Childhood and youth
From the age of seven, Maria began taking private piano lessons. She quickly learned to read music and began to compose poems, as well as music for them. The girl tried to sing her songs herself.
As a teenager, the girl's idol was Madonna. She was also fascinated and admired by the work of such artists as Kelly Price, George Michael, Ray Charles and others. The girl's hobbies also included drawing and swimming. Maria received her secondary education at the capital’s school No. 23 with in-depth study of the English language. The girl completed her studies as an external student. Then Maria entered the Russian Academy of Justice.
In 2004, Maria graduated from the RAP and became a certified specialist in criminal law. At that time, the girl already realized that in the future she would devote her life to vocal activity.
Music
On July 19, 2003, an audition for the “People’s Artist” program took place, in which Masha took part and unexpectedly became a participant in the project. Going through round after round, she didn’t even notice how she ended up in the final four. Before “People’s Artist,” she had practically no performance practice. At the “People’s Artist” project, the girl learned to hold herself correctly on stage, present herself and have a more solid voice.
During this period, the singer performed the composition “Faith and Love,” which later became a landmark song in Maria’s work.
In 2004, producer Evgeny Fridlyand decided to recruit a group called “Assorted” from the finalists of the “People’s Artist” project. Thus, Oksana Kazakova, Arina Rits, Olga Vatlina, Natalya Povolotskaya, Anna Alina, and Maria Zaitseva became part of the new group “Assorted”. The girls quickly conquered the Russian stage with their live performances, fiery songs, dances and, of course, the unique beauty of their appearance and voices.
Then Maria performed in the group “NAOMI”, created in 2011. “NAOMI” is a quintet, which included ex-members of “Assorti” Anna Alina, Natalya Povolotskaya, Arina Rits, Olga Vatlina and Maria Zaitseva.
In the summer of 2013, Maria Zaitseva submitted an application to participate in the second season of the popular project “The Voice”. But then the queue for the blind auditions was very long, the mentors had already managed to recruit their wards. Therefore, the producer of the project, Yuri Aksyuta, decided that everyone who did not have time to audition would be automatically enrolled in season 3 of “The Voice.” So Maria Zaitseva and many others got a chance to participate in the project.
Maria Zaitseva performed a song called “Why” by Annie Lennox on the “Voice” show. She turned all the male mentors to her, and chose Leonid Agutin
Note that Masha is familiar with Pelageya and Agutin, but both did not recognize her by her vocals. Zaitseva, according to Pelageya, is a very strong vocalist, and participation in “Voice-3” was the first step in her solo development.
Unfortunately, Maria Zaitseva left the show ahead of the live broadcasts. According to the “Voice” mentors, despite this, Masha has an excellent future as a solo performer, and the project was only the starting point for her development.
Professional activity
In the summer of 2003, the aspiring singer took part in the television vocal show “People’s Artist”, thanks to which she became famous. It was in this competition that Maria learned a lot as a singer and reached the finals of the project (entered the top four leaders of the project). At that time, the composition “Faith and Love” became a significant song in her work.
In 2004, Masha became a member of the new group “Assorted”, whose producer was Evgeny Fridlyand. The women's group very quickly became popular among a wide range of Russian listeners. Since 2011, the girl began singing in the group NAOMI.
In 2014, Maria became a participant in the Voice-3 project and Leonid Agutin’s mentee, performing the song Why. The competition was a good start for the development of Masha’s solo career. Pelageya, who at that time was a member of the jury of the show, called Maria a strong singer.
In 2020, Maria, together with her namesake Maria Sheikh, created the vocal duet “#2 Masha”. The vocalists do not have a producer and develop the group independently. There are official pages of the vocal group on social networks - VKontakte and Instagram.
In May 2020, the duo released their first album, which quickly became popular. What attracted the audience most about the project was that it featured both singing and rapping in one song. The girls write the lyrics for their compositions themselves.
In 2020, “#2Mashi” performed at the RU.TV awards. Among the popular and well-known songs of the group, one can particularly highlight: “Barefoot”, “Rime”, “Lots of caffeine”, “Mom, I’m dancing”. The team has more than ten bright and memorable clips. The duo's songs can be heard at the top of the music chats of all famous Russian radios.
In mid-April 2020, the band’s single “Summer at the Temple” premiered. Today, the “2Mashi” project is a wild success among listeners in Russia and beyond.
Project #2Masha
Maria Zaitseva and Maria Sheikh
In 2016, a completely new non-standard project appeared called #2Mashi. Participation in the “Voice” project for Maria Zaitseva became a new starting point, a kind of creative reboot, as a result of which a duet was born, consisting of two performers, where one sings and the other raps. The group consists of two Mash - Sheikh and Zaitseva.
“Talking about her participation in various talent shows, Maria notes that this is a great way to meet creative, interesting people, understand what you want to do next, and rethink what you have left behind.”
Maria Sheikh and Maria Zaitseva
It is already natural for an artist that in the end she radically changes her life. After all, after participating in “People’s Artist” she got married, and after “The Voice” the group #2Masha was created.
“Talking how the group was created, Maria claims that it was a surprise for them that the project became so successful and popular. The artist claims that they promote themselves (without PR people and producers), and also create music and write lyrics.”
Although they did not invest any money to promote the album, it entered the charts almost instantly. Literally less than a day passed before the disc ended up in the top iTunes.
Group #2Masha – Maria Zaitseva and Maria Sheikh
Many of their songs quickly become popular and occupy leading places in various charts. What especially touches the performers is that their concerts are almost always sold out. And although the modern public is spoiled by the multitude of talented performers and the variety of musical styles offered, their listeners who come to concerts know the lyrics of their favorite group’s songs by heart and quite often the audience performs their favorite compositions together with the performers.
“Reflecting on the mystery of such incredible success, Zaitseva claims that they managed to find what modern listeners lack and occupy a niche that has been empty until now. There has never been a girl duet on the Russian stage, where one performer sings and the other raps.”
Girls independently lead groups on social networks. #2Masha has pages on VKontakte and Instagram.
Performers receive a huge number of letters from fans and admirers with ideas for songs or with ready-made songs. The duo members are grateful for such generous gifts. However, they always emphasize that they perform exclusively their own compositions, since each text is lived and experienced emotions and experiences.
In May 2017, #2Masha performed during the RU TV award ceremony.
In July of the same year, the duo shot a video for the song “Bitches”. The ambiguous and piquant cover for the single “Barefoot” caused a sea of gossip and rumors among fans of the group #2Masha. It depicts the group members in such a way that they appear to be naked and tenderly hugging each other.
Over the years of the project's existence, quite a lot of positions have accumulated in the group's discography. Among the most interesting singles are:
- Barefoot;
- Now there are two of us;
- Stars;
- Thoughts;
- Bitches;
- Call me;
- Don't wake up;
- Birds and many others;
- Mom, I'm dancing.
They now regularly release singles, which are available in various online music stores. Including on iTunes.
Group #2Mashi at a performance
In addition to releasing and selling musical products, girls quite often organize unique solo events. On them, singers, accompanied by just one guitar, perform their entire repertoire. With such unique concerts, members of the group #2Masha tour various cities in central Russia.
Personal life
Maria Zaitseva is divorced. The singer met her husband while participating in the “People’s Artist” project. It was the talented vocalist Alexey Goman (born in 1983), who won the television competition. After the end of the show, the young people began to live together. Alexey and Maria lived in a civil marriage for six years, and only in 2009 did they get married.
In December 2012, a daughter was born into a young creative family, who was named Alexandrina. For 11 years, the spouses were considered an ideal couple. The very next year, 2013, they announced that they were getting a divorce. Their separation passed quietly, without scandals, since the love ended. Maria remained on friendly terms with her husband.
Today, nothing is known about Maria Zaitseva’s personal life , since Maria hides this information from journalists and the public.
The beginning of a career, Maria Zaitseva’s first songs and television projects
In 2003, the future singer, wanting to prove herself and show her vocal capabilities, became a participant in the People's Artist program.
Having auditioned, she easily passed the qualifying competition. Further, as Zaitseva says, completely unexpectedly for herself, she moved forward without difficulty round after round, eventually ending up in the top four. Zaitseva did not win “People’s Artist,” but getting into the top four made some producers pay attention to the performer’s potential. During the TV project, Maria learned to hold herself on stage and strengthened her voice.
One of the producers who paid attention to Zaitseva was Evgeny Fridlyand. He decided to recruit a group of girls who reached the finals of the music project. Naturally, Maria was also invited. This is how the Assorted group appeared, which was able to win the attention of Russian listeners in a short time. The merit of the popularity that quickly came to “Assorted” lies in the live performance of the compositions, the well-chosen repertoire, the external characteristics of the performers, and the uniqueness of their voices.
In 2011, members of the Assorti group began singing in the NAOMI group. As part of this group, Zaitseva went to Jurmala, where she became a participant in the “New Wave” competition.
Interesting Facts
- The artist’s height is 170 cm, height – 60 kg.
- In addition to singing, Masha has been interested in drawing since childhood. This type of creativity is the singer’s favorite hobby. Maria prefers to draw most of all with watercolors and charcoal.
- The artist also has a driver's license. Her first car was a Niva. From time to time, Masha participates in auto racing in Moscow and Koktebel. Today the singer has a more modern car - a BMW.
- The artist’s father is Jewish by nationality, and her mother is Armenian.
- Before participating in the Voice-3 project, Maria had her own business - a cafe. But later the vocalist was unable to combine business with a music career.
- Maria uses social networks. Has pages on VKontakte and Twitter.
The beginning of a creative journey
Beauty in every moment.
In my eyes there is infinity of blue.
Here is reality, and there are photographs in the feed,
Memories of the warm days of my summer.
Masha Zaitseva and Masha Sheikh met back in 2014 in Thailand and have been friends since then. At first there were no plans for joint creativity. But Maria Sheikh, who has been writing poetry since childhood, once jotted down the lyrics of the future song “Now there are two of us” on a beat sent by a friend. The girls joke that the “#2Mashi” project appeared in Zaitseva’s kitchen, where Sheikh showed an unborn song.
Masha Zaitseva, who has a beautiful melodic voice, offered to sing the chorus “Now there are two of us.” Internet users reacted with admiration to the new, unlike anything else track. The duo was supported and asked not to stop at one song.
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The girls realized that their creative tandem could be successful. The name was also suggested by listeners. The video with the song was reposted with the hashtag #2mashi, and both Mashas liked the way it looked. This is how the duo got their name.
The girls inspire each other and try to solve even difficult administrative issues together. Maria Sheikh writes texts and organizes concerts, signing contracts, drawing up riders and schedules. Masha Zaitseva is responsible for music and publicity, interviews, social networks and track releases. But girls always help each other.
Masha Sheikh
The knots are tight.
I'll turn off the voltage.
Eyes untied.
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Now I know what I want.
The other member of the duet cannot boast of much stage experience. However, the creative biography of Maria Sheikh begins from childhood, when, as a child, she wrote beautiful poems and dreamed of having them read. Masha was born in Moscow on April 26, 1990, studied at a regular school, and then entered the Faculty of Law at Moscow State Pedagogical University.
But music was and remains her calling. In the duet, her role is to rap. Masha herself believes that she simply reads her poems, set to music and rhythm, without adapting to the Western style of performance.
She always knew what she wanted and is sure that her participation in the duet is what is needed, because each one does her own thing. Masha Zaitseva sings, Masha Sheikh reads. She admits that she sometimes challenges herself when it comes to creativity. This was the case with the release of the first album, when it was necessary to write lyrics for new songs in a very short time. And despite the fact that writing poetry is a creative process, Masha had to draw inspiration from the most ordinary things. Perhaps that is why the public liked their songs so much.
Concerts and fans
Set your priorities.
The fruits will soon take root,
And we will see portraits of the future.
Similar thoughts will become more free.
If Masha Zaitseva was accustomed to attention, then Maria Sheikh was initially stunned by the reaction of listeners to the first songs. But the girl believes that the love of fans is the best reward for any artist. Masha sees the secret of their success in the fact that they sing what seems natural to them, about their experiences and feelings. A duet is not a project created by someone, but a spiritual union of two talented people. And although they did not expect such success, they are open and honest with their fans. The members of the duet willingly share their thoughts and new songs on social networks on the official page, where every subscriber can girls. Maria Sheikh has a personal page on Instagram, Facebook and VK.
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Maria Zaitseva now
Today Maria Zaitseva together with Maria Sheikh organized the group “#2Mashi”. In 2020, the duo recorded and presented their first songs. The girls develop the group on their own, without sponsors, producers or PR people. The project maintains an official page on the social network “
In an exclusive interview with Dom2Life, the artist spoke about the upcoming concert of project #2Masha, raising her daughter Alexandrina and her relationship with her ex-husband Alexei Goman.
Maria Zaitseva
Maria Zaitseva is no stranger to the world of show business. In 2003, the girl brightly announced herself on the television project “People’s Artist”, after which she became the lead singer of the group “Assorted”. Masha’s fans closely followed not only the artist’s work, but also her romance with singer Alexei Goman. In 2010, the couple got married, and the stars had a daughter, Alexandrina. Alas, a year after the girl was born, the couple divorced.
Despite the troubles in family life, Zaitseva’s career was going uphill. Three years ago, Maria took part in the show “The Voice”, after which she founded the music project #2Masha. On October 22, the duo gives a big concert on the Izvestia Hall stage. Dom2Life talked with the artist on the eve of this important event.
Duet #2Masha is an interesting combination of hip-hop and pop music. How is it possible to achieve harmony in these two directions?
I would like to immediately note that Masha Sheikh, with whom we perform our songs, does not position herself as a rap artist. She reads her own poetry set to music. Masha writes all the texts herself. These are real life stories that we really understand and feel.
Are the people who come to the concerts of the duet #2Masha the same audience that followed your work in the groups “NAOM I” and “Assorted”?
Many listeners have been with me since the days of the “People’s Artist” project. But there is also a new audience. Still, #2Mashi is a slightly different format and sound. Now I really perform those songs that are in tune with the strings of my soul.
First of all, an incredible charge of musical energy. We will perform all the compositions live and present to the public new songs from the second album. A talented girl who plays the cello has joined the team of our musicians, so the compositions will have a new sound.
A few years ago you opened your own pastry shop. How is business going now?
My love for cooking once pushed me to open my own business. My friend and I actually had a pastry shop, but now it is no longer open. The fact is that I was not just the face of the establishment. We really did everything ourselves, we were there every day and paid attention to every detail, right down to serving visitors. When I got to the “Voice” project, and there was more work in the music field, I realized that I couldn’t cope with such volume. You can’t sit on two chairs at once, so I made a choice in favor of music. However, I do not rule out that in the future I will return to business again.
You not only manage to take show business by storm, but also raise your daughter Alexandrina. How is the baby growing?
My daughter will soon be five years old. She is a very creative child and loves to draw. I do not rule out that in the future Sandra will want to connect her life with art.
Does the girl listen to her mother’s songs?
Certainly! You can’t imagine how delighted my daughter was when I played her the first song of our duet, “Now there are two of us.” Then I thought - if the child likes it that way, then I should continue the business.
What is your relationship now with your ex-husband Alexei Goman?
We parted on a good note; Lesha is also raising her daughter and often comes to see her. So in this regard, everything is great, we communicate as parents.
How are things going on your personal front? Surely such a talented and beautiful girl has many suitors.
I try not to advertise my personal life. I don’t even post photos of my daughter on social networks - not because I’m hiding her from people. I just think that Sandra will make her own choice when she grows up, whether she wants this publicity or not. Still, the personal should remain personal.
