Emil Kadyrov: ''I was supported by my family and the whole of Azerbaijan"

Emil Kadyrov is a baritone singer and one of the most prominent participants in the 'Voice’ project. He was born on June 25th 1993 in Baku. He graduated from the department of classical guitar at the Rashid Beybutov Music School. In 2009 he entered two departments at the Degtyarev Belgorod College of Music: classical guitar and academic vocal. In 2012 he was invited to participate in a contest of young performers of Romansiada Russian ballads, where several hundred participants were selected to take part in the final stage of the contest, which took place at the Hall of Columns. In 2013 he received an invitation to the Florida Atlantic University, one of the leading universities of the United States. Now he is studying in the Gnesin Russian Academy of Music in the departments of academic vocals and classical guitar, as well as taking part in productions of the opera studio at the Gnesin Russian Academy and play Onegin and Figaro.

Today Emil Kadyrov is in the Vestnik Kavkaza studio

– During the 'Voice' project you caught the fancy of viewers. Last Friday you were competing with Mikhail Ozerov to participate in the semifinals, but unfortunately dropped out. What was the reason for the defeat?

– I do not think that it was a defeat. Frankly speaking, all music competitions are very subjective. There were a lot of gifted participants at all the stages who dropped out. I was lucky to participate in the project because more than 12,000 applications were sent to the contest, and only a few participants performed in the quarterfinals of the contest. It is a huge victory and success for me to perform in the quarterfinals. All other things are subjective. Moreover, a large number of viewers, thousands of people sent messages and voted for me. I am thankful to them. It is a good achievement to receive such an audience after four performances.

– You chose the song 'Blue Eternity’ by Muslim Magomayev. What does it mean for you?

– Muslim Magomayev’s works mean a lot to me. I heard them it when I was a child, for example, in the 'Bremen Musicians' cartoon when I didn't sing or play music. Thanks to Muslim Magomayev I started singing, I engaged in music. That is why it was a symbolic decision to sing the song. I was dreaming about it for a long time, and my dream has come true. It is a great responsibility to perform such symbolic songs by such an outstanding singer. Moreover he is my countryman.

– Is 'The Voice' a show, or a contest?

– Certainly, it is a show. It's a beautiful show. Sometimes it is not clear why some participants win instead of others. Of course, I am not speaking about myself. I cannot say if that is good or not. Everyone takes as much as he can in this project.

– What have you receive after the project?

– This is a huge audience, the whole country, the whole of Europe. Those who watched 'The Voice', as well as those who just like my work, usually come to my concerts, write posts on social networks, leave comments. It is a springboard for my career and for my live performances.

– Many interesting moments often remain offscreen. What interesting moments can you remember?

– Everything started when I sent the request. Then I was wondering whether they would call me and invite to the casting or not. I was called in June and I was waiting for this day all the summer. I went to the audition on August 4th. I was chosen from a large number of artists who also came to Ostankino. This is a great test, which lasted nearly six months.

And there were a lot of interesting things. The most interesting thing was the first blind audition. You realize that you are on stage, but you don’t hear if anybody has turned to you. You are in such a euphoria. You sing, and at this time Gradsky is turning, you can see that he is next to you. I cannot express these emotions.

– What relations are there between the participants of the show? Are there any secret intrigues?

– There aren't any particular intrigues. We are all in equal conditions. We all became friends during the time we spent on the project. I think we will continue to maintain such relations after the project. We invite each other to our concerts. If I have a recital I invite my friends from the project. If they have one, in this case they invite me. We didn’t have any intrigues or disagreements.

– What did you feel when standing in front of the back seat?

– It was unusual to sing in front of people who are sitting back to you. Prior to 'The Voice' I had recitals in Moscow. People came, listened, some even liked the way I did it. It is difficult to say what I felt at that moment. They were two and a half minutes which I will remember all my life.

– Alexander Gradsky became your mentor. Why did you choose him?

– He is the only one of all the jury members who is participating in the fourth season of the project. He is the project all day and all night long. He could call me in the morning and say: "Emil, let's sing this song," or "Let's not sing that one'', or even "Let's sing it in a different way." He lives in the project, he sincerely empathizes and talks with us. And we can also call him after the project at any time.

– How did you choose the songs for your performances?

– We came to a consensus what to perform. He would propose some songs. I would be thinking whether they are worth singing or not. Whether I would cope with them or not. I also proposed some songs. We selected the repertoire together.

How do you assess the refereeing and what can you tell us about the other mentors?

– I took advantage only of Alexander Gradsky’s recommendations. We talked. They are all wonderful people, good singers, but still there was only one teacher. He is a teacher and a mentor.

– If it were possible to turn back time and start again, what would you have changed?

– Nothing. Each stage of the competition, starting from the blind auditions, I had a plan that I would like to sing. The only thing that I could not even imagine was that I could sing country music, because I had never performed it. But thanks to Alexander Borisovich I revealed a new style, which now I can perform live.

– Who supported you?

– My family and the whole of Azerbaijan, my home city of Baku. Many people continue to call me and write messages.

– Has participating in the competition changed your life?

– Some extra performances and new acquaintances appeared, but in principle I do what I did before the project. It is my concert activity. I would not like to tell about some radical changes, because you start calming down. You start thinking that everything has already happened, the project ended, the best things have passed. No, the best is in my work and my concert programs.

– How did you engage in music?

– I was ten years old and I wanted to play the guitar. Thanks to my mom, who supported me and then drove me to a music school. It was not so close. But for my mother I would not have gone on the stage and succeeded in it.

– Have people started recognizing you after the project?

– Yes, they have. And it always surprises me. Because I watched 'The Voice’ rarely. But people watch, it is a very popular show. 

– How did you decide to participate in the show?

– It was a dream of mine, because I have always been convinced that every artist, every singer needs access to the TV. No other way. And the dream has come true.

– You performed in different genres at the competition. Which of them do you prefer?

– Some participants sing in one style. As for me, I had Latin American music in my blind audition performance, then a Russian ballad, then country, American kind of music. We tried to show all that I can do in the context of four programs. I like good music, and I try to perform only high-quality music of all genres.

– Do you like Azerbaijani national music? Is it involved in your program?

– Certainly, it is my blood, that's what runs in my veins. I love Azerbaijani national music and I try to sing songs in the Azerbaijani language when I perform. I try to use national instruments and make interesting arrangements.

– What are your plans?

– I want to go on tour in Russia.

– Could you tell us about your festival in Indonesia?

– The Russian Embassy in Indonesia gathers friends on May 9th. We are organizing this festival jointly with the embassy. The festival has been held for three or even four years on May 9th, Victory Day. My friends and I fly to Indonesia to perform and congratulate our compatriots on this great holiday. The event is attended by many representatives and all the embassies of CIS.

– Do you have plans to perform in Baku?

– Yes, I would like to perform in Baku, but we'll see how it will be organized. It is not easy to organize a concert. It is necessary to receive some investment and solve organizational issues.

– Are you going to build your career in Russia, Azerbaijan, or somewhere else?

– Azerbaijan is my birthplace. I travel there with great pleasure. I try not to focus on one city or one country, despite the fact I perform in Baku, or Moscow. Now I live in Moscow, but if I receive an invitation I can be in Baku in a few hours. And the distance does play the main role. Therefore, I can be here and there.

– Do you manage to combine study and work?

– I do, but it is not easy.

– How do you like to spend your spare time?

– I don’t have spare time at all.

– What about some spare minutes, or hours?

– I try to go to the gym. I need to be in good shape because the load is huge, especially the psychological stress. There are 700-800 people in the studios of 'The Voice’ project, but you realize that more than forty million people may watch you on TV. It is terrible to think about it. In addition, constant concerts, constant performances to the public. Every day you need to be on stage. The hardest part is to give recitals. When you sing several songs it is usually three, four, or five minutes. But when you go out for an hour and a half, you have to keep the audience's attention on yourself. It's very hard to do.

– How do you try to concentrate on shows. Do you have any rituals, or a talisman that you carry with you?

- I don’t.

- Do you have accounts on any social networks? Do you have an Instagram?

- Certainly I have. This is a trend of our time. My assistants help me who are engaged in my group on Facebook and Vkontakte. I have assistants who work on the site. Some of them post photos. Some of them I upload personally.

– What singers or band are on your playlist? Your favorite artists, tracks?

– A lot of different music, from pop music to Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky and other great composers. I listen to a lot of music, but the main criteria is quality.

– Who is your favorite representative of the Russian and Soviet variety performers?

– Muslim Magomayev. He was an example of a man for me who sang a lot of varied music. This is the first person who started to sing in English in the Soviet Union. He sang in Russian and English and Italian. I  would like to continue this tradition of diversity in terms of music.

– How do you plan to celebrate the New Year?

– I have a lot of concerts. I have two concerts in the big hall of the 'Planet of KVN' on January 1st. These are ordinary concerts, as it is too hard to give recitals on January 1st.  And I will try to refuse concerts on December 31st and celebrate the New Year with my family.