skip to content

Home

Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics

 

Cambridge Ukrainian Studies presents: A conversation with Alyona Alyona Ukraine’s foremost rap sensation!

aa

 

Cambridge Ukrainian Studies presents: A conversation with Alyona Alyona Ukraine’s foremost rap sensation!

10 May 2021 - 17:00 (BST)|The online event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Register in advance for this event at: http://bit.ly/alyona_alyona_mmll 

About Alyona Alyona:

Alyona Alyona (née Alyona Savranenko) will speak about her music and the rap scene in Ukraine. 

A former kindergarten principal in a suburb of Kyiv, alyona alyona rose to fame in 2018 when her single «Рибки» (“Rybky”; “Fish”) went viral on YouTube. By 2019, she released her debut album «Пушка» (“Pushka”; “Cannon”) that gained her the recognition of The New York Times (May 2019) as one of Europe’s 15 most important artists, musically and socially. It also led to a feature article in Vogue (April 2019), where alyona alyona was dubbed ‘Ukraine’s most Unlikely Rap Star’. Alyona uses her music to tell stories about the everyday, but in doing so she is breaking stereotypes, paving new paths and defining herself. According to The New York Times, “alyona alyona spits lightning-fast flows — and zero expletives. She also raps about tolerance and acceptance, which has gained her fans among progressive young people in Ukraine."

Alyona alyona’s debut album features the song «Як би я була не я» (“Yak by ya bula ne ya”; “If I was not I”), a primary study text in SL9: Introduction to Language, Literature, and Culture of Ukraine - a course offered at the University of Cambridge. As the rap artists herself put it: “I want to rap about everyday life, in my own language.”

But trust us, even if you don’t know a word of Ukrainian, you’ll be hooked!

Take a listen: