music and performance? Why do people cry at her concerts? It seems that her songs fall under the “chanson” category, and this genre of songwriting has never been so loved by the general public. However, Vaenga is adored, there are no empty seats at her concerts, she is always sold out and ticket prices are not at all low.
Childhood
Elena was born in the far north, in the city of Severomorsk, in a naval hospital. Her real name is Khruleva. The family was simple, but the parents raised their children in strictness, taking care of their discipline. Together with Lena, her younger sister Tanya and half-sister Nina from her father’s first marriage grew up. My father was an engineer, and my mother was a chemist, but they worked at the same secret Nerpa ship repair plant, which services nuclear submarines. It was located in the village of Vyuzhny for 15 thousand inhabitants on the shores of the Barents Sea (now the city of Snezhnogorsk), so the whole family lived there. Lenino spent his childhood in this village.
Elena’s grandfather, Rear Admiral Vasily Stepanovich Zhuravel, is mentioned in the book “Famous People of the Northern Fleet” and in encyclopedias. He went through the entire war, fought near Leningrad, and his grandmother survived the blockade and worked in a hospital.
Lena studied a lot in various circles, her mornings invariably began with exercises, and after school she went to additional classes. The girl studied at a music school, practiced drawing and skiing, attending classes at a sports school. From the age of three she learned to dance. On the piano she could easily pick out any melody by ear, so it became clear to her parents even then that Lena would become a musician. She wrote her first song, “Pigeons,” at the age of 9. This song made her a winner at a competition for young composers on the Kola Peninsula.
She generally tried to participate in all possible competitions. This did not affect her promotion in any way, but it gave her invaluable stage experience.
Lena got straight A's in her studies and even went on to win a gold medal. But in high school, it was as if a demon had possessed her. She ran away from home in the evenings, hung around in some suspicious companies, drank vodka in basements. She got so bad that she was expelled from school, although this happened not because of the evening parties, but because of a scandal at the school disco.
Lena, having drunk a lot, had a fight with her philosophy teacher, who expressed anti-Semitic views. The girl stood up for all Jews in the most impartial form and even got into a fight, for which she was expelled from school and even ended up in the children's room of the police. Then the literature teacher helped and pulled her out.
Carier start
Having received secondary education, Elena went to enter a music university in St. Petersburg, but it turned out that she needed to complete one more class. This was due to the confusion in the education system at that time.
Go straight to the music school named after. She did not succeed in Rimsky-Korsakov, she did not have enough knowledge of musical literacy, so she had to study solfeggio for another whole year in order to catch up with those children who graduated from Leningrad music schools. Studying piano at school was difficult; I had to study for 10 hours every day. For the first two years she studied in a paid department, then switched to a free one.
After graduating from college, she unexpectedly entered the Theater Academy, but after studying there for only 2 months, she left, thus letting down her teachers. Lena was invited to Moscow by composer Yuri Chernavsky, having accidentally listened to her songs on cassette one day. He wanted to reveal her talent to people, but his connections in Moscow were not enough to promote the young singer. He often went abroad and worked there, so he did not have the necessary authority in Moscow.
But the time spent in Moscow, Elena was able to plunge headlong into the capital’s show business, to learn all its dirt and unsightly side. The negative experience she received was also useful to her. The producers failed to break her; she was willful. But Lena signed an extremely unfavorable contract with Stepan Razin, under the terms of which she was subsequently unable to perform under her real name, which is why she had to take a pseudonym. In addition, Razin received the rights to manage many of her songs. By the way, these songs then entered the repertoires of some famous performers.
Intars Busulis and Elena Vaenga at the performance:
In the end, one famous and influential person told her that such smart people from St. Petersburg should return to it. In general, Lena returned to St. Petersburg “to nothing.” Hard times came, we had to sleep on the floor, eat fried flour without salt, mixed with water. There wasn’t even money for travel; we had to walk a lot.
Having gathered her strength, she decided to enter the theater school again, only in a different one. Then Pyotr Velyaminov was picking up the course, and she went to him. He taught the young artist a lot and, above all, to love the world of theater and drama. She studied enthusiastically to such an extent that she even forgot about music. She graduated from this institute with honors and wanted to work in the theater. But her then-husband convinced her not to give up music, especially since by this time she had written many songs. It was he who instilled confidence in her and became her producer himself, leaving his automobile business.
Alexander Malinin and Elena Vaenga in the video "Two Souls"
My mother came up with the pseudonym Vaenga, which was the name of a river not far from Severomorsk. And Severomorsk itself used to be called that.
In 2003, Lena recorded her first album, “Portrait.” The young performer gained popularity among the St. Petersburg public, after which she began to be invited to various competitions. But true fame came to her only in 2005 after the release of the album “White Bird,” many of which became hits.
Jan Marty and Elena Vaenga
It turned out that Elena’s songs and manner of performance were very different from everything that show business, diligently promoted by eminent producers, could offer at that time. It was a new breath, music that was not expected. Elena began to receive one award after another. She began to sell out theaters, go on tours around the country and abroad, and even entered the Forbes list as one of the successful stars of domestic show business.
Personal life
Lena got married for the first time at the age of 18 to a man with whom she spent 16 years together and who did literally everything for her. She, in defiance of her parents, left home to live with him, after which she did not communicate with her mother and father for almost 3 years. It was an unofficial, civil marriage. Ivan Matvienko, a gypsy by nationality, had his own small business of transporting cars from abroad. For Elena's sake, he left him and started producing the woman he loved. And everything worked out thanks to the perseverance of both.
Elena Vaenga with ex-husband Ivan Matvienko
Peace and harmony reigned in the family. Despite the fact that Elena has a tough disposition and a difficult character, she always found compromises in her family life; there were no scandals between the spouses. One thing was missing - a common child. In the end, Elena and Ivan decided to break up, but remained best friends and even live next door.
Elena Vaenga with her second husband Roman Sadyrbaev
The singer’s new chosen one was the drummer from her band, Roman Sadyrbaev. The couple had a son, Ivan, in the summer of 2012, and more recently, at the end of September 2016, the couple officially registered their relationship.
Read biographies of other musicians
The biography of Elena Vaenga, as well as her work, causes a lot of gossip. Like any bright personality, the performer provokes a storm of emotions: in some people - positive, in others - negative. How was the singer’s youth, and how did she manage to get to the starry musical Olympus?
Elena Vaenga: biography, nationality, parameters
Vaenga is the performer's pseudonym. It was called that way until the 50s. the city of Severomorsk, where she was born in 1977.
Elena Vaenga, whose biography is of interest to her fans, has a zodiac sign of Aquarius.
The singer's height is 176 cm, weight - 63 kg. Vaenga wears shoe size 38.
Her real hair color is black and her eye color is green.
Elena is Russian by nationality.
Childhood and youth
The biography of Elena Vaenga began in the far north. She spent her entire childhood and youth in the village of Vyuzhny on the coast of the Kola Peninsula. The population of the town was only 5 thousand inhabitants.
Vaenga's father is an engineer, his mother is a chemist. Both parents worked at the Nerpa shipyard.
Elena also has a younger sister, Tatyana, who currently lives in St. Petersburg and works in the field of diplomacy.
The beginning of creative activity
Elena Vaenga, whose biography and life did not develop smoothly, began to get involved in music early - at the age of three. First she learned to play the piano. And at the age of nine she was already taking her first steps in composing. At a young age, she even managed to win a competition for young composers on her native peninsula with the song “Pigeons.”
The father, according to Elena herself, did not recognize his daughter’s compositional talent for a long time. He gave her examples of Anna German and Raymond Pauls and advised her to follow them.
Vaenga tried to participate in all kinds of competitions in order to gain invaluable experience in stage performances. And when the time came to choose a profession, I didn’t doubt for a minute that I would enter a music school.
Saint Petersburg
Elena's first education was not related to vocals - she became a professional pianist, graduating from the St. Petersburg Music College named after N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. The biography of Elena Vaenga remained in the shadows for a long time, because success did not come to her immediately. According to the singer herself, she turned out to be, as they say, an average pianist. The difficulties that the young student faced were the lack of primary music education. The unfamiliar and not always friendly big city also had its influence.
Why did Vaenga choose the piano class? The singer admits that she needed a diploma. And at first it was really useful to her - she taught a little at a music school. At the same time, I took vocal lessons.
In St. Petersburg, Elena first lived with her grandmother, who later became the most ardent fan of her work. And then the singer married Ivan Matvienko and moved in with him.
Vaenga could not forget her childhood dream of becoming an actress, so after college she went to learn the basics of acting at the St. Petersburg Theater Academy.
However, she studied there for only a few months. A Moscow producer was interested in her songs, and she went to the capital to record her debut album.
First bad experience in show business
The biography of Elena Vaenga as a singer-songwriter did not start very well. At the invitation of a certain Stepan Razin, she came to Moscow to record her first album. Without the proper experience, Elena signed a contract that was not very profitable for herself.
The album was recorded. Elena released her debut video for the song “Long Corridors”. The clip was included in the rotation of TV channels in 2000. But suddenly Vaenga runs away from his producer. According to her, she was amazed at how show business worked and could not accept it. Stepan Razin, in turn, was not at a loss: he resold Elena’s songs to many popular performers:
- Alexander Marshal - the composition “Bride”;
- Tatyana Tishinskaya - compositions “And you pour me white wine”, “Treat the lady with a cigarette”;
- group "Strelki" - the composition "Thin Branch";
- pop group "Ladybug" - the composition "My Favorite".
Elena Vaenga was hurt by this, but she did not sue the former producer. Most likely, she did this because the right to dispose of her songs was secured by the contract.
After returning to St. Petersburg, Vaenga finally received a diploma in dramatic art. Then she performed at various concert venues and song competitions, until her own husband, Ivan Matvienko, began producing her.
Success
Writing songs is what Elena Vaenga has now devoted herself to. The singer’s biography, personal charisma, and all the ups and downs of life were reflected in them.
In 2003, Vaenga released the album “Portrait”. Then the albums “Flute 1” and “Flute 2” follow one after another. The album “White Bird” released in 2005 made her truly popular in Russia. The songs “Taiga”, “I Wish”, “Airport” and others were on everyone’s lips. The first real fans appeared.
In 2006, the album “Chopin” was released, in 2007 two albums were released at once - “Absinthe” and “Dunes”. Video clips “Dune” and “White Bird” appear on the screens.
Vaenga received her first Golden Gramophone in 2009, when she was already 32 years old. Then she was given the award for the song “Smoke”, and in 2010 - for “Airport”. That same year, she accepted an invitation to perform at the big “Song of the Year” concert. 2010 generally became a landmark year for Elena, as she began preparing for her first solo concert within the walls of the State Kremlin Palace. It took place in January 2011 and was broadcast on Channel One.
Since 2011, the artist’s popularity has only grown. Now nominations for the Golden Gramophone and concerts in the Kremlin are becoming commonplace for her. The singer’s last album was released in 2014 and was called “Neva”. At the moment, Elena Vaenga continues to actively tour the country.
Opinion of colleagues “in the shop”
Among the public figures who speak positively about the work of Elena Vaenga are producer Joseph Prigozhin, music critic Artemy Troitsky, music journalist Guru Ken, Vladimir Presnyakov Sr. Vaenga is often compared in popularity to Stas Mikhailov, and in terms of personal charm with Grigory Leps.
Ilya Reznik and Raymond Pauls admire Vaenga’s work. Whenever possible, they attend the singer’s concerts. And recently the masters decided to write a song for her. True, the new hit has not yet been presented to the public.
There are also a lot of negative reviews about Elena Vaenga’s work. Among the open critics of her music and lyrics are Ksenia Sobchak, Nikolai Fandeev, and Evgeniy Grishkovets. Also, several years ago there was a scandal associated with Sergei Lazarev, who spoke unflatteringly about her musical activities. Elena Vaenga also could not restrain herself and commented on the insult inflicted in one of her television interviews. After this skirmish, Sergei Lazarev publicly apologized to the performer.
Political Views
In 2012, Vaenga participated in a pre-election video in support of Putin. She also spoke out fiercely on her blog about the Pussy Riot demonstration staged at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
Elena Vaenga: biography, husband, children
The singer and composer lived with Ivan Matvienko for more than 16 years. The husband was 20 years older than the singer. He was with her in the most difficult moments of her life, Elena Vaenga assures. The singer’s biography and personal life would not have developed so successfully if not for Ivan’s support. The singer once admitted that he to some extent sacrificed himself for her.
Ivan invested in his wife not only emotionally, but also financially, as much as possible. Journalists divorced the couple several times in their articles. Elena was worried about this and defended their relationship as best she could. But already in 2012, Ivan Matvienko confirmed that they had officially separated, and it was Elena Vaenga who initiated the divorce.
The biography, in which children have not yet appeared, was changing before our eyes and was replenished with new juicy facts. In 2012, Vaenga gave birth to her first child, but not from her ex-husband. She did not introduce the child’s father to the public, but according to some sources he is a drummer from her band. Her new chosen one is six years younger than Elena Vaenga herself. The singer’s biography, husband, children, high-profile divorce - all this is still discussed in the press.
Social media
Elena Vaenga admitted in an interview that she currently does not have an account on any social network. I used to, but it turned out to be inconvenient to communicate with fans in this way. After long concerts and rehearsals, the artist went to her page and saw about 1,800 messages every day. Since Vaenga considers it obligatory to respond to every devoted fan, she realized that she simply could not cope with the influx of greeting messages. After this, the account was deleted. Now the only way to communicate with the singer is her official website on the Internet.
Elena Vaenga is a singer, musician and composer all in one, Honored Artist of the Republic of Adygea, laureate of the “Chanson of the Year” award, author of the music album “White Bird”, the songs of which became hits in Russia.
Childhood
The artist was born in 1977 on January 27 in the port city of Severomorsk, which has the status of a Closed Territorial District and is located beyond the Arctic Circle. The pseudonym “Vaenga” is also related to this territory - this is the name of the river that flows along the village. Elena's parents were simple workers. Vladimir Borisovich, or the father of the future singer, worked as an engineer in the nearby village of Vyuzhny. The Nerpa plant, whose workers serviced nuclear submarines, was based in its vicinity.
Irina Vasilievna, Khruleva’s mother, worked in the chemical industry. Vaenga spoke especially warmly about her grandparents. Rear Admiral Vasily Semyonovich Zhuravel, Vaenga’s grandfather on his mother’s side, is a well-known personality in St. Petersburg, where he lived with his wife Nadezhda Georgievna. The singer has a sister, Tatyana, who has linked her fate with diplomatic activities.
First steps
Despite the fact that the actress grew up in a family of techies, she was literally drawn to music and creativity from childhood. The girl studied in high school and at the age of 9 entered the All-Union Competition for Young Composers with the song “Pigeons.” Her musical talent was appreciated. Elena was an active child, and in addition to regularly attending a sports club, she participated in local amateur performances, composed songs, wrote poems, and filled out a notebook with her ideas. She sent the most successful works by mail to Moscow publishing houses, but there were no positive responses.
She graduated from secondary school No. 395 with honors and in 1994 entered the Rimsky-Korsakov School to study piano. Studying was very difficult for her. As the actress herself recalls, she had to train for many hours a day until her fingers and calluses hurt. Her father’s strict upbringing and desire for self-improvement helped the future artist master the subject. Elena graduated from college, after which she worked as a teacher for some time.
Vaenga studied at the Theater Academy for only two months in the courses of Gennady Trostyanetsky, after which she was invited to the capital to record her first album. The curator was a famous producer. The collaboration with him and composer Yuri Chernyavsky did not work out: the album was never recorded. Creative differences arose largely due to the characteristics of the “star” audience.
Vaenga speaks very ambiguously about this period in his biography. On the one hand, she gained a very useful experience, on the other, she “ate enough of waste.” Some of her songs were later performed by other artists, including Alexander Marshal (“Bride”), the Strelka group (“Thin Branch”) and the group “Ladybug” (“My Heart”). Although the artist did not give the right to use her texts for distribution purposes, the matter did not go to court. The contract was spelled out so cunningly that Elena had no choice but to step aside.
After returning to St. Petersburg, Elena was devastated by betrayal and lies.
She practically lost faith in herself, but her loved ones provided all the necessary support, and soon she entered the Baltic Institute of Ecology, Politics and Law on the course of Peter Velyaminov. This gave her the opportunity to learn acting, and with a diploma in dramatic art, she took part in the play “Free Couple” directed by Ekaterina Shimileva. She played on stage with her classmate Andrei Rodimov.
Creative breakthrough
From the age of 19, the artist performed on the big stage, but despite this, her work was popular only among a narrow circle of listeners. Elena is a laureate of the “Hit of the Year 1998” competition with the song “Gypsy”. In 2002, Elena participated in the “Worthy Song” competition, where she won. Under the strict leadership of Ivan Matvienko, the singer released her first album, “Portrait,” in 2003, some of the compositions of which were performed in the chanson style. Her unique voice and manner of performance attracted the attention of show business luminaries.
In 2005, she recorded the music album “White Bird”. It included such famous tracks as “Airport”, “Taiga”, “Chopin” and “I Wish”. A video clip was recorded for one song. In 2009, Elena was awarded an award for the song “I Smoke” at the Golden Gramophone. The artist took the second statuette in 2010 with the song “Airport”. And during the same period, she rested on the laurels of “Song of the Year” with the composition “Absinthe”.
In 2011, she was invited to the Kremlin, where the opening ceremony of “Chanson of the Year” took place. The concert included the songs “Girl” and “Tin Heart”. In the television program “Musical Ring” Vaenga beat her opponent in the person of. Most of the listeners supported her style. In 2012, she gave concerts throughout Germany and Ukraine, after which she briefly interrupted her career due to damage to her vocal cords. And although some evil tongues insisted that she would never sing as before, the artist resumed her activities at the end of 2012.
In 2014, she was invited as a jury member to the talk show “Toch V Toch”, which was shown on Channel One. In November 2015, Elena presented her new album “New” at the Kremlin Palace. In 2016, she was nominated for the Russian National Music Award in the Urban Romance category with her work “Lady Di”. In the Republic of Adygea, Vaenga received the status of Honored Artist. In December 2016, she took part in the annual festival “NOT Blue Light” together with Lyubov Uspenskaya and.
Social activity
Like many artists, Vaenga supports some political figures. In the summer of 2011, she participates in an event dedicated to the governor of St. Petersburg, who ran for the Federation Council. In 2012, the singer starred in the video “Why I vote for Putin.” In the same year, she supported the government’s position regarding the detention of the odious group Pussy Riot, whose members shocked the public with their act in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
The artist wrote a whole treatise on this subject and shared it with a large audience. and journalist Viktor Shenderovich spoke very negatively about her attempt to influence people’s opinions, counting many grammatical and spelling errors in the letter. As the artist herself later said, she was shocked by the behavior of the young girls, and such a violent reaction was a consequence of her experience.
Personal life
The artist does not really like to share details of her life with journalists. Although in this area she has reached considerable heights due to her consistency. In 1995, Elena met the “Russian gypsy” Ivan Matvienko, born in 1957. Parents did not approve of this union, and each time they tried to reproach the artist about the large age difference between the newlyweds. Because of this, Vaenga practically did not communicate with her father and mother for about three years and lived in St. Petersburg in the apartment of her betrothed.
Ivan Matvienko or “Uncle Vanya” (as Elena affectionately called him) tried at that time to earn as much money as possible. Times were tough, especially in the car hauling business. He invested all the accumulated funds in his common-law wife: he sponsored trips, bought bright costumes for the stage, produced music albums, and paid rent for a recording studio. All the family’s money was spent on this, Ivan even had to exchange his three-room apartment.
After 16 years of marriage, they broke up, but the public still does not know the real reason for the breakup. One option is Matvienko’s reluctance to have children. He didn’t understand why he should stop his career for the sake of a child, which he constantly reminded Elena of. And his reluctance to visit the registry office for the sake of a stamp in his passport also did not suit the young performer.
In 2012, Vaenga gave birth to her first and only child named Ivan. Journalists desperately tried to find out who the father of the first child was, but the artist got away with a couple of interviews and jokes. After some time, drummer Roman Sadyrbaev confirmed the fact that the child was his. He lived not far from Elena’s house and often visited her. It was he who drove Vaenga to the hospital by car when she was pregnant. In 2016, they officially registered their marriage.
The singer's repertoire is multifaceted: from Russian folklore and chanson to modern romances and ballads. The text for some of her songs was well-known material written by such classics of poetry as Sergei Yesenin (“The Evening Smoked”) and (“The Jester”). But most of the texts came from the hands of the artist herself, which is often mentioned in the press.
Elena Vaenga now
Khruleva still treats her first lover well and tries to help him in everything. The artist’s husband treats this with understanding, although it is unlikely that he would have been able to interfere with Elena’s desires. Since childhood, she tried to follow her dream, overcoming obstacles, and this in turn strengthened her character. Elena does not talk much about the personal life of her children and her husband. The singer believes that professional responsibilities and family should be strictly separated. The artist’s unsuccessful first experience as a common-law wife had an impact.
The actress recently lost a lot of weight. There are many photographs in the press before and after plastic correction of the figure and face. Although Vaenga herself claims that she simply went on a diet and went in for sports. Now she looks much younger than her age and is always smiling in photos on the Internet. The singer helps little children of the St. Petersburg orphanage and often visits this institution in order to meet new pupils. Elena spends a lot of time with her son, but does not forget about her stage career.
She often travels around the country, participating in various concerts. In 2018, she toured Moscow and St. Petersburg with new and old compositions. Vaenga was popularly nicknamed the “Queen of Chanson” for her talent and acting skills. On stage, she plays every note with her soul and facial expressions, correctly placing accents, which is not given to every performer. The team travels around the Russian Federation and beyond, and also plans to release a new collection of songs by Elena Vaenga.
Albums
- 2003 - Portrait
- 2003 - Flute 1
- 2005 - Flute 2
- 2005 - White Bird
- 2006 - Chopin
- 2007 - Absinthe
- 2007 - Dunes
- 2008 - Keys
- 2012 - Lena
- 2015 - New
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The girl's parents were far from art. My mother is a chemist by education, my father is a shipbuilding engineer. Since childhood, Elena felt a deep love for the North, which she carried throughout her life. Several songs were even dedicated to his harsh, strong beauty.
Elena always understood and appreciated beauty. In her hometown, she managed to study well in several schools at once. I went to regular classes, then hurried off to art school, and then to skiing lessons. Such diverse hobbies, which the girl was given equally well, only confirm that a talented person is talented in everything.
In childhood
She also loved to sing and sang always and everywhere. Therefore, a music school was soon added. And along with her first performance on stage (she was only 9 years old at the time), the dream of an acting career came. By the way, little Elena made her debut with her own song at a competition for young performers. Imagine the surprise of the parents when the girl confidently beat many much older and experienced opponents.
Baptism of fire
Following her dream, after graduating from school, Elena leaves to study in Leningrad, where she manages to enter the Theater Academy on her first try. But she wanted to sing more than play on stage. Therefore, when she receives the first invitation in her life from a real producer, she, without hesitation, leaves her studies and flies to Moscow to record her own debut album. However, for some reason it never became available to listeners.
Disappointed, Elena returned back to St. Petersburg, and the producer sold the songs she worked with on the album. Soon they found themselves in the repertoires of well-known performers at that time. Of course, without reference to authorship. Some of the songs quickly became hits. Elena realized that she could already become famous. But she decided not to sue, but to continue working on new songs and her own career.
Husband and producer
In 1995, she met Ivan Matvienko, who was married at that time and 20 years older than her. Having his own business, he helps Elena organize her first own tour in the North of Russia. Elena understands that people like her songs and unusual performance style and continues to create more and more new ones. Ivan Matvienko subsequently becomes her permanent producer and common-law husband, who he remained until 2011.
Elena's songs are beginning to be heard more and more often in homes and from the speakers of tape recorders. She successfully tours, takes an active part in competitions and festivals, and even gives solo concerts. It has become a tradition to organize solo performances dedicated to the singer’s birthday, which take place in January at the Oktyabrsky State Concert Hall.
In 2000, Elena, accustomed to doing everything at the highest level, finally decides to get a theater education. She again enrolls in a course in dramatic art, now at the Baltic Institute of EPP, which this time she graduates brilliantly and even tours as part of a theater troupe with the entreprise play “Free Couple”.
Real success
But if dramatic art for Elena is more of a tool for conveying emotions to the viewer, then she lives by song. Therefore, having tested herself on the theater stage and gained new experience, Elena returns to singing again. During this time, many new songs were written that she had not yet had time to present to the audience.
In 2005, Elena independently recorded her debut solo album, “White Bird,” which immediately sold out and brought her real popularity. Many of the songs included in it confidently took the top lines in the most popular Russian charts. And for the key song of the album “White Bird” Elena shoots a video that is shown on all TV channels.
At this time, she begins to give concerts not only in Russia, but also in countries near and far abroad. The secret of Elena’s success is that her sincerity is liked not only by chanson lovers, but also by all those who are used to feeling with their hearts. The organization of concerts is still carried out, although with less enthusiasm, by the common-law husband.
Official recognition
In 2009, Elena received all-Russian official recognition for the first time - she became a laureate of the prestigious Golden Gramophone award. A year later, she consolidated her success by again receiving an award for the song “Airport”.
She begins to be regularly invited to the most prestigious festivals and concerts, including to participate in the Song of the Year. Elena often performs at Kremlin concerts alongside the most popular performers.
A year later, Elena took part for the first time in the then popular TV show “Musical Ring”. The program brings the singer literally wild popularity. Making her debut on television, Elena easily knocks out the super-popular singer Leonid Agutin, beating him in the audience vote. Elena receives five times more votes for her performance.
Currently, the singer continues to perform a lot. In 2011 alone, Elena gave more than 150 concerts in Russia and abroad. This was followed by a short break due to health reasons, which smoothly turned into maternity leave. In 2012, Elena gave birth to a son.
Today she is one of the most successful and highly paid Russian singers. Her annual income is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Elena Vaenga is a laureate of the Chanson of the Year awards. By the way, Vaenga is a pseudonym invented by Elena’s mother. Vaenga is the old name of Elena’s hometown - Severomorsk, as well as the river that flows near the city. Elena's real name is Khruleva.
Vaenga performs on tour throughout the northern hemisphere - she is known everywhere: in the USA, Germany, Israel, and there is no need to talk about the countries of the former USSR - here Vaenga has long won popular recognition among chanson lovers.
It is worth noting that Vaenga is one of the singers whose songs were often subjected to both harsh criticism and positive reviews. Her songs were called tavern and vulgar. They said that her songs have soul. All these different opinions still do not subside.
Elena Vaenga's husband and children
Elena named her son Ivan, born in 2012, whose father is Roman Sadyrbaev, a member of her musical group. In 2016, Elena and Roman legalized their relationship, but they try not to advertise it. Due to constant tours, little Ivan is raised by his grandmother.
With Roman Sadyrbaev. Wedding.
Currently, the singer tours a lot around the country, performing both solo and with other performers at various competitions.
Beautiful songs, an incredibly strong voice and a bewitching appearance, all this can be said about a woman who is called a phenomenon, Elena Vaenga. Her biography, personal life, husband, children, photos and videos with her participation, all this interests her fans.
Elena Vaenga is a popular pop singer and actress. She writes the lyrics herself. Elena Vaenga’s creative biography, personal life, children and husband are quite open to the media, fans and everyone. The singer doesn’t really hide anything, and, as many say, she is always with the people.
Elena Vaenga is a very hardworking person; according to rumors, she herself has composed more than 800 songs, and a total of five videos have been shot. But this does not in any way affect the popularity of Elena Vaenga; millions know her.
The well-known singer Elena Vaenga is known to few people as Elena Khruleva, which is exactly what the future singer was named from birth. Subsequently, she changed her last name to a pseudonym, but not officially. Elena was born on January 27, 1977 in Severomorsk. Mom and dad worked at a ship repair plant and were trained as chemists and engineers, respectively. In addition to Elena, the family had two more children; the future singer’s sisters’ names were Tatyana and Inna.
There were strict rules in the family, and the upbringing was strict; discipline was instilled in the children. All the sisters had a schedule that had to be strictly followed.
Talents from childhood
Elena's talents began to be noticed already in early childhood. At the age of three she first showed interest in dancing. Also at this age, she was already repeating melodies on the piano that her father played for her. When Elena was not yet ten, she first composed a song. After this, the girl was enrolled in a music school. At the same time, Elena attended a sports school.
After graduating from school, Elena went to conquer the northern capital of Russia. Her grandmother lived in St. Petersburg, and Elena’s plans included entering the university. But when submitting documents, she was informed that one grade up to full secondary education was not enough for this. Elena had to return to her school desk and finish the eleventh grade.
Elena Vaenga entered the Rimsky-Korsakov Music College in 1994 and began to improve and learn new basics of playing the piano. The girl’s education was difficult, since the demands of St. Petersburg teachers were an order of magnitude higher than in her hometown. But Elena’s perseverance allowed her to achieve good grades, which subsequently served as the basis for a transfer to the budget department.
After graduating from college, Vaenga decided to continue her studies and went to fulfill her childhood dream and entered the Theater Academy, but the training lasted only a couple of months. Then Vaenga went to conquer Moscow, from where she had already received an offer to record her own disc.
After returning to St. Petersburg, Elena persistently moved towards realizing her dream, which is related to studying acting. This time she chose another university for this, the Baltic Institute of Ecology, Politics and Law, where she graduated with honors from the theater department. Vaenga was attracted by the theater stage, but music took over and won, Elena devoted her life to this particular cause.
Music career
The public recognized Elena Vaenga as a singer quite recently; she was awarded the title of phenomenon for her sincerity and sensuality on stage, for her strong voice and artistic abilities.
In 2005, Elena released her first album which gained real popularity, its name is “White Bird”. It contained songs such as “I wish”, “Airport” and “Taiga”. Four years later, the singer received her first official recognition in the form of the Golden Gramophone award for the song “Smoke.” A year later, two more of her songs were awarded the “Airport” award, awarded the “Golden Gramophone” and “Absinthe” became the laureate of “Song of the Year”.
Rapid popularity was gaining momentum and already in 2010 Elena Vaenga gave her first solo concert, which took place at the State Kremlin Palace. They could not only hear him live, but also enjoy the performance by watching the concert on TV. It was broadcast by Channel One on January 7, 2011.
We can talk about Vaenga’s successes in such a short period for a very long time; she is invited to various events, ceremonies and shows. In 2011, Elena entered the top ten successful representatives of Russian show business. According to conservative estimates, the singer's annual income was more than six million dollars.
Elena Vaenga's track record includes songs and romances of her own performance, as well as songs based on words from the poems of such famous classics as Sergei Yesenin and Nikolai Gumilyov.
Diseases
In 2016, information appeared in the media that Elena was hospitalized in the hospital in the intensive care unit in serious condition. The doctors' diagnosis sounded like the flu. But then everything worked out, and the singer was soon discharged from the medical facility. In July 2017, Vaenga again had problems, which the singer herself informed her fans about. She injured her neck and could hardly move on her own.
The performances in which Elena took part had to be cancelled. The actress and singer apologized to her fans, who in turn wished her a speedy recovery.
Criticism
Everyone has the right to their opinion and not everyone is delighted with the vocal abilities of singer Elena Vaenga. For example, music critic Nikolai Fandeev spoke very harshly about Elena and said that as a singer she has an average level of vocal abilities, and her repertoire is completely plagiarized. Regarding the active rotation of her songs on the radio, the critic said that this would lead to everyone getting tired of Vaenga faster.
Evgeny Grishkovets also expressed his opinion, calling the performance of the songs vulgar and tavern.
Elena Vaenga calmly responds to this kind of criticism, saying that she does not consider herself a professional composer and poet, so she is not offended, she is just an author who performs.
Personal life
The biography of Elena Vaenga is very interesting, but her personal life is no less fascinating; she has a husband and a child. Elena's first marriage was not officially registered despite the fact that she lived with her common-law spouse for 17 years. Elena and Ivan Matvienko met in 1995 in St. Petersburg. Parents did not approve of their daughter’s passion for such a man, and all because of his nationality. Ivan is a gypsy by origin. But at the age of 18, Vaenga made a strong-willed decision and went against her relatives and moved to live with a man.
The man turned out to be purposeful and during the years of the collapse of the country, in the 90s he actively worked and supported his young common-law wife. He invested all the money that the man received from driving cars from abroad into Elena’s stage costumes and paying for the studio where the songs were recorded. At that time, the couple was wandering around rented apartments, since they had not yet acquired their own. At some point, a joint decision was made that Ivan should become Elena’s producer.
As Elena admitted, her relationship with Ivan was close to ideal, but the issue of the absence of children worried her very much. This is what, after 17 years of civil marriage, was the reason for the separation. In 2011, the media confirmed that the union had broken up. But, despite this, Vaenga and Matvienko still remain close friends, they have an excellent relationship and the singer even calls her former lover a relative.
In 2012, Elena Vaenga opened a new page in her biography and personal life; she gave birth to a child. The media was raging, the headlines of articles were full of different options about who became the father of the baby. Later, Elena admitted that she gave birth to a son, Ivan, from Roman Sadyrbaev, who is a member of her band and a drummer.
Elena admits that motherhood is a blessing, it has given her new inspiration; unfortunately, she doesn’t see her son and relatives often due to her busy touring schedule. While Elena travels around the world and pleases fans, her son is being raised by her parents. But Vaenga tries to devote time to the child and mom and dad as often as possible and comes to them when there is a window in her busy schedule. There are times when little Ivan goes on tour with his mother.
Elena maintains such a warm relationship with her former common-law husband that he, in turn, still gives his former lover expensive gifts. Not long ago he presented her with a fur coat, the cost of which is estimated to be a good car.
A couple of years ago, Elena decided to radically change her appearance and dyed her hair, she became blonde. She also lost a lot of weight. Fans showered her with compliments and praised her for making such obvious changes. After a little time, Elena Vaenga became a brunette again, but cut off her gorgeous hair.
Elena leads an active life on the Internet and very often shares photos with her subscribers on social networks.
