Haytana
Encyclopedia
Gaitana Essami born on 29 September 1979 in Kiev
), is a Ukrainian
singer and songwriter, the only Afro-Ukrainian celebrity in the country. Her music combines elements of jazz
, funk
, soul
, and folk music
.
Gaitana was born in Kiev, at the time in the Ukrainian SSR
of the Soviet Union
(in present-day Ukraine
), but subsequently moved to the Congo where her father, Klaver Essami, was born. She lived there for five years. Afterward, Gaitana moved back to Ukraine with her mother, but her father stayed in Brazzaville
where he holds a transportation business. According to the Female Magazine (Ukraine) her father is a chief of the Congo telecommunications.
She sings in Ukrainian, English, Russian, but she also knows French and Lingala. Gaitana has a degree in economics from a lyceum of Economics. When she was younger Gaitana finished a music school where she played on saxophone
. All her music and songs she composes by herself. She is the candidate to master of sport in table tennis
. Other sports that get her involved include, but not limited are fitness and mount cycling. Her full name is Gaita-Lurdes. She has a pet, the dog Pipita. Gaitana has a collection of purses.
She can be claimed a pioneer in the Ukrainian R&B, particularly in her song The Lonely Pose (youtube). In the song can traced elements of jazz and pop-music.
Gaitana was a guest performer at Kvartal-95.
Albums
Singles
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
), is a Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
singer and songwriter, the only Afro-Ukrainian celebrity in the country. Her music combines elements of jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, and folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
.
Gaitana was born in Kiev, at the time in the Ukrainian SSR
Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 to the breakup in 1991...
of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
(in present-day Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
), but subsequently moved to the Congo where her father, Klaver Essami, was born. She lived there for five years. Afterward, Gaitana moved back to Ukraine with her mother, but her father stayed in Brazzaville
Brazzaville
-Transport:The city is home to Maya-Maya Airport and a railway station on the Congo-Ocean Railway. It is also an important river port, with ferries sailing to Kinshasa and to Bangui via Impfondo...
where he holds a transportation business. According to the Female Magazine (Ukraine) her father is a chief of the Congo telecommunications.
She sings in Ukrainian, English, Russian, but she also knows French and Lingala. Gaitana has a degree in economics from a lyceum of Economics. When she was younger Gaitana finished a music school where she played on saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
. All her music and songs she composes by herself. She is the candidate to master of sport in table tennis
Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
. Other sports that get her involved include, but not limited are fitness and mount cycling. Her full name is Gaita-Lurdes. She has a pet, the dog Pipita. Gaitana has a collection of purses.
She can be claimed a pioneer in the Ukrainian R&B, particularly in her song The Lonely Pose (youtube). In the song can traced elements of jazz and pop-music.
Gaitana was a guest performer at Kvartal-95.
Discography
Demo- ???? - Demo (Demo)
Albums
- 2003 - О тебе (About You) - Гайтана & Unity
- 2005 - Слідом за тобою (Following You)
- 2007 - Капли дождя (Raindrops)
- 2008 - Kукaбaррa (Kukabarra) [Songs for children]
- 2008 - Тайные желания (Secret Desires)
- 2010 - Только сегодня (Only Today)
Singles
- 2006 - Двa вiкнa (Two windows) [Single]
- 2007 - Шaленій (Go Crazy) [Single]
- 2009 - Нeщoдaвнo (Lately) [Single] - Гайтана та Стас Конкін
Awards
- Showbiz award
- Best European Star (special award)
- Ukrainian Music Awards
- Best female singer 2000
- Best album 2000