Natalia Yuryevna Podolskaya (Natalla Padolskaja, Belarusian: ''Натальля Юр'еўна Падольская'', Russian: ''Наталья Юрьевна Подольская'', born 20 May 1982) is a Belarusian singer who performed for Russia at the

2005 Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest 2005 was the 50th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Kyiv, Ukraine, following the country's victory at the with the song "Wild Dances" by Ruslana. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (E ...

and was ranked No. 15. In 2008, she became a Russian citizen. In 2015, she won the

Golden Gramophone Award The Golden Gramophone Award () is a yearly national Russian music award, established by Russian Radio in 1996.p. 241, ''Pop culture Russia!: media, arts, and lifestyle'', Birgit Beumers, ABC-CLIO, 2005, . The awardee receives a gold-colored figur ...

Early years

Podolskaya was born in 1982 in

Mogilev Mogilev (russian: Могилёв, Mogilyov, ; yi, מאָלעוו, Molev, ) or Mahilyow ( be, Магілёў, Mahilioŭ, ) is a city in eastern Belarus, on the Dnieper River, about from the border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and from the bor ...

, Belarus. At the age of nine, she studied piano at music school and began singing in the ''Studio W'' group of the Mogilev Music and Choreography School, which allowed her to tour Belgium, Germany, and Poland. As a teenager, she won first prize at the Zornaja rostan (Belarus), Mahutny Boza (Belarus), and Goldenfest (Poland) music festivals. Between 1999 and 2004, she studied law at a private law school and continued to gain experience as a solo performer. Podolskaya took part in music shows on Belarusian radio and television and in 2002/2003, she was a finalist in the national Belarus TV festival On the Crosses of Europe. In 2002, she moved to Moscow and joined the Moscow Institute of Modern Art. Podolskaya became well known in 2002 after her performance at the

Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk The International Festival of Arts “Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk” ( be, Міжнародны фестываль мастацтваў «Славянскі базар у Віцебску», uk, Міжнародний фестиваль мист ...

music festival. The same year in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, sixteen members of the ''Universetalent Prague 2002'' International jury marked her performance as very high: Podolskaya won the Best Song and Best Singer categories.

Solo career

2003–2005

In early 2003, Rayan Lobsher and Michael Jay wrote the song "Unstoppable" especially for Podolskaya and invited her to take part in the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest as the UK representative.Natalya Podolskaya. Eurovision Song Contest 2005 Media Guide
. However, Podolskaya was determined to sing only for her home country of Belarus. In 2004, the singer became a participant in season five of '' Fabrika Zvyozd'', in which she was instructed by some of the best singing, dancing, and acting teachers in Russia. It was here that she met songwriter and producer Victor Drobysh. With his help, she recorded her first album, ''Pozdno'' ("Поздно"), which was released in December 2004. In 2005, Podolskaya was selected to represent Russia with her song "Nobody Hurt No One" in the

, held in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, Ukraine. In March 2020, Podolskaya released the album ''Cry'' ("Плачь").Наталья Подольская открыла новую страницу в творчестве
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Discography

Studio albums

* ''Pozdno'' (2005) * ''Intuicyja'' (2013) * ''Cry'' (2020)

Compilations

* ''Sbornik'' (2013)

References

External links

Official website (archived)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Podolskaya, Natalia 1982 births Living people People from Mogilev Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2005 21st-century Belarusian women singers Belarusian pop singers Russian pop singers Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Russia Belarusian emigrants to Russia Naturalised citizens of Russia Institute of Contemporary Art, Moscow alumni Fabrika Zvyozd 21st-century Russian women singers 21st-century Russian singers Winners of the Golden Gramophone Award