Mikhail Borisov Butyrka biography. Butyrka group

Butyrka

A musical group called “Butyrka” has existed since the fall of 2001, thanks to Alexander Abramov, a producer of various singers who prefer the chanson direction.

In September 2001, a number of compositions were composed, but the group did not yet have a name. The name arose quite unexpectedly when on September 3 a number of prisoners escaped from Butyrka prison.

“The first album” was the simple title of the group’s first creation, released in 2002. The disc became very popular, and the group itself was recognizable in the chanson genre.
Fans of this direction drew attention to the unusualness of both the sound and vocals of Vladimir Zhdamirov. And on the veracity of the texts written by Oleg Simonov.
Oleg really knew what he was composing the song about. After all, he himself had to visit places not so remote as a prisoner.

The “second album” also appeared in 2002. It turned out to be very good, the popularity of the team grew stronger.
In St. Petersburg there was an award "Worthy Song 2002". So the group was named “Discovery of the Year”, and the group members were also given an award for the best video (for the composition “The Smell of Spring”).
The compositions "Butyrki" do not leave the top positions of the charts. The discs spread very well.

The first month of 2004 brings with it the group’s next disc, for a change called not “Third”, but “News”.

The Butyrka group also often went on tour both in our country and abroad.

The group includes:
soloist, composer Vladimir Zhdamirov,
poet and keyboard player Oleg Simonov,
producer Alexander Abramov.

Fans of “thieves” lyrics know Vladimir Zhdamirov primarily as a frontman. However, in 2013, the composition of the group changed, and the musician began a solo career. Vladimir was born in the Voronezh region, in the city of Liski, on August 6, 1958. My father served on torpedo boats of the Pacific Fleet. Mom was the life of the party and loved to dance.

According to the musician, his parents did not spoil him. Volodya’s diligence and behavior at school were “lame”, and his favorite subjects were singing and physical education. The student often skipped classes, although he admits that he liked studying. In Zhdamirov’s youthful biography, there were even cases of being brought to the police station for hooliganism.

Life in the outback taught the boy to rely on himself. In 2nd grade, he became the owner of his own moped, which he dealt with on his own - he even repaired it himself. For 11 years in his youth, the future artist worked in a construction crew. Even then the guy sang for the workers to please them a little.

After school, Vladimir served in the army as a radio operator, often competing in competitions as a participant from his company. In his second year of service, he grew his famous mustache - it was considered very stylish among the soldiers.

The musical preferences of young Zhdamirov were far from the music that he later began to perform. The young man dreamed of rock music, listened to... Of the Soviet musicians, he also gave preference to “Blue Bird”. Hooligan behavior did not interfere with creativity. Vladimir learned to play the guitar, began working part-time in vocal and instrumental ensembles, and playing at festivals and dances.

Music

On a professional level, Vladimir took up creativity in 1997, after meeting Oleg Simonov, who had recently been released from prison. Over the years of imprisonment, he accumulated song material, and Zhdamirov possessed the voice and texture necessary for stage work. Having teamed up, Oleg and Vladimir created their first project, “Distant Light”.

In 2001, the group offered their work to the Master Sound company, where they were noticed by producer Alexander Abramov. The name “Butyrka” was proposed for the group - shortly before recording the album, prisoners escaped from Butyrka prison.

In 2002, Vladimir together with the group recorded the “First Album”, which became Butyrka’s creative debut. Success came immediately, and the team began to become a legend of Russian chanson. At the “Worthy Song 2002” festival, “Butyrka” became the winner in the “Discovery of the Year” category, and the first of the group’s videos, “Smell of Spring,” was recognized as the best in the chanson genre.

For the next 13 years, Zhdamirov worked with Butyrka - he was a vocalist and musical director, and wrote music for songs. During this time, the group’s discography has accumulated 8 albums, songs from which are always popular among fans of the genre. The musicians claimed that they do not have songs without backstories, and some characters, for example, Baba Masha, have real prototypes.

Vladimir’s relationship with Oleg Simonov has always been uneven - the musicians happened to quarrel even during the “Distant Light” period. In 2009, disagreements began within the entire group. According to rumors, the main reason for the dispute was financial issues.

The group's success and a contract with a record company kept Butyrka from breaking up, but during tours the musicians could even demand separate dressing rooms. When Simonov brought in a second vocalist in 2013, a split became inevitable. In January 2014, Vladimir Zhdamirov officially announced that he was leaving Butyrka.

After parting with the group, the singer was prohibited from performing “Butyrka” hits from the stage. Initially, they were going to ban even the use of the words “ex-soloist of Butyrka” on posters, but Vladimir defended this right. In 2014, having started a solo career, the singer recorded the album “Spring Behind the Fence,” which included 13 songs. The author of most of the texts was Dmitry Avdyukhov, a poet from Ryazan. All music was written by Zhdamirov himself.

In February 2016, due to a misunderstanding of the context, a funny thing happened to Vladimir, which almost turned into a scandal. A video has appeared on the Internet in which Zhdamirov, surrounded by festively dressed children, sings the song “Certificate”, and the children sing along. Internet users instantly decided that the singer was performing criminal songs at a children's party and reacted negatively to this news.

Zhdamirov was surprised by these conclusions and clarified the situation: firstly, the video is old, when the musician still performed as part of Butyrka. Secondly, this is a recording from a private event where the group was invited to perform. The fact that children were present at the celebration did not depend on the artist in any way, and responsibility for this lies with the parents.

Although in one of his interviews, Vladimir confirmed that sometimes parents came to Butyrka concerts with their children, and this did not bother him. The singer believes that if children like the songs, it means that the performers have positive energy, and they give listeners bright emotions that will not harm.

Vladimir’s “crown” voice, which provided the flavor of “Butyrka” and became his calling card, is actually made on purpose. Initially, Zhdamirov’s voice was clear, and the artist began to use it in his solo work.

Personal life

Little is known about the singer’s personal life, and photos from home archives are difficult to find on the Internet. Zhdamirov’s cousin is Sergei Rudnev, a people’s artist who worked in the Krasnoyarsk dance ensemble of Siberia.

Vladimir has a wife and 4 children - three natural daughters and one adopted daughter, family means a lot to him. Zhdamirov’s own sister died at the age of 47, and the artist took in his niece. The singer loves children and is glad that one of his daughters gave him a grandson, Ilya. Vladimir promises to teach the boy to play the guitar when he grows up.

Granddaughter Karina entered the 8th grade in 2018. The girl is also a creative person and choreographs dances. At the same time, she tries not to mention the famous grandfather - she wants to achieve everything herself.

When it comes to music, the artist prefers to listen to classics - he says that this helps him find inspiration for writing his own melodies. In a 2018 interview for radio “Chanson”, the singer unexpectedly admitted that he considers one of the most iconic figures in music. According to Vladimir, he was a great performer and choreographer.

Vladimir Zhdamirov now

Now the artist tours a lot around Russia with the group “Volny Veter”. As in the days of Butyrka, Vladimir continues to give charity concerts in correctional institutions.

Another new move by Vladimir is songs outside of the thieves theme. The singer says that he is a lyricist by nature and has long wanted to try himself in this role.

Vladimir Zhdamirov’s discography as a solo artist currently includes one album, but the singer is not going to stop there.

It was formed through the joint efforts of Oleg Simonov and Vladimir Zhdamirov.

The history of the group begins in September 2001. By this time, the group had recorded several songs at a studio in Voronezh, but did not yet have their names. Of all the Moscow recording companies that the musicians approached, only the Master Sound company, well known to fans of the genre called “Master Sound,” became interested in the beginning band. Russian chanson" Here they were noticed by producer A. Abramov, who in turn convinced the director of the company, Yu.N. Sevastyanov pay attention to the group.

Sevastyanov, who has extensive experience in discovering stars of the Chanson genre (M. Krug, S. Nagovitsyny and many others), agreed to release the debut album. True, the team did not yet have a name. But after several prisoners made a daring escape on September 3, 2001 from the Moscow pre-trial detention center known as Butyrka", A. Abramov suggested calling the team that way.

Everyone liked the name and it stuck. The debut “First Album”, released in 2002, was a stunning success. The original sound, memorable vocals of V. Zhdamirov, as well as the sincerity of O. Simonov’s poems immediately made the group popular.

The topics touched upon by Oleg in his poems were understandable and close to those who are familiar with life behind barbed wire first-hand. But there is one more feature - the themes of Butyrka’s songs are not only about prison and camps, there are a lot of simple stories in them, similar to stories from people’s lives.

The “second album” was released in the same 2002. It became a worthy continuation of the successful debut and consolidated the success of the group. At the presentation of the public music award “Worthy Song of 2002”, held at the Oktyabrsky Concert Hall, the group won in the “Discovery of the Year” nomination and was awarded the prize for the best video in the genre “ Russian chanson"(clip for the song "Smell of Spring" directed by A. Tumandeev).

In January 2004, the third album entitled “News” was released. In 2005, the fourth album “Icon” was released. In 2007, the fifth album entitled “Globe” was released.

In 2008, the “Sixth Album” of the Butyrka group was released. This album included only a few new songs, and it became the last album created under the band's contract with the company " Russian chanson" From that moment on, the Butyrka group began its individual, independent creative development. Despite the termination of the contract with the group, the Russian Chanson company continues to independently release new songs that were stolen from the Butyrka group.

In 2009, the Butyrka group developed its first official website (on which it will post information about new albums and concerts). A new real album of the group will soon be released, which will delight fans of our work.

Current composition of the Butyrka group:
Vladimir Zhdamirov - vocals, music composer
Oleg Simonov - keyboards, lyricist

Alexander Goloshchapov - bass guitar
Andrey Zhuravlev - guitar
Yuri Akimov - drums
Sergey Moskalenko - sound engineer
Yulia Griboyedova - art director

Add. information:
"Butyrka" is a musical group created in Voronezh in 2001 by Alexander Abramov, a producer of many performers and projects in the “Russian chanson” genre.
Known to a wide audience of listeners for the songs “I’ll serve time for other people’s sins”, “Autumn”, “The snow is melting”, “Smell of spring”, “Ball” and many others.

The name of the group, “Butyrka,” appeared completely by chance, after on September 3, 2001, several prisoners made a daring escape from Butyrka prison.
The debut album (“First Album”, 2002) was a stunning success, and Butyrka became one of the most popular groups and performers of “Russian chanson”. And this success was not accidental - fans of this genre could not help but note the original sound and arrangements, the memorable voice of Vladimir Zhdamirov, as well as the honesty and sincerity of Oleg Simonov’s poems.
Oleg, unlike many authors and performers, is familiar firsthand with life behind barbed wire. The themes of his poems are not only about prison and camps, but primarily about the destinies of people and stories from his life.

The “second album” was released in the same 2002. It became a worthy continuation of the successful debut and strengthened the success of the group.
At the presentation of the public music award “Worthy Song 2002”, held in St. Petersburg, at the Oktyabrsky Concert Hall, the group won in the “Discovery of the Year” nomination and was awarded the prize for the best video in the “Russian chanson” genre (clip for the song “The Smell of Spring” directed by A. Tumandeev). The group's songs are on the first lines of the sales charts and charts of Russian radio stations.
In April 2009, the band's sixth album was released.
“Butyrka” conducts active concert activities, both in Russia and abroad.

The popular Russian group “Butyrka” conducts active concert activities in Russia and other countries. Created in 2001 by the band's soloists and producer Alexander Abramov, today the discography consists of more than 10 albums. The group works in the genres of Russian chanson, urban romance and thieves' song.

History of creation and composition

The history of the creative union of young people begins in 1998. That year, Oleg Simonov created a group called “Dalniy Svet” and a year later recorded the album “Presylochka” in a Voronezh recording studio. The group existed in this form until 2001.

In 2001, soloists Vladimir Zhdamirov and Oleg Simonov, together with the producer of “Russian Chanson” Alexander Abramov, decided to create a new group and called it “Butyrka”. This name appeared by chance, after a daring escape of several prisoners from Butyrka prison in September 2001.

During the existence of the group, its members changed several times. Of those who appeared in the team since the beginning of its formation, only 2 people remained. This is Oleg Simonov, who plays keyboards and creates lyrics, and bass guitarist Alexander Goloshchapov, who left the group in 2010, but returned 3 years later.

Drummer Tagir Alyautdinov and guitarist Alexander Kalugin left the group in 2006. Second guitarist Sergei Egorov worked in the band from 2006 to 2009, and bass guitarist Anton Smotrakov from 2010 to 2013.

The founder, composer and performer of songs, Vladimir Zhdamirov, who has been part of the group since its inception, left the group in 2013. This was a big blow for Butyrka fans and left many questions; everyone was interested in why the lead singer left the band when it was at the peak of its fame.

As it became known from the artist’s interviews for various Internet sites, he simply decided to pursue his solo career after many years of work in the group, the man records new songs and regularly pleases fans of his creativity with concerts in Russian cities.

After Zhdamirov left the creative team, a new soloist, Andrei Bykov, took his place in 2015. The public reacted ambiguously to the man. Since fans have gotten used to the permanent soloist for many years, not everyone liked the new man.

The first concerts with the new lineup were not as welcoming as the musicians were accustomed to. Although Zhdamirov himself stated in an interview that he was not delighted with the creative abilities of the new soloist. However, after a while, the fans accepted the man, and today all concerts are held with the same full houses.

Andrey Bykov knew the creator of Butyrka long before he was on the team. Then Oleg Simonov appreciated the professional qualities of the man and even invited him to cooperate and recommended him to replace Zhdamirov. In 2015, the man began touring with the group, and a year later he took part in the anniversary concert, which took place in Voronezh.

The musician is not going to leave the group, he intends to continue to delight listeners with new hits, since his vocal qualities are suitable for performing Butyrka’s hits. Before joining the group, Bykov’s biography was almost unremarkable. He himself comes from the Perm region, traveled to Moscow to work and at the same time performed in various institutions, until he finally moved to the capital.

In addition to the “old guys” of the group, the current lineup includes drummer Yuri Akimov, since 2009 guitarist Andrei Zhuravlev, vocalist Andrei Bykov, sound engineer Valery Liznev and art director Yulia Griboedova.

Music

The musicians' debut "First Album" was released in 2002. The reason for the success that the young people achieved was the sincerity of Simonov’s poems and Zhdamirov’s unusual but memorable vocals. The most devoted fans of the group’s work at that time were people who were familiar with life behind barbed wire. And in order to get closer to ordinary people, in their songs the men used not only themes of prisons and camps, but also told stories from life.

The name of the next album, “The Second Album,” which was released in 2002, became a successful continuation of the first, and after its distribution, it finally consolidated the success of the guys in their creative endeavor. The team’s work was also noted at the “Worthy Song of 2002” music award ceremony. The event took place at the Oktyabrsky Concert Hall, the Butyrka group won in the Discovery of the Year category and even received an award for the video for the song “Smell of Spring,” which was filmed by director A. Tumandeev.

The next album of the musicians, “News,” was released in early 2004, and a year later, fans of the group enjoyed new compositions from the album “Icon.” Their songs became hits and remained at the top of the television charts for weeks.

Butyrka's performance exceeded fans' expectations, with the recorded music, songs and albums released being of the highest level of quality. At this rate, in 2007 the artists were already releasing their fifth album.

The Sixth Album, released in 2009, had only a few new songs. It also became the last album that was released under the contract with Russian Chanson. The contract was not renewed, and the team decided to develop independently. Since then, Butyrka has been releasing new songs on its own and continuing its creative development.

Also in 2009, the group created its own website on the Internet, where fans listen to Butyrka’s hits and receive information about concerts. In the period from 2010 to 2014, the team pleases fans with 3 more new albums. By 2017, their discography already consisted of 11 albums.

The group has collaborated with other artists more than once; they have joint songs with and with other performers. In addition to songs, Butyrka does not forget about the videos that can be seen on the Internet today. The team shot a video for the song “Smell of Spring”, “Ball”, “Icon”, “Malets” and others.

There are also videos from fans on YouTube, for example, for the song “Certificate in the Blood.” The group still has many songs that even those who are not their fans know by heart. Among the most popular are “Baba Masha”, “Golden Domes”, “News”, “On the Other Side of the Fence” and others.

The Butyrka group now

Since “Butyrka” has won the hearts of listeners from various Russian and foreign cities during its existence, today the group is active in concert activities and participates in events with other stars. Latest photos from the musicians' performances, trips and tours can be seen on their official website.

In December 2017, the group took part in a concert in memory of. In addition to them, Irina Krug and other modern pop stars performed on stage.

At the beginning of 2018, the musicians released a new song “They Fly Away.” The composition is dedicated to the military pilot, their fellow countryman Roman Filipov, the man died in Syria while performing his military duty. Fans noticed that the song’s sound and manner of performance differed somewhat from the band’s main work.

As for the tour schedule, Butyrka spent the summer of 2018 on the coast of the Krasnodar Territory. The group also performed in Moscow, Primorsko-Akhtarsk, and in April - in Rostov-on-Don, Novocherkassk and Taganrog.

Discography

• 2002 – “First Album”
• 2002 – “Second Album”
• 2004 – “News”
• 2005 - “Icon”
• 2007 - “Fifth Album”
• 2009 – “Sixth Album”
• 2010 – “Freedom Street”
• 2010 – “Hooligan”
• 2014 – “I’ll be back home”
• 2015 – “Date”
• 2017 – “New and Best”

Clips

• "Ball"
• "Picture Nurse"
• "It smelled like spring"
• "Date"
• "Darling"
• "Subbotnik"
• "Icon"
• "They're flying away"