A small glimpse at a music giant
Dima Bilan’s Biography
1981 - 1988
Childhood
Díma Bilán (Russian: Ди́ ма Била́н) is a Russian pop singer and actor. He was born on December
24th 1981 in Ust-Dzheguta, Karachay-Cherkessia under the name of Víktor Nikoláevich (Russian:
Ви́ ктор Никола́евич Бела́н). In 2006 Dima represented Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest
with the hit Never Let You Go which secured him the second place. He came back to win the
contest in 2008 in Belgrade with the song Believe. His success in the Russian music industry is
undisputed as the number of Dima’s number one hits in Russia proves.
When Dima was two years old, his family moved to his grandmother’s place in the city of
Naberezhnye Chelny in Tatarstan. At the age of six, he moved again with his family to
Kabardino-Balkaria where he and his sister attended school. His talent was evident from an
early age as he was always the center of attention in matinees, poem recitals and school
concerts.
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1989 - 1998
Music education
Dima graduated music school, a period in which he also learned to play the accordion.
Dima was part of the school choir. His teachers were quick to notice his talent and transferred
him to a class with vocal specialisation.
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1998
Chunga-Changa Festival
In 1998 Dima competed in the Chunga-Changa children’s music festival organised in Moscow.
The two songs he performed were very appreciated by the jury and as a result he was awarded
a certificate and prize by the great singer Iosif Kobzon. This first success awakened in him the
desire to live and work in the Russian capital.
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1999 - 2000
Music Education and Early Career
Moscow and Gnesin Musical College
Dima celebrated New Year’s Eve in Moscow in 1999 together with the Prosin family. He later
lived at their apartment for two years.
After graduating from school, Dima enrolled to the famous Gnesin Musical College.
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The Prosin family helped Dima with the shooting of his first music video Osen (Autumn). The
video was released in 2000 and aired on MTV without being an immediate hit. Afterwards,
Dima moved to college halls of residence.
2001 - 2002
Life in the college halls of residence
Dima has fond memories of his time in college halls of residence where he made many very
good friends. Funding his studies was not easy, so he had to work by night at the United Colours
of Benetton store.
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2002
Working with Yuri Aizenshpis, the New Wave song contest
During his 3rd year of college Dima’s friend, Sasha Savelieva, introduced him to the famous
producer Yuri Aizenshpis and they started working together.
He made his debut at the International festival New Wave in 2002, where he finished fourth.
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The music video for the song Boom (directed by Fyodor Bondarchuk in 2002) opened the way
for the many successes to come.
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2003
First solo album Nochnoy hooligan
In 2003, Dima released his debut album called Nochnoy Huligan (Night Hooligan). The video for
the title song was a huge hit. It was Dima’s first collaboration with director Gosha Toidze.
By the time he graduated from college, Dima had already released four music videos and
performed at various concerts.
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9
2004
The Na beregu neba album – Reaching for the sky!
In 2004, he released his successful single Na beregu neba (At the skyshore); this was also the
title of his second album. For this album, Dima collaborated with the world-renowned
songwriter Diane Warren. Both albums were awarded a platinum record.
Dima graduated from the Gnesin Musical College as a classical vocalist
Dima was equally successful in his modelling career as from 2004 onwards he has been the face
of the La Scala Fashion Group, a Russian network of high-class boutiques representing brands
such as Dolce&Gabbana, Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Dsquared2, Dior, Roberto Cavalli, as well as
other luxury brands.
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2005
The Dawn of a new era
Eurovision, Yuri Aizenshpis’ death, the beginning of his
collaboration with Yana Rudkovskaya
At the beginning of 2005, the music video Ty dolzha ryadom byt was released topping all the
charts.
Dima first tried to reach the final stage of the Eurovision Song Contest in 2005 with the song
Not that simple, which earned him the second place at the Russian national selection. At the
time, his producer was none other than the late Yury Aizenshpis, the famous Russian music
mogul, known for his work with Viktor Tsoi in the time of the Soviet Union .
On the 20th of September, Yury Aizenshpis passed away and that is how Dima started his
collaboration with Yana Rudkovskaya.
In December 2005 Dima received two golden gramophones, in Sankt Petersburg and Alma-Ata,
for his song Ty dolzjna ryadom byt (the Russian version of Not That Simple). During the shooting
of the yearly music show Noviye pesny o glavnom (New Songs about what matters), a
professional jury awarded him the grand prize of the Russian state broadcaster Channel One.
2005 was also the year in which the Rambler Media Group declared Dima Man of the Year in
the showbiz industry as he received most votes from his fans.
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2006
Eurovision and the Vremya-reka album
His winning streak does not end here however. On March 14 th 2006, Dima attended the
International Music Awards ceremony Zolotaya Sharmanka (The Golden Street Organ) in Kiev,
where he was named Singer of the Year.
In mid-March 2006, Dima was chosen internally by Channel One to represent Russia at the
Eurovision Song Contest taking place in Athens, Greece. Out of 37 participating countries, he
came in second place with the dark pop song Never Let You Go, in this way equalling one of
Russia’s best performances at Eurovision delivered by Alsou in 2000, when she finished the
competition as the runner-up with her song Solo.
Dima scored 248 points — 44 points behind the winning entry Hard Rock Hallelujah, sang by
Finland’s Lordi — and received the maximum 12 points from a total of seven countries:
Armenia, Belarus, Finland, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania and Ukraine.
Dima’s stage performance dazzled the audiences as halfway through the song a dancer
emerged from the white piano covered in red rose petals, while ballerinas were dancing in the
background. Dima had the number of his entry inscribed on his white shirt: 13 for the semi-final
and 10 for the final. As Russia achieved a modest result the previous year, Dima had to qualify
for the final, which he did with flying colours. In the semi-final on May 18th, he secured his place
for the final by finishing third with 217 points, well within the top ten.
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Dima’s Eurovision hit Never Let You Go catapulted him to stardom and became top of the radio
and TV charts in Russia in May 2006. The song managed to stay at the top of the charts for an
incredible period of 24 weeks. It also proved to be an international success as in October 2006
the single was released in Greece and Cyprus and made it into the top 10 there. The single was
also later released in a number of other European countries.
This success was followed in the same year by the release of his new album Vremya-Reka (Time
is a river), which sold over 2 million copies in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent
States and was awarded a platinum record.
His superstar status was confirmed in 2006 when he was invited to be one of the four artists
performing in The Red Summer show, Russia’s biggest music event of the year. The show took
place in Moscow’s Red Square in July 2006 and also featured Shakira, The Black Eyed Peas and
t.A.T.u.
September 2006 saw Dima win the Best Male Singer and Best Song for a second time in a row
at the MTV Russian Music Awards.
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Later that year he represented Russia at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Copenhagen.
On November 15th 2006, Dima attended the World Music Awards ceremony in London where
he performed alongside giants of the music industry such as Michael Jackson, Beyoncé,
Rihanna, Nelly Furtado and Bob Sinclair. He did not leave the British capital empty-handed as
he received the award for Best Selling Russian Artist. During the show he performed the
Eurovision hit Never Let you Go and this was broadcasted on UK’s Channel 4 and in over 130
countries, including the US. In January 2007, Dima toured the US and held concerts in New
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York, Los Angeles, San-Francisco, Miami and Chicago with each show attracting over 3000
spectators.
In January 2006 Dima participated in the Milan Fashion Week as a celebrity guest of the
Dsquared2 show.
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2007
From Russian Singer to International Superstar
Albums in English and Spanish
From February to March 2007, Dima recorded his first international album in English. He
worked on the album in both Los Angeles and Philadelphia, and collaborated with the famous
sound producer Timbaland and his production team made up of Danjahandz, Jim Beanz and
Ryan Tedder from One Republic.
2007 was also the year in which Dima released the first single from his new album Number One
Fan, which topped the Russian and Eastern European radio charts for eight weeks. The video
for this single was shot in London under the direction of the renowned Trudy Bellinger, who
also directed videos for world acclaimed performers such as Girls Aloud, Sugababes and Sophie
Ellis Bextor.
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Dima also became the face of the popular brand Gloria Jeans.
In May, Dima had the opportunity to meet Michael Jackson during a private party in England.
This left a lasting impression on him.
Dima stole the show during the 2007 Muz-TV awards ceremony as he won 3 awards: Best male
singer, Best album, Best song.
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August saw the premiere of the Glyanets movie directed by the well-known Andrey
Konchalovsky. The soundtrack of the movie features two songs recorded by Dima.
Dima continued to impress at the MTV Russian Music Awards as on October 4th 2007 he won
three prestigious awards: Best Act, Best Song and for a third consecutive year Best Male Singer.
His rendition of the hit Number One Fan included a cameo from Timbaland’s brother Sebastian,
known for the song Way I Are. In this period, Dima released a single from his next album
Amnesia.
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At the 2007 MTV Europe Music Awards in Munich, Dima received a prize for Best Russian Act.
The music video Gore-zima was shot in November, following a script written by Dima himself.
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2008
Eurovision Win
In February 2008 Dima travelled to Miami to record a few tracks with the famous producer
Rudy Perez. That’s how the Spanish version of his first international single Number One Fan
came to light, as well as the hit ballad Porque Aun Te Amo.
On March 9th 2008 Dima won the national final of the Eurovision, gathering the most points
from the jury and from the TV-voting. He was chosen to represent Russia once again at the 53 rd
edition of the Eurovision Song Contest in Serbia with the song Believe, which Dima Bilan penned
together with Jim Beanz.
In the semi-final, from May 20th Dima electrified the crowds and qualified for the final. He then
went on to win the final on May 24th and became the first Russian artist in the history of
Eurovision to take the big prize back to Moscow.
This victory made Dima only the fifth artist (after Lys Assia, Gigliola Cinquetti, Linda Martin and
Elisabeth Andreassen) in the history of the contest to be both winner and runner-up and the
first male performer to do so.
Dima’s winning entry also featured Olympic and World Figure Skating champion Evgeny
Plushenko and Hungarian violin virtuoso Edvin Marton playing on a Stradivarius violin dating
from 1697.
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Only a few days later Dima started the Eurovision Winner’s Tour on May 27th. In just one week
he managed to travel to nine European countries – Finland, Sweden, Norway, Ireland, UK,
Germany, Belgium, France and San-Marino. Accompanied by Edvin Marton, Dima toured
Europe giving many performances and interviews. He also visited top TV- and radio-shows all
over Europe. Such was the appeal of the single Believe that in June 2008 Universal Music
successfully released it in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
The month of May was not only marked by his mesmerizing Eurovision performance, but also
by the release of his fourth album Protiv Pravil (Against Rules).
Dima’s hard work during that year was rewarded by two prizes at the Muz-TV awards ceremony
as he won Best Male Artist and Best Ringtone for the song Nevozmozhnoe vozmozno (Russian
version of Lady Flame). He was also named Best Russian Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards.
2008 was also the year in which Dima finally changed his official name from Viktor to Dima
Bilan. Although Dima is a diminutive of Dmitry, he preferred the diminutive form. The name
change occurred as a result of the conflict he had with the heirs of his late producer Yuri
Aisenshpis, who claimed rights to his stage name. It was believed that making it his official
name would help avoid any such claims in the future.
Dima performed his song Believe in the interval act of the 2008 Junior Eurovision Song Contest
in Limassol, Cyprus.
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In the autumn of 2008 Dima began his collaboration with Philipp Plein, one of Europe’s most
famous high-end fashion designers, much favoured by many Hollywood celebrities such as
Justin Timberlake, Paris Hilton and Johnny Depp. Dima also starred in Philipp Plein’s advertising
campaign for his spring-summer 2009 collection. This campaign featured supermodel Naomi
Campbell as the face of the women’s collection and was showcased in the French, German and
Russian editions of Vogue magazine in April 2009.
Towards the end of the year, Dima took part in the Zvesdny lyod (Stars on Ice) figure skating
show where he was runner-up with his partner, Olympic champion Elena Berezhnaya.
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2009
Exploring new territories. The Believe album.
On the 31st of January 2009, Dima was a special guest of the Eurovision Song Contest British
Final. In 2009, the UK created an extensive promotional campaign that included a 6 weeks-long
show, Eurovision: Your Country Needs You, broadcast on BBC1. The renowned composer
Andrew Lloyd-Weber judged the performances and wrote the UK entry in collaboration with
Diane Warren. The meeting held in Moscow between Andrew Lloyd-Weber, Dima and the
Russian prime-minister Vladimir Putin was also featured during the show, alongside the
interview taken by the famous British television host Graham Norton. Graham interviewed
Dima while he was in London, shooting the video for his latest single Lonely. Dima also
performed his winning song Believe during the final of the contest.
In May 2009, during the final of the Eurovision Song Contest organised in Moscow, Dima
hypnotized the audience with his performance, before handing over the title to Alexander
Rybak, the 2009 winner representing Norway. During the same show he also released his latest
album Believe.
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At the 2009 Muz-Tv awards ceremony Dima won in the Best song and Best video categories.
In 2009, for the 5th consecutive time, Dima received the highly prestigious award Best Russian
Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards. He was also runner-up in the Best European Act category.
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25
2010
New projects: duet with Anastacia and release of I simply love
you
On the 25th of May in Los Angeles, Dima recorded a duet with the highly successful US singer
Anastacia. Their song, Safety, was performed for the first time during the Muz-TV Music Awards
ceremony on the 11th of June in Moscow.
The summer of 2010 saw him both produce and star in the short film Teatr absurda (Theatre of
the Absurd, written and directed by Maxim Apriatin and based on Dima’s own song On khotel
(He Wanted To)). In the film, Dima presents monologues analysing the morality of Moscow’s
citizens alongside quotations from the Ecclesiastes, from Jacques Prevert’s work and from Jim
Morrison’s diary fragments. Towards the end of 2010 the film was released on the internet.
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For more than a year Dima was the official image of the internationally renowned Italian
Chronotech watchmaker brand. Starting in 2009, he has also been the face of Oriflame
cosmetics. Between 2007 and 2011 Dima modelled on the runways of the Russian Fashion
Week, showcasing Ilya Shian’s creations.
At the Woman of the Year ceremony organised by Glamour magazine Dima performed an
emotional duet with his younger sister, Anna Belan.
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The music video for the song Ya prosto lyublyu tebya (I simply love you) was shot by Gosha
Toidze in December. This ballad portraying the importance of love topped all the charts.
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2011
From Hooligan to Dreamer
The spring of 2011 saw the release of Dima’s sixth album Mechtatel (Dreamer) on the 25th of
May. The album is a heartfelt collection of songs such as Safety, Changes, Po Param (Together,
in pairs) or Ya prosto lyublyu tebia (I simply love you). Two versions of the album were available:
a CD with 14 tracks and 2 remixes and a deluxe edition of a DVD comprising 5 of Dima’s latest
videos and a photo gallery. The most devoted fans had the possibility to purchase one of the
500 limited vinyl editions of the album.
During the Muz-TV 2011 awards ceremony Dima was named Best male singer as recognition for
his hard-work and talent.
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For the fourth consecutive year Dima hit the runaway in Ilya Shiyan’s fashion show during the
Moscow Fashion Week.
Dima took on a musical challenge as he appeared in the Phantom of the Opera television show,
revealing his amazing vocal range while performing arias from operas and operettas, songs
belonging to the Russian folklore and well-known crossovers. The audience was in awe of his
rendition of Paris’ aria from Gluck’s Paris and Helen and of Jesus’ aria from Jesus Christ
Superstar (the musical written by the British songwriter Andrew Lloyd-Webber).
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In autumn, Dima flew to Los Angeles to shoot the video for the song Blind Love. What is really
impressive about the video is that it was filmed in Nicolas Cage’s former house and that one of
the main characters is played by Ian Somerhalder, the Vampire Diaries superstar. The video
reached 4th place in the Russian section of YouTube in 2011.
Dima crossed the boundaries of music to enter the territory of literature with the release of his
first autobiographical book Ot hooligana do mechtatelya (From hooligan to dreamer), (in
November 2011). Having penned it himself, the book takes us as far back as Dima’s childhood,
on a journey interspersed with humour and sensibility.
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Dima marked his 30th birthday with a celebratory concert organised at the Crocus City Hall in
Moscow, on the 24th of November 2011. He was accompanied by the Johan Strauss Symphonic
Orchestra of Vienna playing under the baton of Edvin Marton. The concert, later broadcast on
Channel One, showed the audience an extremely versatile artist with a wide repertoire.
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2012
Even more new projects: from the 30 y.o. Beginning concert to
The Voice
From January to April, Dima toured Russia from the far north to the south, travelling to 45
different cities. The 30 y.o. Beginning concert was very often sold out, the artist performing in
front of a different crowd every day.
Dima entered the Russian selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 with the song Back to
her Future performed alongside former t.A.T.u member Yulia Volkova, being runner-ups with
29.25 points. During the second semi-final of the international contest Dima joined former
Eurovision winners – Alexander Rybak, Lena, Ell and Nikki and Marija Šerifović – in a unique
interval act.
The music video Tak ne byvaet (English version: Talk to me honey) saw the light of day in April
under the direction of Andrey Tishkin (with whom Dima worked on the video for Na beregu
neba). The video echoes the recent rebellious activities of the European youth.
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Dima put his talent to the benefit of children in need as he took part in two charity concerts in
2012: the first, entitled Believe, was organised in May at the Lushniki Sports Arena and featured
both Evgeny Plushenko and Edvin Marton, while the second one was fixed for December at the
Crocus City Hall.
The summer of 2012 brought a new award to Dima’s record – the Muz-TV 2012 Best Male
Singer award.
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On the 5th of June, Dima enchanted the audience in a unique concert organised in the famous
Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow. He was accompanied by the symphonic orchestra of the
Ministry of Internal Affairs conducted by Felix Aranovsky. The concert revealed another side to
Dima, who performed opera arias and crossovers alongside his most popular hits, attracting an
even wider audience. Due to its enormous success, the concert was also staged in Saint
Petersburg in the autumn of 2012.
The music video for the song Lyubov-suka (shot in July and directed by Gosha Toidze) was
released at the New Wave music festival in Jurmala. In the video the characters decide to have
their memories erased due to the pain love has caused them.
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In September, Dima played an active role in the in the No Garbage! campaign at the Filevsky
Park in Moscow.
During the RU.TV Music Awards, Dima won the Best Male Singer award.
Dima used all his experience and knowledge of the music industry as a coach on The Voice
talent show, broadcast on Channel One, in the autumn and winter of 2012. The competition
was extremely successful and portrayed Dima as a thoughtful, caring and involved coach.
Alongside his mentees, Dima gave many amazing performances, receiving an official invitation
to retake his role as a coach during the second season of the show.
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Mixing sounds and scents, Dima also became the face of a new fragrance – dB Decibel by
Azzaro.
Dima obtained the highest number of votes in the 2012 MTV EMA awards, thus becoming Best
Russian Act for the seventh consecutive time. Another astounding achievement came along, as
Dima became the first Russian to win the award for Best European Act, representing Russia at
the 2012 MTV EMA awards ceremony in Frankfurt. This multitude of recognitions led to his
nomination as World’s Best Male Artist at the World Music Awards.
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In the same period, a series of reality films were released on the internet showing unscripted
snippets from Dima’s life. A video-collage of thoughts, dreams, worries and emotions provided
answers to yet unasked questions.
While fully opening up his heart to his fans and audience, Dima undertook a unique project,
premiered on the 24th of December 2012 (his 31st birthday) with the release of the music video
Fairy World. Using his birth name – Vitya Belan – Dima is promoting songs entirely written by
him and different from the known commercial format. Fairy World combines elements of
electro pop, jazz and funk, while the video presents the transformative power of innocence and
love. Vitya’s debut song received an extremely positive feedback from Dima’s current fans,
music critics and the foreign media. Alongside supporters of his project, Andrey Cherny (sound
producer) and Slava Lungu (lyricist) he is working on his debut album.
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2013
Entering the Hall of Fame
The long awaited premiere of the music video Obnimi Menya (Hug Me) took place at the
beginning of February 2013. The video directed by Alex Lamakh shows snippets from a love
story between a man and a woman.
February was a prolific month for Dima as on Valentine’s Day he performed at the annual Big
Love Show in the Olympiiski Palace.
Later on that month Dima received an invitation to perform at the Greek national selection for
the Eurovision Song Contest as a special guest. The Greek audience gave him a warm welcome
as he took to the stage to sing his winning song Believe in a duet with the Greek singer Demy.
While in Greece, he didn’t miss the opportunity to meet the members of his Greek Fan Club in
Athens.
Dima managed to fully impress his younger fans, as he was nominated for the Nickelodeon Kids’
Choice Award in February 2013 and won the award after the voting that ended on the 25 th of
March. He is the first Russian artist to take the orange blimp figurine home!
Dima’s new song Dotyanis (Reach for me) hit the airwaves on March 26th 2013.
At the annual ZD Awards held on April 19th Dima received two awards: one for Best Singer and
the other for Best Duet for the collaboration with Yulia Volkova for the song Lyubov-Suka (Love
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Sucks).
On the 10th anniversary of the TopHit.ru service a TopHit Hall of Fame was inaugurated and
Dima was one of the few privileged people to enter it. At the TopHit awards ceremony which
took place the same night, Dima’s hard work and sheer talent was acknowledged once more as
he received the prize for Outstanding Contribution to the Development of Russian Pop Music.
Dima’s late producer Yuri Aizenshpis was also awarded a place in the Hall of Fame.
On April 26th Dima helped write history as he hosted the last episode of the well-known show
The Russian Top 10 before the MTV Russia music channel was closed down.
On the 27th of April the television channel OE launched its 2012 OE Music Awards giving the
opportunity to more than 36 thousand viewers (including 11 thousand from Argentina,
Romania, China and the Czech Republic) to cast their votes and choose their favourites. Dima
and Yulia Volkova were among them, as their music video for the song Lyubov-Suka was the
winner for the Best Sex Video category.
In May, Dima went to Kiev to shoot his latest music video Dotyanis, which recreates an
apocalyptic setting accompanied by fire and explosions. His partner in the video is Yulia
Sarkisova, alongside whom he also appeared in the breathtaking video for the song
Zadykhayus. Gosha Toidze directed the video for Dotyanis.
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Dima was chosen to be part of the national jury during the Russian selection for the Eurovision
Song Contest. As 2013 marked the 5th anniversary of his 2008 Eurovision win, his fans surprised
him on the 24th of May with a flash-mob posted on Twitter under the hash-tag
#BilanEurovisionVictory5years.
A few days later, on the 26th of May, Dima became a godfather for the first time in his life. His
beautiful godson Alexander is the son of Yana Rudkovskaya (Dima’s producer) and Evgeny
Plushenko, the internationally acclaimed figure skater.
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On the 27th of May, Dima’s 8th album, Dotianys, was released on iTunes reaching the top three
in terms of sales in the blink of an eye. The concert accompanying this release was organised
the next day in an event attended by many celebrities alongside Dima’s friends and mentees
from The Voice. The concert offered the audience a mix of songs – tracks from the new album
as well as older hits.
The lyrics of the songs are at the centre of Dima’s latest album Dotyanis (Reach For Me), as they
allow the fans to catch more than a glimpse of his feelings. The album combines
thoughtfulness, sadness and contemplation over the passing of time and the relationships
people have throughout their lives. Most of the album was produced by Dima’s good friend
Andrey Cherny (sound producer), to whom the artist gave special thanks. He also took this
opportunity to thank his other close collaborators - Denis Kovalsky, Slava Lungu and Lara D’Elia
among others. Dima himself wrote the song Strannicza.
On the 7th of June the Russian music industry celebrated its achievements in the 2013 Muz-TV
awards ceremony. Dima was the star of the show as he was awarded the main prize - Best Male
Singer. This was his 11th trophy, an absolute record in the awards' history!
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