Julia Volkova

1985–1994: Early years and career beginning

Volkova was born on 20 February 1985 in Moscow, Russia, to a middle-class family. Her father, Oleg Volkov, was a businessman and her mother, Larissa Volkova, was a hairdresser. At the age of 6, Volkova enrolled in music school and began learning how to play the piano. When she was 9, she became a member of Russia's children's chorus Neposedy, where she would meet future fellow t.A.T.u. singer, Lena Katina. At age 11, Volkova transferred to a school fostering artistic talent, and three years later left Neposedy to join t.A.T.u. She has insisted that she was banned from Neposedy for misbehaving, but Neposedy representatives deny this, saying that she simply graduated as all of their members did at a certain age.

Yulia Olegovna Volkova (born 20 February 1985), better known by the alternative spelling of Julia, is a Russian singer best known for being a member of the Russian girl group t.A.T.u., along with Lena Katina. Formed in Moscow, Russia by Ivan Shapovalov in March 1999, the group signed a record deal with Universal Music Russia, and eventually Universal's sub-label Interscope Records in 2001.

The group's first single, "All the Things She Said", topped the charts in countries including Australia, Austria, Denmark, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United States, and the United Kingdom, but also generated controversy due to the girls kissing onscreen. The group recorded three studio albums in English, including their bestselling 200 km/h in the Wrong Lane, three Russian albums, and four compilation albums.