Gelena Velikanova

Gelena Velikanova was a famous Soviet and Russian poet and translator, who became the first pop singer to be awarded the prestigious title of People's Artist of the USSR in 1965. She was brought up in Odessa, where she started her stage career as an acrobat and a stand up comedian. In the 1920s, she moved to Leningrad and set up one of the first Soviet jazz bands, collaborating with the composer Isaak Dunayevsky. She performed a variety of musical styles, ranging from Russian folk songs to American jazz and Argentine tango. She co-starred with Lyubov Orlova in the comedy Jolly Fellows, where she performed her hit song "Serdtse" (Heart). During World War II, she performed on the front lines, helping lift the spirits of the Soviet soldiers. She lived in Moscow for the rest of her life, and remained a popular and beloved figure of Soviet culture. She died of heart failure in 1998, and was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery. [1]