Asti at the New Radio Awards music award ceremony. TASS / Mikhail Tereshchenko
Anna Dzyuba, better known as the vocalist of the group Artik&Asti, is one of the brightest stars of Russian show business. Her photographs adorn the covers of glossy magazines, the girl’s wardrobe is filled with collections from luxury clothing brands, and her voice has captivated millions of listeners throughout Russia. However, few people know that there was a period in Asti’s life when she no longer hoped to become a singer.
5-tv.ru identified important milestones in the singer’s work and life and tried to answer the question of what makes the girl so different from her other colleagues.
Childhood
Anna Dzyuba was born on June 24, 1990 in Cherkassy, Ukraine. The girl’s parents sang in a group when they were young, but did not achieve much success in the artistic field. In the future they will tell Anya that you can’t make money from songs. For some time, the girl will even believe in her father’s words, but she will not stop singing.
In the meantime, this is an ordinary child from a low-income family. According to the singer, she was very active as a child. Anya often took part in school productions and was involved in several creative clubs. However, her native school remembered her not because of her unique vocal abilities or artistry, but because of her excessive talkativeness.
Asti in childhood. Instagram @astiselfmade
Asti recalls how her classmates often asked her to ask the teacher as many questions as possible during class in order to stretch out the time. As for the teachers, they seemed to enjoy such curiosity. The mother of the future star often heard from teachers that the girl was good, but she talked a lot.
In the future, having become a famous singer, the girl will remain a simple girl who is open to communication and new friends. Among the latter, by the way, there were always more boys than girls.
Biography
Great-grandfather Ivan Nikolaevich Shmelev died near Rzhev during the Great Patriotic War.[1] Grandmother is from near Ryazan, and grandfather is Georgian. He is a general and served in the Far East during the war. Mom was born on the way to Magadan”[2]. “Several blood flows in me - Ukrainian, Georgian, Russian and Polish”[3].
Mother, Lyudmila Saldadze - documentary director, film playwright, writer; graduated from the directing department of VGIK in the workshop of Sergei Gerasimov; Honored Artist of the RSFSR, laureate of the USSR State Prize, works in documentary films[4]. Father, Vladimir Protasenko, is a film actor, worked at the Film Actor Theater (starred in episodes of the films “Mimino”, “Gentlemen of Fortune”, “Aibolit-66”).
Anastasia was born in a maternity hospital at the Nikitsky Gate (in its place the ITAR-TASS building now stands).[5] There was practically no time to raise a child: parents were constantly on set or at rehearsals. Nastya was raised by her grandmother Anna Ivanovna Shmeleva. After her parents' divorce, the girl experienced a severe shock and was hospitalized with a nervous breakdown.[6]
Her brother from her father’s second marriage, Gleb Protasenko, became a TV presenter at Channel Five.
Anastasia got married for the first time at the age of 18 - to her childhood friend, engineer Alexei Mintskovsky[7], and soon, in the spring of 1985, while in her third year at the Shchukin School, she gave birth to a daughter, Anna (who by now had already graduated from MGIMO and gave birth to a son, Arseny) . The singer's first marriage was short-lived.
Then there were 4 more marriages;[8] The last husband, Vladimir Zudin, was also her producer[9]. In 2006 it was reported that he also appeared. director of the Anastasia Song Theater and “academician of the Academy of Security, Defense and Law and Order, created by V.V. Putin.”[5] After living together for 8 years, they divorced in 2013.
On December 19, 2020, singer Anastasia and singer Yulian appeared on the Russia TV channel in the program “Andrey Malakhov. Live" announced the upcoming wedding. The artists have toured extensively with joint concerts since 2020. Now the star couple lives together.
Study (1969-1990)
15-year-old Anastasia
studied at a music school with teacher Elena Quintilianovna Anisimova.[3]
Having entered the acting department of the Shchukin Theater School at the age of 16 [10] (artistic director of the course M. R. Ter-Zakharova, teachers A. A. Shirvindt, Yu. V. Katin-Yartsev), she successfully completed her studies in 1986. During her student years, she worked part-time at the Durova Animal Theater by singing songs of Badger, Fox, Wolf, and Bear.[11] The graduation performances were “A Farewell to Arms” and “Fatherlessness.”[12] After graduating from college, Anastasia worked for three years at the Moscow Drama Theater; however, she quickly realized that the dramatic scene could not give her anything creatively, and she went into “free swimming.”[4][12]
She was the host of the television program “Wider Circle” on May 1, 1986[13]. In 1984, in the TV show “Wider Circle,” Anastasia Mintskovskaya and Alexander Sklyarov performed the song “You and I are on the same path” together on May 1.
1991-1995
Anastasia began her singing career as a rock singer (her stage debut took place in the city of Bryansk). In 1989, Anastasia’s first album “High Heel” was released, which immediately made her popular.[7]
In 1991, the young singer appeared in a concert at the barricades immediately after the events at the White House.[14] In the same year, the debut album was re-released on record, the songs “High Heel” (music by Ashot Philip[15], lyrics by Anastasia), “Queen of Golden Sand” (music by O. Ivanov, lyrics by A. Poperechny), “Mom’s Cross” (music O. Ivanov, words by V. Stepanov) - become hits.
In 1993, the Radio Rocks radio station declared Anastasia “ the best singer of the year.
" Anastasia records duets with Yulian, Akim Salbiev, and performs at city events, festivals, national teams and charity concerts. She performed in European countries and toured the United States in 1996.
1996-2010
At a press conference, Philip Kirkorov stated that only two singers refused to participate in the “Surprise for Alla Borisovna” concert, held on April 15, 1997 at the Olimpiysky sports complex and dedicated to Alla Pugacheva’s birthday (he did not name names); a month later, Anastasia admitted: “ I refused because I had three reasons. Firstly, (...) this concert was absolutely all with a soundtrack - that was the condition of participation. (...) Secondly, I’m not into karaoke at all, I have enough of my own songs. And thirdly, it was such an obvious gathering of the side dish in order to show the cutlet on the plate... I have never been a side dish and never will be. In general, I didn’t see the expediency of my participation in this concert, to be honest. And then “nearly” there was a big trip to the Far East. I understood perfectly well that I would not have the opportunity to prepare for the concert...
"[16][17]. The artist consistently speaks out against “phonographers” and bribes to television channels for the sake of airtime[17].
In the same 1997, she released three albums at once: “Lip is not a fool”, “Queen of Golden Sand” and “The best, beloved and only for you!)” [7], and in total by the end of 1997 the singer had already published five albums , and the sixth was prepared to leave.[16] Also in 1997, Anastasia held two solo concerts in Moscow, one of which was the presentation of the album “Lip is not a fool” at the Rossiya State Central Concert Hall. After 1998, the singer recorded about 50 songs over the next 5-8 years. In Moscow, Anastasia gave at least four solo concerts during this period. [ source not specified 142 days
]
In July 2002, the Anastasia Song Theater gave 15 concerts in the regiments of the 201st division in Dushanbe as a charity event. With the assistance of radio "Chanson", then in 2002 at the State Concert Hall "Russia" in Anastasia's new solo program "Between Two Poles" some unreleased songs were performed, including the ballad "Officer" (O. Kaledin - D. Usmanov). During the same period, the singer toured Russia a lot, visited Germany, the USA, Israel and the Czech Republic, and also recorded the double album “Without You...” (which is dedicated to her grandmother Anna Ivanovna).[18]
In 2004, together with Akim Salbiev, he recorded the album “City for Two” (in collaboration with composer Anatoly Zubkov and poetess Rimma Kazakova)[19].
In 2006, an updated cartoon “The Little Mermaid” was released, voiced by Russian stars; the evil witch Ursula spoke in the voice of singer Anastasia Mintskovskaya.[9][20]
In 2007, Anastasia, together with Stas Sadalsky, played the play “St. Petersburg-Moscow-Paris.”[8]. In September 2007 and January 2009, the singer gave solo concerts at the Moscow Variety Theater. [ source not specified 142 days
]
In January 2010, Anastasia appeared on stage in Moscow as part of the “Names for All Seasons” project. [ source not specified 142 days
]
2011 - present
In 2012-2013, Anastasia took part in the television programs “Let Them Talk” on Channel One and “Private History” on the TV channel “Trust. Moscow". In September 2013, Anastasia took part in a concert program dedicated to Moscow City Day.
Later, Anastasia takes part in small local concerts. Thus, on November 21, 2020, at the Central House of Actors in Moscow, the actress took part in a creative evening between the poetess Karina Filippova and the People's Artist of Russia Boris Diodorov. On March 5, 2016, her concert took place in Rzhev. On June 19, 2020, she performed at the House of Culture of the village of Borki (Zubtsovsky district, Tver region) at the VII Intersettlement Festival of Russian Song “Soul of Russia”, dedicated to the memory of People’s Artist of the USSR L. G. Zykina; Anastasia took part in this festival in the previous two years.
On March 1, 2020, at the Central House of Arts Workers in Moscow, at a creative evening of the poet Karina Filippova, Anastasia again performed several songs from her previous repertoire. In June 2020, Anastasia and Yulian held a joint concert tour in resort cities of the Krasnodar Territory. On March 30, 2020, she married Julian.
Youth
As a teenager, Anna Dzyuba was not the example of femininity that her fans had long been accustomed to. According to the star, during adolescence she was a tomboy. Communication with guys was easier for the girl than with the fair sex. Guys, according to the artist, are much less likely to envy girls and can really give practical advice on appearance.
As for the romantic side of the life of the then Anya Dzyuba, then, according to the star, at that time she was not popular with the opposite sex. The girl even believes that she was that ugly friend of the local beauty. However, later the young people saw in her a good friend and things on Anya’s personal front improved noticeably.
At the same time, the future star admits that she grew up in difficult times. The crisis that came in the 90s also affected the life of a girl from a small Ukrainian town. According to Asti, many of those around her drank alcohol and drugs during that period. The girl will have many acquaintances with addictions; at some point, Anna joins her friends in this hobby, but very quickly abandons it.
Today it’s hard to believe that Asti was a tomboy in her youth. Instagram @astiselfmade
Since then, the most important thing in the girl’s diet is wine. However, there will still be a moment in the artist’s life when she reaches for a glass in an attempt to drown out the pain.
In the meantime, she is graduating from university and becoming an assistant lawyer. According to the singer’s recollections, professional literature was difficult for her. At work, she often wrote song lyrics, for which she was sometimes reprimanded. According to the star, she left her position as an assistant lawyer with a scandal, after which she tried herself as a makeup artist.
Asti recalls that at that time she thought that it was possible to break into show business with the help of connections or through bed. According to the artist, she had no influential acquaintances at that time, and sleeping with someone in the name of fame was unacceptable for her. However, Anna continues to sing and even participates in the filming of a music video.
It is noteworthy that at that time the girl had to pay herself for the right to sing, which today the artist recalls with a smile. However, then participation in the project, about which little is known today, was her only professional achievement. Asti managed to give up and come to terms with life in obscurity.
According to Asti’s recollections, at that time she was a completely ordinary girl from a small Ukrainian town. She did not have a chic wardrobe, nor a sea of admirers, and she was also not experienced in traveling to distant countries. At that time, the future star flew by plane only two times: to Turkey and back. However, very soon everything changed.
Anastasia today
On the wave of success, Anastacia released her own clothing line, “Anastacia By s.
Oliver”, as well as an exclusive perfume. The singer's latest album, “It's A Man's World,” was presented to the public in 2012. After this, there was some lull in the artist’s career, caused by health problems. In 2003, she successfully underwent treatment for breast cancer, but ten years later the disease returned again.
Anastacia and Dima Bilan
In July 2013, the artist managed to successfully overcome the disease for the second time in her life. After this, our today’s heroine intensified her work within the framework of the Anastacia Fund, created back in 2003, the essence of which is to increase public awareness about the problems of breast cancer.
Artik&Asti
Artem Umrikhin was looking for a vocalist for his new project. One day he came across a clip in which he heard Anna’s voice out of the corner of his ear. The musician liked the stranger’s vocals and wanted to contact her, but her contacts were not in the description of the video. The producer will spend the next six months searching for an unknown singer.
Miraculously, a member of the Mushrooms group will find her and immediately contact her, but Anya Dzyuba, who answered the call, will decide that this is a prank and will not wait for the promised call from Arti. When Artem finally called her, she broke out in a sweat. She instantly recognized his voice, but later, just in case, she would check the number that came up with the one her friend had.
Artem Umrikhin invited the girl to come to him in Kyiv for an audition. The girl agreed, but inside she was torn by doubts. Anya was afraid that her new acquaintance would turn out to be a sick person and even mentally made a plan to escape, but Artem simply invited her to sing.
Despite her star status, Anya Dzyuba remains a simple girl. Instagram @astiselfmade
Wanting to impress the famous producer, Dzyuba gave her 100%, but Umrikhin stopped her and asked her to sing more simply, which she did. This is how the group Artik&Asti arose, which brought worldwide success to the two artists.
The first wave of fame will cover the guys after the release of the song “Clouds”. Afterwards, the team will release more than one super hit, and their second studio album “Here and Now” will receive platinum status several times. However, very soon Asti will learn the other side of the coin.
The girl is distinguished by her curvy figure, which immediately attracts the attention of the press and envious people. Online, the young artist is called overweight. The criticism reaches Asti's ears and she takes it upon herself. Very soon the girl transforms and wipes the nose of the spiteful critics.
Asti in 2020
Asti today is one of the brightest performers in Russian show business. However, even taking into account the busy touring schedule and being busy at the studio, the girl manages to find the strength for entrepreneurial activity.
The artist’s projects include her own beauty salon, as well as a clothing collection. According to the artist, she herself does not understand how she manages to keep up with everything, because sometimes, due to the frantic rhythms, she cannot even eat normally.
However, the main topic of 2020 for Asti fans was not her business projects or even her latest tracks. The hottest news during this period was the change in Asti's personal life.
Personal life of singer Anastasia
Anastasia got married and gave birth to a girl while still studying at the Shchukin School. Today her daughter is also a mother, she has a little son - Anastasia’s grandson. The singer’s first husband was Alexei Mintskovsky, whom she had known since childhood. The marriage soon broke up. Today Anastasia Mintskovskaya is in her sixth marriage. Her husband and part-time producer is Vladimir Zudin.
Singer Anastasia returned to the stage
Anastasia believes that between family and career, she has a bias towards her career. Because of this, she rarely sees her grandson.
In 2011, the singer bought a large plot of land in the Tver region, sold her property and invested all the money in building a house. The area of the plot is one hectare, located in a pine forest. Living in nature, according to Anastasia, she has found peace of mind; there she takes a break from numerous marriages and quarrels with her father.
Anastasia has been coming to these places to participate in local holidays for 12 years; the poetess also lives there, on whose poems Anastasia wrote twenty songs. When the district administration offered her a plot of land, the main condition for the singer was its area. She didn’t just dream of a dacha; Mintskovskaya wanted it to be a real farm, with an area of at least a hectare. Her condition was satisfied. The setting of the dacha is very unusual. All furniture was brought from Ghana by Vladimir Zudin.
Personal life
Being a famous singer, Asti is in no hurry to show off her personal life. The press knows little about the star’s loves, and she herself rarely opens up in interviews.
It is known that, as a teenager, Anya Dzyuba did not always enjoy success with the opposite sex. However, at some point the attention of young people was attracted by the girl’s simplicity and openness. However, not everyone knows how to appreciate spiritual qualities that are so unusual by today’s standards.
Asti recalls how she found herself in a relationship with not the most honest young man. Once he even cheated on his girlfriend, she forgave him, but she no longer had the same trust in him. At some point, the couple quarreled again, and when Asti called a close friend for support, it turned out that he could not come because he was spending time with her friend. The response from a close friend hurt the singer to such an extent that she considered committing suicide.
The girl was stopped by thoughts of her parents. This episode greatly influenced Asti as a person, because now she prefers to solve problems without resorting to alcohol.
As for the artist’s current personal life, in 2020 Asti announced her upcoming wedding on her Instagram page. The singer's chosen one was a Moscow entrepreneur. He is 11 years older than the singer and has a daughter from his first marriage. For Asti, this will be the first officially formalized relationship.
Asti with her lover in Bali. Instagram @astiselfmade
Plastic surgery
Even being a real star, Asti never ceases to be honest with her fans. In 2018, the artist published a post on her Instagram page, where she admitted that she had undergone plastic surgery. According to the singer, she underwent liposuction of her abdomen and used the same fat deposits to enlarge her buttocks. Most of the star's subscribers highly appreciated the idol's sincerity, but there were also those who criticized Asti's further publications.
Asti admitted that she sought help from a plastic surgeon. Instagram @astiselfmade
According to haters, the girl resorted not only to removing fat from her abdomen and enlarging her buttocks. Evil tongues in the comments stated that she allegedly turned to “beauty doctors” for help more than once or twice.
