Oleksandr Ponomariov and Iryna Bilyk were named the best singers in Ukraine’s 20 years as an independent nation at the first Yearly Ukrainian National Award ceremony on Feb.8.
Okean Elzy won the best group award. Oleh Skrypka, the front man of Vopli Vidopliasova, picked up three YUNAs: for best song “Vesna” (Spring), which also was chosen as the best video, and best album “Muzika” (Music).
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Ukrainian Olympic champion Yana Klochkova and showman Yuri Gorbunov give Oleh Skrypka an award for the best song.
Kostiantyn Meladze won in the best composer nomination and “Boombox” singer Andriy Khlyvniuk, who got his YUNA as the author of the best lyrics, handed his award over to Yurii Rybchynskyi, who he said deserved it more.
The prize for “special advancement over the last 20 years” went to 64-year-old singer Sofia Rotaru, who didn’t appear at the event. In a recorded acceptance speech, standing on a beach with a flower in her hair, she thanked YUNA’s guests and organizers.
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Ruslana performs her Eurovision-winning hit “Dyki Tantsi” (Wild Dances).
A special jury picked the winners. It consisted of experts who don’t create music, but who have been involved with it professionally for at least five years.
The audience seemed to be delighted with jury’s choice. Palats Ukraina, where the ceremony took place, burst with applause from the thousands of fans each time the host announced a winner.
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Ukrainian singer Gaitana sings “You’re My Everything” with Karl Frierson from the German jazz band De-Phazz.
The YUNA ceremony was opened with a joint performance of Germany’s Thomas Anders of Modern Talking and Ukraine’s Kamaliya. She was the only artist ineligible to compete for a prize because her husband, Mohammad Zahoor, is the founder of the awards program. Zahoor owns the ISTIL Group and is the publisher of the Kyiv Post.
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YUNA founder Mohammad Zahoor, his wife, singer Kamaliya, and German pop singer Thomas Anders bask in the limelight.
Some nominees performed for the show in front of around 3,000 fans at the Palace of Ukraine. “Vahteram” by Boombox got a huge ovation. “Endless Summer,” the official song of the Euro 2012 football championships to be held in Ukraine and Poland this summer, was performed by Oceana.
Despite a one-hour delay and a few technical glitches, organizers and fans seemed satisfied with the first YUNA.
Singers Masha Sobko, Alyosha and Anya Dobrydnyeva perform some of Sofia Rotaru’s songs.
“We achieved our goal,” said YUNA producer Pavlo Shylko, better known as DJ Pasha. “We created a show that is unique.” According to Shylko, organizers were ready to start the show in time, but waited for some of the celebrities to arrive. “It was not a concert, but a TV show, so we couldn’t start without them,” he explained.
YUNA producer DJ Pasha congratulates Iryna Bilyk with winning the best female artist award.
The ceremony will be televised on Inter TV-channel on Feb. 12 at 11 p.m.
Kyiv Post staff writer Alyona Zhuk can be reached at [email protected]. Photos by Kostyantyn Chernichkin
