Kalush Orchestra is a Ukrainian folk-hip hop group founded in 2021 as a

side project In popular music, a side project is a project undertaken by one or more people already known for their involvement in another band. It can also be an artist or a band temporarily switching to a different style. Usually these projects emphasize ...

of Kalush, performing hip-hop music in the

Ukrainian language Ukrainian (, ) is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language, spoken primarily in Ukraine. It is the first language, first (native) language of a large majority of Ukrainians. Written Ukrainian uses the Ukrainian alphabet, a variant of t ...

. They represented Ukraine in the

Eurovision Song Contest 2022 The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country's victory at the with the song "" by Måneskin. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and h ...

with the song "

Stefania ''Stefania'' is a genus of frogs in the family Hemiphractidae. They are native to the highlands of the Guiana Shield in southern Venezuela, Guyana, and adjacent far northern Brazil. Most are restricted to the tepui highlands, but '' S. evansi'' ...

" and went on to win the competition, securing Ukraine's third Eurovision win. Kalush Orchestra combines elements of

Ukrainian folk music Ukrainian may refer or relate to: * Ukraine, a country in Eastern Europe * Ukrainians, an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine * Demographics of Ukraine * Ukrainian culture, composed of the material and spiritual values of the Ukrainian peopl ...

with modern production, hip-hop dance, and Ukrainian-language rap.

History

Creation

Kalush Orchestra was created in 2021 as a group of six musicians, as well as a side project of rap group Kalush, which was founded in 2019. The name comes from the city of Kalushfrontman

Oleh Psiuk Oleh Romanovych Psiuk (; born 16 May 1994), also known by his stage name Psiuchyi Syn ( – a portmanteau of his family name and ''suchyi syn'', ), is a Ukrainian rapper and songwriter, who is the founder and frontman of the rap group Kalush (r ...

's hometown in the

Ivano-Frankivsk Ivano-Frankivsk (, ), formerly Stanyslaviv, Stanislav and Stanisławów, is a city in western Ukraine. It serves as the administrative centre of Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast as well as Ivano-Frankivsk Raion within the oblast. Ivano-Frankivsk also host ...

region.

Eurovision Song Contest and subsequent ventures

On 12 February 2022, Kalush Orchestra competed to in the

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

with the song "". In the final of the national selection ''

Vidbir (, ; meaning "National selection"), informally known as , is a Ukraine, Ukrainian musical competition originally organized by Suspilne and STB (TV channel), STB, which determines the Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest, Ukrainian representati ...

'', they placed second with 14 points (six from the jury and eight from the audience). Alina Pash received the highest score of the jury - 8 points. The audience rated her performance 7 points. These results ultimately brought the singer the first place in the rating table. Despite coming in second place, the band were offered the chance to represent Ukraine at Eurovision, after Pash withdrew her candidacy due to controversy regarding her travel history in

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

. On 22 February, Kalush Orchestra accepted the offer. On the same day, the Ukrainian public broadcaster

Suspilne The National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine JSC (, ''NTSU''), also known as Suspilne (, , ) or previously UA:PBC, is the national public broadcaster of Ukraine. As such it was registered on 19 January 2017. The group won the Eurovision final on 14 May with 631 points, securing Ukraine's third Eurovision victory. "" became the first song with rap lyrics to win the contest, as well as the winning song with the highest number of televote points in the history of the contest. The group later announced that they would put their Eurovision trophy up for auction to raise money for the

Ukrainian armed forces The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are the Military, military forces of Ukraine. All military and security forces, including the Armed Forces, are under the command of the president of Ukraine and subject to oversight by a permanent Verkhovna Rad ...

. The trophy was sold for , with proceeds earmarked for purchase of combat drones for Ukraine's military. The group subsequently embarked on a promotional tour across Europe and North America to raise awareness and donations for Ukrainian efforts in combating the Russian invasion. In November 2022, the group performed "Oy na hori" and "Stefania" at the

2022 MTV Europe Music Awards The 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards were held on 13 November 2022 at the PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany. This marks the sixth time the award show is hosted in Germany. The show aired live on MTV with an hour long pre-show leading up to the ...

. On 12 July 2023, the group released "Chase" and "Human" as part of the

Spotify Singles Spotify (; ) is a Swedish audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services, with over 678 million monthly active users com ...

project. The tracks were recorded at Spotify Studios in Los Angeles. On July 14, 2023, a Spotify Singles billboard featuring the Kalush Orchestra appeared in

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...

. In June 2023, Kalush Orchestra presented their third English-language track title "In the Fire". In September 2023, the band released the first track "Vogon' goryt'", which means "the fire is burning" without the participation of Oleh Psiuk. The release was dedicated to an experimental mini-tour that took place in December 2023. In late September and early October 2023, the band held its first tour of Ukraine. The tour consisted of 12 concerts at which money was traditionally raised to help Ukraine. In November 2023, the band toured North America for the third time. On December 15, 2023, the band released the song "Tse liubov", which means "this is love" and its music video. In the clip, the artists were presented in new images. In February 2024 Kalush Orchestra released track and music video "Yangolom" with means "Angel" about love. On April 5, 2024, Kalush Orchestra released the song "Viter vie" and a music video for it.

Charity

On May 30, 2022, the award for winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 — the crystal microphone, was sold by "Kalush Orchestra" and Serhiy Prytula for $900,000 at a charity auction. This was the first time the trophy was sold in its history 647]. The trophy was acquired by the Ukrainian cryptocurrency exchange WhiteBIT. Also, at the auction, the pink panama hat of the band's lead singer was sold, raising 11 million hryvnias. The Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation announced that the funds raised would be spent on a PD-2 unmanned aerial complex for the Ukrainian army. On the eve of Independence Day, August 23, 2022, Kalush Orchestra announced a 24-hour fundraiser, collecting 24 hryvnias each for the rehabilitation of the defenders of Mariupol. They managed to raise 5 million hryvnias. Since August 2022, Kalush Orchestra has become ambassadors of the "Save Ukrainian Culture" project, initiated by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy and the operator Vodafone Ukraine. The band carries a unique QR code to their concerts, through which they collect funds for the reconstruction of destroyed cultural monuments. After a performance in the USA, Kalush Orchestra donated 330 thousand hryvnias for the restoration of the Hryhorii Skovoroda museum in Kharkiv region, which was almost completely burned down by the Russian military. In March 2023, MC KYLYMMEN became an artist of the star landing of the All-Ukrainian public initiative for the adaptation of displaced children "Ambassador of Childhood," providing psychological and social assistance to refugee children and displaced children. On March 30, 2023, Kalush Orchestra became ambassadors of the militarized police unit «Lut'» which means «Fury». In December 2023, the band, together with the "Peremoga" Charitable Foundation, implemented the project "Magical Mail of Saint Nicholas," aiming to fulfill the dreams of children affected by the war. MC KYLYMMEN personally selected and sent gifts to 50 children, totaling about 150,000 hryvnias. During their third tour of North America in 2023, the band raised 990,225 thousand hryvnias for charity. In January 2024, the band, together with the EKO-market store chain and the "Tvoya opora" charity fund, launched a fundraiser for water purification facilities to provide clean drinking water to the Kherson Regional Hospital. In one month, the goal of 1.9 million UAH was reached. In June 2024, the facilities were installed at the hospital.

Interesting facts

On October 6, 2022, members of the band met

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

and photographed him in a pink bucket hat. Later, Schwarzenegger appeared in the band's music video for the song "Shchedryi Vechir". On May 16, 2023, Kalush Orchestra performed at the Austrian World Summit upon Schwarzenegger's invitation, an event founded by the actor. On April 10, 2023, the company "

Ukrposhta The Public Joint-stock company, JSC Ukrainian Postal Service or Ukrposhta () is the national postal service of Ukraine. It is a public company with 100% state ownership due to its strategic importance. From 1999–2015 it was a unitary enterpris ...

" issued a new postage stamp featuring Kalush Orchestra in the hometown of the band's frontman, Oleh Psiuk, in Kalush, Ivano-Frankivsk region. On May 13, 2023, Kalush Orchestra opened the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool with the number "Voices of Generation." The introduction featured the song "Stefania" in a unique setting. The song "traveled" through various locations from Ukraine to Liverpool, journeying around the world from subways to chamber orchestras. Global stars, including British superstar

Joss Stone Joscelyn Eve Stoker (born 11 April 1987), known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, ''The Soul Sessions'', which made the 2004 Merc ...

and

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...

, joined the rappers.

Princess of Wales Princess of Wales (; ) is a title used since the 14th century by the wife of the Prince of Wales. The Princess is the apparent future queen consort, as "Prince of Wales" is a title reserved by custom for the heir apparent to the Monarchy of the ...

Kate Middleton Catherine, Princess of Wales (born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton; 9 January 1982), is a member of the British royal family. She is married to William, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the British throne. Born in Reading, Catherine grew u ...

also participated in the performance. Middleton was shown playing the piano accompanied by Kalush Orchestra and

Sam Ryder Sam Ryder Robinson (born 25 June 1989) is an English singer, songwriter, producer, composer and social media personality. He rose to prominence in 2020, after posting music covers on TikTok, during the COVID-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom, f ...

, who came in second place in Eurovision 2022. Apart from "Stefania," Kalush Orchestra also introduced their new English single "Changes". In December 2023, the band conducted a European mini-tour without the participation of the band's frontman Oleh Psiuk. In May 2022, the train on the route Kyiv-Ivano-Frankivsk received the official name "Stefania Express". This is the first train in the world to honor a mother in its name. The train at Kyiv, Kalush and Ivano-Frankivsk stations is greeted with the song "Stefania", which the band performed at the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy.

Members

Current members

lead singer The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

* vocals and instrumentals * vocals * Oleksandr Kondratiukvocals and instrumentals * instrumentals * MC KYLYMMEN

breakdance Breakdancing or breaking, also called b-boying (when performed by men) or b-girling (women), is a style of street dance originated by African Americans and Puerto Ricans in The Bronx borough of New York City. Breakdancing consists mainly ...

Discography

Singles

As featured artist

Awards and nominations

References

{{Authority control 2021 establishments in Ukraine Eurovision Song Contest winners Musical groups established in 2021 Pop-folk music groups Ukrainian anti-war activists Ukrainian hip-hop groups