Pop divas deal with dinosaurs and aliens on their way to success

IRYNA BILYK

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

Ukrainian pop diva, Iryna Bilyk like most talented and creative individuals, comes with quirks and eccentricities. For example, Ms. Bilyk believes in ALFs (alien life forms), is prone to vertigo and loves to dress in somewhat outlandish ways. But for a pop star, there is nothing unusual here.

Many in Kyiv describe her as "the Ukrainian Madonna," a reference to the American pop superstar with equally campy tastes. The image of Iryna Bilyk as a Slavic Madonna is to an extent self-promotion, which at least one producer - who wished to remain anonymous - disclosed. But then that has always been Madonna's forte as well.

Ms. Bilyk was not shy in explaining how that image emerged. She said the comparisons began in 1992 when Western styles and attitudes became all the rage in a Ukraine finally freed of Soviet social constraints, and fans began to compare some young pop singers to the Western stars they were just getting to know.

"I look back at myself then, and I have to admit there was something to the comparison," said Ms. Bilyk. "It's not necessarily the look, the straightforward, outward appearance, but there was something there."

She allowed that one of those intangibles could have been her propensity to change her hairstyle from blond to black and back - and along with it her image, just like Madonna has done over the years.

Ms. Bilyk's rise to fame in Ukraine - at one time she was considered the hottest rising star here - has been a rocky road with several professional setbacks. But after more than 10 years in the business, she remains at the top and one of the few Ukrainian musical stars who can cross over from light pop and traditional folk to rock'n roll.

Recently back from shows in New York, Ms. Bilyk described her first trip to the States as frightening and difficult, mainly because she was there not long after the September 11 terrorist attacks.

"This was not a simple tour because we were afraid to fly," explained Ms. Bilyk, who said the New York tour was nearly canceled. "But we had to go because we were told the concerts were sold out."

She had two sold-out shows at the Millennium Hall in the Brighton Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn, which were attended each night by more than 1,000 mostly Ukrainian and Russian emigrants.

It was in the Big Apple that the singer realized she had vertigo. The attack was so extreme, as she explained it, that she became panicky and was taken to a hospital emergency ward to calm down.

"New York is a beautiful and exciting city, but I didn't realize how tall the buildings would actually be. At one point I began to think that the buildings were going to fall on me," explained the blond, blue-eyed singer.

Beyond that unpleasant moment, Ms. Bilyk said she felt warmed by the metropolis and its people, who she said greeted her often wherever she went and constantly complimented her on her hats and outfits.

What she did not see in New York were alien life forms. Those she has seen only in Ukraine. Ms. Bilyk explained that she believes unequivocally that they exist and, like angels, look after people, especially those with artistic talent.

"They see the need on Earth for better cultural understanding and development," she explained ever so seriously.

Ms. Bilyk did not set out to be an idiosyncratic pop culture princess. Initially her plans called for a career in the theater. Nonetheless, she had been writing poetry and songs since she was 10 years old and was a part of the children's musical ensemble Sonechko from the time she was 6. Her career plans changed at the age of 17 when a producer for the noted songstress Sofia Rotaru saw a performance and became interested in her talents.

"He told me that I am not a theatrical performer, that I am pop singer," explained Ms. Bilyk.

He had her record three songs, and by 1988 she had developed her own repertoire. A year later Ms. Bilyk took part in the initial Chervona Ruta Festival. Soon after that she met the members of the group Ayaks, and in July 1990 they formed This Rain For Long.

While Ms. Bilyk's star began to rise at that time, she claims her breakthrough moment occurred when she became one of the first pop singers to go beyond confining her concert tours to the major cities and travel to Ukraine's smaller towns. In 1992 she did a tour of western Ukraine - two to three concerts daily - to show Ukrainians "a new kind of music," explained the ever-effusive Ms. Bilyk. The tour also proved that a group singing in Ukrainian could be popular with young people.

"Many believed that no one would come to listen to a Ukrainian-language singer," she explained.

Ms. Bilyk, whose repertoire consists almost entirely of Ukrainian songs, believes that Ukrainian artists tend to be more original than the performers who come out of Moscow - and that they have more to say. She added that, unfortunately, Russian singers get more radio and television airtime because they have stronger public relations and marketing organizations behind them.

That has not stopped Ms. Bilyk, however. She said that while she has a Russian language song project in the works, she would continue to compose and sing in Ukrainian.

"I believe in the Ukrainian song and believe that I can help Ukraine develop in this way," explained Ms. Bilyk.

Next week: Read about Ukraine's premiere hard rock acts, Vopli Vodopliasova (V.V.) and Okean Elzy.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, January 20, 2002, No. 3, Vol. LXX

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