t.A.T.u. were a Russian pop duo consisting of Lena Katina and Julia Volkova. The two started out as part of the children's musical group Neposedy before being managed by producer and director Ivan Shapovalov and signing with Russian record label Neformat. t.A.T.u.'s debut album 200 Po Vstrechnoy (2001) was a commercial success in Eastern Europe, and that resulted in the duo signing with Interscope Records to release its English-language counterpart, 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane (2002). The album was certified platinum by the IFPI for one million copies sold in Europe and became the first album by a foreign group to reach number one in Japan. It was also certified gold in the United States and included the international hits "All the Things She Said" and "Not Gonna Get Us". The duo represented Russia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2003 with the song "Ne ver', ne boysia", finishing third.
Neposedy is a children's music group formed in Moscow, Russia in 1991 by Elena Pindzhoyan and later supported by Yuri Nikolaev. Although starting out with a group of 15 children that rotated per performance, the group later did not have a fixed membership and hundreds of children have been estimated to have been part of Neposedy at some stage during its history.
200 km/h in the Wrong Lane is the second and first English-language studio album by Russian music duo t.A.T.u., released on 10 December 2002, by Interscope Records. It is the duo's first studio album to be associated with Interscope after signing to Universal, the label they signed to in 2001. Due to the duo's lack of English vocabulary, the album was produced and written by producers such as Trevor Horn, Martin Kierszenbaum, Sergio Galoyan, Robert Orton and Ivan Shapovalov, who was placed as the duo's manager and executive producer. 200 km/h lyrically explores themes such as teenage rebellion, love, sexuality, sadness, independence and social rebellion.
Dangerous and Moving is the second English-language studio album by Russian musical group t.A.T.u. and the English-language equivalent of the album Lyudi Invalidy. The album was first released on 5 October 2005 in Japan then on 10 October in the UK, 11 October in North America, and in Europe and Latin America, on 14 October. As of January 2010 the album sold 93,000 copies in the United States and had peaked at number 131 on Billboard 200.
"All the Things She Said" is a song recorded by Russian music duo t.A.T.u. for their second, and first English-language, studio album 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane (2002), and released as the lead single from the album in Europe on 9 September 2002 by Universal. It was written by Sergio Galoyan, Trevor Horn, Martin Kierszenbaum, Valery Polienko and Elena Kiper, while production was by Horn. "All the Things She Said" is a translated and reworked version of their 2000 song "Ya Soshla s Uma", included on their debut album 200 Po Vstrechnoy (2001). It was later included on their compilation albums t.A.T.u. Remixes (2003) and The Best (2006). Although its original story was based on a dream Kiper had at a dentist appointment, manager Ivan Shapovalov evoked the theme of lesbianism in both this and the English-language version. The lyrics describe two girls developing feelings for each other.
"Friend or Foe" is a song by Russian recording duo t.A.T.u., taken from the group's second English language studio album Dangerous and Moving (2005). The song was written by Dave Stewart and Martin Kierszenbaum, while production was handled by Kierszenbaum and Robert Orton. The song was released by Interscope in December 2005 as the album's second single. Musically, the song is a pop rock and electropop inspired song, with dance music influences. The song features ambiguous lyrics; it is unclear who exactly the words are directed at.
Anatomy of t.A.T.u. is a documentary film directed by Vitaly Mansky, chronicling the lives of the group t.A.T.u. on their promotional tour in USA, but most of all, revealing the girls' true lives, including their sexuality.
Russian duo t.A.T.u. have released six studio albums, one compilation album, two remix albums, eighteen singles, and three promotional singles. t.A.T.u. debuted in 2000 with the single "Ya Soshla S Uma" from their debut album 200 Po Vstrechnoy, released in 2001 by Universal Music Russia. The album reached number one in the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia. After selling 850,000 copies in Russia, it was certified platinum by the IFPI for more than one million copies in Europe, the first time for an Eastern European act. The album's English-language counterpart, 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane, was released worldwide through Interscope Records in 2002. It reached number thirteen on the US Billboard 200 and was certified gold by the RIAA. In Japan, the album reached number one, the first time for a foreign group, and sold 1.8 million copies. It was also certified platinum by the IFPI for more than one million copies sold in Europe. 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane was promoted with the duo's first international single "All the Things She Said", which topped the charts in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom while peaking at number twenty on the Billboard Hot 100. The album produced three more singles—"Not Gonna Get Us", "30 Minutes", and "How Soon Is Now?"—, with the former becoming t.A.T.u.'s second top 10 single in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Ultimately, 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane became the twelfth best-selling album of 2003, and sold over 5 million copies worldwide. A remix album titled Remixes was released in 2003 and certified gold in Russia.
You and I is a 2008 drama film directed by Roland Joffé depicting a fictionalised version of real events adapted from the novel t.A.T.u. Come Back. The film features Mischa Barton, Anton Yelchin, Charlie Creed-Miles, Helena Mattsson, Alexander Kaluzhsky, Bronson Pinchot and Shantel VanSanten. The film is about a teenage girl, Lana, who moves from a rural town in Russia to Moscow, completely unaware that meeting an internet girlfriend, Janie, will result in a string of adventures.
"30 Minutes" is a song by Russian recording duo t.A.T.u., taken from their debut English language studio album 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane (2002). It was released in 2001 in Russian as 30 Minut from the album 200 Po Vstrechnoy. It was written by Sergio Galoyan, Martin Kierszenbaum, Ivan Shapovalov and Valeriy Polienko, while production was handled by Kierzszenbaum and Robert Orton. The song was served as the album's third single off the studio by Interscope Records and Universal Music Russia in June 2003.
Vesyolye Ulybki is t.A.T.u.'s third and final Russian studio album, released on 21 October 2008. The album's working title was Upravleniye Otbrosami. The album reached sales of more than 250,000 copies in Russia. The English counterpart, Waste Management, was released in December 2009.
"Show Me Love" is the English version of the song Ya Tvoya Ne Pervaya by Russian music duo t.A.T.u. It was released as a promotional single for radio stations, taken from their first English-language studio album 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane (2002). It was meant to be the third official single from 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane, after "All the Things She Said" and "Not Gonna Get Us", however Interscope Records cancelled it and released "How Soon Is Now?" instead. The radio promo was only released in Poland.
Podnebesnaya was a musical production company organized by producer Ivan Shapovalov. The project for Podnebesnaya, with the same title, began in 2003 in Moscow, Russia. The main purpose of the production was to produce t.A.T.u.'s second studio album, however after a falling-out with Ivan, such production ended. Shapovalov continued to work with other Russian artists including 7B, Helya, Ledokol, FlyDream and n.A.T.o. A CD was released of this project in 2004, after t.A.T.u. split from Shapovalov. The CD was titled Podnebesnaya No. 1, and only featured one song by t.A.T.u. ("Belochka"), although the release capitalized on the fact that it was made during the reality show.
Elena Sergeevna Katina, better known as Lena Katina, is a Russian musician who gained fame as one half of the pop/electronica duo t.A.T.u. She started her career at the age of eight, joining the Russian children's act Avenue, soon after that joining Neposedy. In 1999, producer Ivan Shapovalov chose Katina and Julia Volkova for his project t.A.T.u. The duo would later become Russia's most successful pop music act. The group produced several hits, including "All the Things She Said", "Not Gonna Get Us", and "All About Us". Their first single, "All the Things She Said", peaked at No. 1 in nineteen countries, including the UK, Russia, and Australia.
200 Po Vstrechnoy is the debut studio album by Russian duo t.A.T.u. It was released by Neformat Records and Universal Music Russia on 21 May 2001 in Russia, Ukraine, and Poland, and was re-released by Universal Music Russia worldwide on 23 June 2003. A re-released version featured new tracks and a new artwork, which was released on 15 February 2002. Created by manager and producer Ivan Shapovalov after the success of members Yulia Volkova and Lena Katina in the band Neposedy, the group managed to sign a deal with Universal Music Russia to produce their first album. It was recorded between 1999 and 2000, and was produced and co-composed by Shapovalov.
Yulia Olegovna Volkova, better known by the alternative spelling of Julia, is a Russian singer best known for being a member of the Russian girl group t.A.T.u., along with Lena Katina. Formed in Moscow, Russia by Ivan Shapovalov in March 1999, the group signed a record deal with Universal Music Russia, and eventually Universal's sub-label Interscope Records in 2001.
"Never Forget" is the lead single by Russian singer-songwriter Lena Katina's debut solo studio album This Is Who I Am. The song was produced by Sven Martin and Erik Lidbom. It is a pop rock track, driven by electric guitars and keyboard. "Never Forget" had positive feedback, claiming number one in MTV Russia.
"Didn't Wanna Do It" is a song by the Russian recording artist and songwriter Julia Volkova from her studio album. "Didn't Wanna Do It" was written by Julia Volkova, Saeed Molavi, Nadir Benkahla and the Grammy-nominated producer Taj Jackson, with production by Saeed Molavi & Nadir Benkahla. The song was chosen as the second single, and was released digitally on August 21, 2012. Musically, the song is a dance-pop song, which features elements of house and Europop. The song's homoerotic lyrics are a first-person account of the singer's sexual encounter with another woman and the ambivalent feelings the experience evoked. Bisexuality has been a frequent theme of Volkova's work, such as in her first single as t.A.T.u., "All The Things She Said" (2002) as well as "Loves Me Not". The single's accompanying artwork caused criticism and controversy among fans.
"A Simple Motion" is a song by Russian recording group t.A.T.u., taken from their re-release of their debut English studio album 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane (2002). The song was written by Mars Lasar, Ivan Shapovalov, Martin Kierszenbaum, Valery Polienko, while the production was handled by Trevor Horn.
This Is Who I Am is the debut studio album of the Russian singer-songwriter, Lena Katina, released on 18 November 2014. The album marks the beginning of Katina's solo career as she and her former bandmate, Julia Volkova announced the separation of their music group, t.A.T.u. on 2011. Katina has writing credits on all of the album's songs including those co-written with her husband, Sash Kuzma. Musically, the album is a pop genre with rock influences and lyrically it mostly speaks about discovering herself.
