Viktoria Leléka
Viktoria Leléka | |
|---|---|
| Born | Viktoria Korniikova 10 November 1990 Pershotravensk, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Instrument | Vocals |
Viktoria Korniikova (born 10 November 1990), known professionally as Viktoria Leléka and Donbasgrl (stylized as DONBA₴GRL), is a Ukrainian composer and singer based in Berlin, Germany. She is the founder and lead vocalist of the folk jazz band Leléka.
Early life and education
She was born on 10 November 1990 in Pershotravensk, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukrainian SSR (now Shakhtarske, Ukraine).[1] Leléka received her Bachelor's degree in Performing Arts/Acting from Kyiv National I. K. Karpenko-Kary Theatre, Cinema and Television University.[2] She then studied jazz vocals at the Jazz Institute Berlin and later with Céline Rudolph at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber.[3]
Career
Leléka sang in the Berlin choir Young Voices Brandenburg and with the Big Band Flinstones in Berlin.[2] Also in 2016, she was a prize winner at the StuVo Jazz Contest 2016 (Berlin) in the category “unusual interpretation of a jazz standard”[3] and received a scholarship for the International Vocal Jazz Camp of the New York Voices.[2]
In 2016, Leléka founded the folk jazz band Leléka in Berlin with Robert Wienröder, Thomas Kolarczyk, and Jakob Hegner. With the group, Leléka won the Creole – Global Music Contest in 2017 and the European Young Jazz Talent Award at the Internationale Jazzwoche Burghausen in 2018;[4][5][6] she came in second place at the Young Munich Jazz Prize in 2019.[7] Roland Spiegel particularly praised her "voice with aura and a bright, soft sound full of captivating natural power."[8] Following the self-titled EP Leléka (2017), the quartet, which was also included in Ralf Dombrowski's book "111 Reasons to Love Jazz," released their debut album Tuman in 2019 with Povel Widestrand as the new pianist.[9] In September 2021, Leléka released their second album, Sonce u Serci, on GLM.[10]
In 2024, she launched the art-pop and electronic music project Donbasgrl, debuting with the single "Zbroya", based on a poem by Lesya Ukrainka, accompanied by a music video addressing themes of depression.[11]
In 2025, Donbasgrl was selected for the Eurosonic Noorderslag showcase festival in the Netherlands, where she performed a full set developed in collaboration with the German music producer Jakohitsdifferent.[12] The same year, on June 26th, she released the single "Zhyva", also produced with Jakohitsdifferent. Later that month, she headlined the Green Futures stage at the Glastonbury Festival in the United Kingdom.[12]
References
- ^ "Продовжую вас знайомити з собою". tiktok.com (in Ukrainian). 15 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
- ^ a b c "Viktoria Leleka Riga Jazz Stage Contestant". rigajazz.lv. Archived from the original on 18 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
- ^ a b "Leleka (Kurzporträt)".
- ^ Leleka
- ^ "Leleka (Webpräsenz)".
- ^ "Ethno-Jazz-Band Leléka aus Berlin gewinnt 10. Europäischen Nachwuchsjazzpreis".
- ^ "3 aus 34: 7. Junger Münchner Jazzpreis 2019 mit grandiosem Konzertfinale". Jazzzeitung.
- ^ "Festivalbericht Burghausen". Jazzthetik.
- ^ "Tuman". Bandcamp.
- ^ "Review". jazzfun.de.
- ^ Holovan, Daryna (31 May 2025). "Українка Donba₴grl виступить на фестивалі Glastonbury. Ось що вона зіграє" [Ukrainian artist Donba₴grl to perform at the Glastonbury Festival. Here is what she will play]. village.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
- ^ a b Dzhulay, Yelyzaveta (4 July 2025). "DONBASGRL презентувала новий трек на Glastonbury" [DONBASGRL premiered a new track at Glastonbury]. neformat.com.ua (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 18 December 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.