Sofia Rotaru

Who is Sofia Rotaru?

Sofiya Mykhaylivna Yevdokymenko-Rotaru, known as Sofia Rotaru, is a former Soviet and current Ukrainian pop singer of Romanian descent.

Rotaru, nicknamed Bukovinsky Solovey, emerged in 1966 as a pop folk star in the movie Solovey iz sela Marshintsy in the Romanian and Ukrainian-speaking world after her manager and future husband Anatoliy Yevdokymenko made her change her music style from folk to pop music with Chervona Ruta.

In 1972, Sofia released the multilingual album Sofia Rotaru, re-released three times and covered by numerous singers, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in the countries of the former Soviet Union. Rotaru had first gained international recognition after participating in 1968 in the International Youth Song Festival in Bulgaria and winning first prize at the Golden Orpheus in 1973 and second prize in the category of Polish songs at the Sopot International Song Festival in 1974. In the former USSR her career was marked by her stage success and numerous controversies. Rotaru has been acknowledged by the Kiev Patriarchate.