SHAMAN (real name Yaroslav Dronov) is one of the most popular singers in Russian show business. It is unlikely that there will be many artists with such talent. Thanks to vocal data, each work of Yaroslav gets its own character and personality. Songs performed by him immediately sink deep into the soul and remain there forever. In addition, the young man not only sings amazingly. He composes wonderful music, plays the guitar and piano virtuoso, acts in films and independently promotes his author's project "SHAMAN".
What happened in childhood
The singer is a native of the Tula region. He was born in the city of Novomoskovsk in the fall of 1991. The family of Yaroslav Dronov is creative. Mom has a beautiful voice and loves to sing. Father is a professional guitarist. And the artist's grandmother at one time was a member of the orchestra of the city of Orenburg (Lyudmila Zykina began her creative activity there).
The boy was simply destined to become a creative person. From an early age, he was distinguished by a clear and sonorous voice. The parents thought that the children's vocal ensemble would be an excellent place for the further development of their son's vocal abilities. Already at the age of four, little Yaroslav performed on stage. It was from that time that the active concert activity of the future star began.
SHAMAN: on the road to glory
Parents did not have to force the boy to engage in a vocal ensemble. The boy liked to work. He gladly enrolled in the music school of his native city of Novomoskovsk. There the boy was one of the best. Not a single regional music competition could do without his participation.
Yaroslav could break records in terms of the number of prize-winning places. But everything was not limited to regional events. Winning at local festivals, the guy automatically became a participant in all-Russian and even international competitions. From there, the young talent also always returned in the status of a prize-winner or winner.
School of Music
After graduating from a general education and parallel music school, Yaroslav Dronov entered the Novomoskovsk Music College. But, to the surprise of relatives and friends, the guy did not choose the vocal department. From a young age, he liked folk songs, which he himself performed with pleasure. Therefore, the choice for the guy was obvious. He decided to get the profession of the head of the folk choir.
In parallel with his studies at the school, Yaroslav began to earn extra money. He performed at local restaurants and clubs. The occupation brought not only a good income, but also popularity. A year later, the guy had no end to customers. Dozens of restaurant owners offered the guy a job, as visitors wanted to hear Dronov's performances.
Path to the capital
After graduating from a music school, Yaroslav Dronov decided that he would further develop his talent. But now the bar was higher. In 2011, the guy went to the capital and applied for entry into the famous Gnesinka. But here he was disappointed. From the first time, Yaroslav failed to enter the Academy of Music.
Despite all the makings, he did not pass the competition. But he did not give up, he decided to definitely become a student of RAM next year. Dronov did not return home to Novomoskovsk - he rented an apartment on the outskirts of Moscow and began performing in the capital's restaurants. The money from the performances was quite enough for a comfortable life. In 2011, Yaroslav's dream came true - he became a student at the Academy of Music, enrolling in the department of pop-jazz vocals.
Participation in musical projects
Once in the capital, Yaroslav Dronov realized that it was not so easy to become popular and break into show business here. All students of the academy dreamed of great fame and recognition. But only a few managed to do it. And the young man began to act. He was well aware that you need to "light up" so that people appreciate your talent. All sorts of television music shows were a great opportunity to do this.
Dronov in "Factor A"
When Yaroslav Dronov found out about the casting for the third season of the Factor A TV show, he did not think for a long time. He immediately applied for participation. Thanks to his talent and self-confidence, the guy went live. It so happened that the vocals of the young artist attracted the attention of the Primadonna. And immediately behind the scenes there was talk that Dronov was another favorite of Pugacheva. And no matter how the guy proved that these were all rumors, the attitude of other project participants towards him left much to be desired.
Fortunately and to the gloating of the Factor A contestants, Yaroslav took only third place in the show. But none of his performances were left without the praise of Alla Borisovna. It was Dronov that Pugacheva gave her nominal award - Alla's Golden Star. It was a great start for the development of a musical career. Well, plus to everything that happens - Yaroslav was noticed and appreciated his creative abilities.
Second place in "Voice"
After participating in Factor A, the young singer decided to participate in the third season of the Voice show (2014). At the "blind auditions" Dima Bilan and the famous performer Pelageya turned to Dronov. Yaroslav chose Pelagia. She was closer in spirit. The young singer easily managed to get to the live broadcasts, get to the quarterfinals, and then to the finals. The guy, unfortunately, did not become the winner, he took second place.
But, according to Yaroslav himself, victory was not the main goal. During the project, he was lucky to sing a duet with many Russian pop stars. And this is an invaluable experience for a novice artist. Another big plus was that Dronov had a lot of fans and even fans all over the country. Now he is recognizable. His pages on social networks were full of declarations of love and words of admiration for his voice.
Development of creativity
After the end of the Voice project, Dronov's career began to develop rapidly. He became the object of media attention. Frequent interviews, photo shoots, presentations and concerts made the singer even more popular. In 2014, he was offered to sing in the Rush Hour cover band. There Dronov successfully worked for three years. The team was in mega-demand, as a soloist of Dronov with the guys gave more than a thousand concerts throughout the country.
Solo project SHAMAN
In 2017, Yaroslav Dronov leaves the Rush Hour group. The guy thought that it was time to pursue a solo career. He creates his own YouTube channel and begins to actively upload covers of songs by famous artists. In a short time, Dronov managed to attract a huge audience of listeners to his work.
The recording studio "Atlantic Records Russia" offers the singer cooperation. Dronov, without thinking, agrees, because it is here that such famous personalities as Morgenstern, Dava, Emin, etc. are recorded.
From 2020 Yaroslav starts performing under the stage name SHAMAN. He decided to promote his project on his own. And, based on the number of views of his work, he does it quite well. As the singer says, he is his own master, and he produces himself as he sees fit. Recently, he has been working more and more on his own songs, for which he also composes music. On his channel, SHAMAN presented to the public the latest author's works, such as "Ice", "If you are not", "Remember", "Fly away". The tracks are very popular.
SHAMAN: the personal life of the artist
To date, journalists manage to find out a little about the singer's personal life. Yaroslav Dronov prefers not to talk about who he meets and what he does besides writing and performing songs. Even on his pages in social networks, SHAMAN publishes mostly his compositions. But this does not negate the fact that the singer is very popular among women. He is not only talented, but also charismatic, interesting in communication and distinguished by a culture of behavior.
But love in the life of an artist still happened. As you know, Dronov was married and even has a daughter, Varvara, who lives with his ex-wife. The love story of Yaroslav and Marina was touching, like in films. The guy fell in love with his teacher from a music school. For five long years he sought her attention. And finally, Marina responded to the feelings of the musician and agreed to marry him. But the union was short-lived. Distance prevented feelings and family idyll. Yaroslav left for Moscow to make his way into show business. The wife and child remained in Novomoskovsk. In 2017, the couple officially terminated the relationship.