Alsou facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Alsou
Alsou in 2024
Background information
Native name	Алсу́
Born	(1983-06-27) 27 June 1983 (age 42) Bugulma, Tatar ASSR, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Origin	Moscow, Russia
Genres	Pop, R&B, synthpop
Occupation(s)	Singer
Years active	1998–present
Labels	Universal Music
Associated acts	Enrique Iglesias, Bon Jovi, Nelly, Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers, Stargate, Morten Schjolin, Kara DioGuardi, Jörgen Elofsson, Christina Milian, Mark Hill, Rhett Lawrence, Les Paul, Al Bano, Andrew Lane, Lev Leshchenko, Vadim Baykov

Alsou Ralifovna Abramova (Russian: Алсу́ Рали́фовна Абра́мова; Tatar: Алсу Рәлиф кызы Абрамова, romanized: Alsu Rälif qızı Abramova; née Safina; born on June 27, 1983), known as Alsou, is a famous Russian singer. She became well-known across Europe after representing Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2000. She sang the song Solo and came in second place.

Alsou also hosted the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 in Moscow. In 2018, she was recognized as a Merited Artist of the Russian Federation.

Biography

Early Life and Family

Alsou was born in Bugulma, which was part of the Soviet Union at the time. Her father, Ralif Rafilovich Safin, is of Bashkir background. He was a business executive and a member of the Russian parliament. Her mother, Raziya Iskhakovna, is an architect of Volga Tatar descent. Alsou is a Muslim.

She has an older half-brother named Ruslan, an older brother named Marat, and a younger brother named Renard. When Alsou was one year old, her family moved to Siberia.

Musical Beginnings

At age five, Alsou asked her parents for a piano. She then started attending a private music school. Her family later moved to Moscow, then to New York, and finally to the UK. In the UK, she studied at a private architecture college. Even while living in London, Alsou often visited Russia.

In 1998, at her brother Marat's wedding, Alsou sang "I Will Always Love You" while playing the piano. Her family was very impressed and encouraged her to become a professional singer.

Personal Life

On March 18, 2006, Alsou married Yan Abramov, a businessman. Their wedding celebration took place at the Rossiya Hotel.

Alsou has three children. Her first daughter, Safina, was born on September 7, 2006, in Los Angeles, California. Her second daughter, Mikella, was born on April 29, 2008, in Tel Aviv. Her son, Rafael, was born on August 10, 2016, also in Tel Aviv. Alsou and Yan Abramov divorced in August 2024.

Career Highlights

Starting Her Music Journey

When Alsou was 15, she met music manager Valeriy Belotserkovskiy. She sang "I Will Always Love You" for him and he was very impressed. They started working together the very next day.

Her first Russian album, Alsou (Russian: Алсу́), was released on September 16, 1999. It was very popular in Russia. Three songs from the album became singles: "Zimniy Son" ("Winter Dream"), "Vesna" ("Spring"), and "Inogda" ("Sometimes"). After this big success, Alsou signed with Universal Music Russia. She became their first Russian artist. By 2000, over 700,000 copies of her CD Alsou were sold in Russia.

Eurovision and International Recognition

In 2000, Alsou recorded her first English song, "Solo". She performed it at the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 and finished second. "Solo" sold 100,000 copies, becoming Russia's best-selling single at that time. Her next single, a duet with Enrique Iglesias called "You're My #1," sold even more.

After her Eurovision success, Alsou went on a big tour across Russia. She celebrated her 17th birthday by performing in her hometown of Bugulma. About 86,000 people gathered to see her. In October 2005, Alsou performed "Solo" again at Congratulations, a special concert celebrating Eurovision's 50th anniversary.

English Albums and Tours

From 2000 to 2001, Alsou worked on her first English album, also called Alsou. It was released in Russia on June 28, 2001, and also in other countries like Germany and Malaysia.

The main song from the album, "Before You Love Me", was released in the UK on April 30, 2001. It reached No. 1 on MTV Select but only No. 27 on the UK Singles Chart. Another song, "He Loves Me," was released in Germany in October 2001.

Alsou's first Russian album was re-released twice, in 2001 and 2002. These re-releases included new songs like "Osen" ("Autumn") and "Kogda Lubov Ko Mne Pridiot" ("When Love Comes To Me"). In the summer of 2002, Alsou toured former Soviet countries.

19 Album and Awards

In August 2002, Alsou started recording her second Russian album. She also prepared for special concerts in Moscow called "Trilogy." This project was unique because no other singer had given three completely different performances in just 10 days.

The first show featured her older songs. The second was an orchestral concert. The third was a Europop show with new Russian and English songs. After these shows, Alsou filmed a video for her song "Vchera" ("Yesterday").

On January 23, 2003, Alsou released her new Russian album, 19. Critics liked the CD, and by April 2003, it had sold 500,000 copies. Songs from 19 included "Vsyo Ravno" ("Anyway"), "Vchera" ("Yesterday"), and "Mechty" ("Dreams").

Alsou was nominated for the "Muz-TV" award. On June 5, 2003, she won the "Best Female Artist" award. She then performed in many countries like Ukraine, Georgia, and Kazakhstan to support her album 19.

Second English Album and Other Works

Alsou spent almost four years working on her second English album, Inspired. It was recorded in London and Los Angeles. The main song, "Always on My Mind," was written by Alsou. The music video was filmed in May 2004. Even with a lot of promotion, the album was not widely released by her UK music label. However, in 2013, Alsou gave copies of Inspired to her fan club members for free.

In 2006, Alsou recorded a song called "Miracles" for her wedding. This song was given as a limited single to her wedding guests.

Recent Russian Albums

Alsou's third Russian album, Samoe Glavnoe ("The Main Thing"), was released on March 31, 2008. Songs from this album include "Nebo" ("Sky") and "Samoe Glavnoe" ("The Main Thing").

In 2008, Alsou also recorded an album in the Tatar language called Туган тел (Tugan Tel' | Mother's Tongue). This album included traditional Tatar songs and new ones. Alsou and Universal Music donated all the money from this album to help talented orphans from Tatarstan.

Acting and Future Plans

In June 2004, Alsou acted in a British thriller movie called Spirit Trap. The film was released in August 2005. Alsou's song "Teardrops" played during the credits. She also starred in a Russian historical drama called "Vivat, Anna!" in 2006.

Alsou is currently working on new music. She is also recording a double album of lullabies and popular children's songs in Russian. In 2010, she started recording a jazz album. She was one of the hosts for the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 final in Moscow. In 2015, she was one of the judges for Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015.

Awards and Honors

Alsou has received many awards and honors throughout her career.

Before she turned 18, Alsou had already achieved great success.

• She was named The Honourable and The Peoples' Singer of Tatarstan Republic.
• She became an Honourable citizen of Bugulma.
• Her song "You're My #1" won the National Russian "Record" award for the Best-selling single of 2000.

Discography

Albums

• Алсу (1999) – Her first album in Russian. It was re-released in 2001 and 2002 with new songs.
• Alsou (2001) – Her first album in English.
• 19 (2003) – Her second Russian album.
• Самое главное (2008) – Her third Russian album.
• Родная речь. Туган тел (2008) – Her first album in the Tatar language.
• Фея добрых снов (2011) – Her first album for children.
• Inspired (2013) – Her second English album, recorded between 2003 and 2005. It was given as a gift to fan club members.
• Ты – это свет (2014) – Her fourth Russian Album.
• Письма, пришедшие с войны (2015) – Her fifth Russian Album.
• Я хочу одеться в белое (2020) - Her sixth Russian Album.

English Singles

• "Solo" (2000) – Released before the Eurovision Song Contest.
• "You're My #1" (2000, with Enrique Iglesias).
• "Before You Love Me" (2001) – Reached No. 27 in the UK Singles Chart.
• "He Loves Me" (2001) – The last single from her English album Alsou released in Europe.
• "Run Right Out of Time" (2002) – A special song released with Gala magazine.
• "Always on My Mind" (2004) – A song from her album Inspired.
• "Miracles" (2006) – A special song released for her wedding guests.
• "Love U Back" (2018).

Videography

• "Зимний сон" (Zimniy Son | Winter Dream) 1999
• "Весна" (Vesna | Spring) 1999
• "Иногда" (Inogda | Sometimes) 1999
• "Solo" 2000
• "You're My #1" 2000
• "Before You Love Me" 2000
• "He Loves Me" 2001
• "Осень" (Osen' | Autumn) 2001
• "Всё равно" (Vsyo Ravno | No Matter) 2002
• "Летящая над облаками" (Letyaschaya Nad Oblakami | Flying Over The Clouds) 2002
• "Вчера" (Vchera | Yesterday) 2002
• "Әткәй" (Atkay | Father) 2002
• "Мечты" (Mechty | Dreams) 2003
• "Первый раз" (Perviy Raz | First Time) 2003
• "Everybody" 2004
• "Always on My Mind" 2004
• "Небо" (Nebo | Sky) 2005
• "Самое главное" (Samoe Glavnoe | The Main Thing) 2006
• "А у моей любви" (A U Moey Lyubvi | And My Love) 2007
• "Сандугачым-гүзәлем" (Sandugaschym-Gyuzalem | My Beautiful Nightingale) 2008
• "Уфа юкәләре" (Ufa Yukalare | Ufa Tilias ) 2008

Other Music Projects

• Livin' on a Prayer (2003) – A duet with Bon Jovi for the Russian version of their album This Left Feels Right.
• How High the Moon (2005) – Alsou appeared on this song with Sting, Richie Sambora, and Joss Stone. It was released on Les Paul's album American Made World Played.

See also

In Spanish: Alsou para niños

• List of Eurovision Song Contest presenters