“When I was 18 I went to South Korea to sing. I was sent there by my music teacher from Vrabchetata, Adriana Venkova. I had the all-out support of my family; the work load was enormous but it is important for an artist to accumulate experience. And after all that time I returned to Bulgaria. I became a singer and realized my place was here.”
Her private life took to Denmark for some time. There, she took part in the local X Factor for the first time, but was not successful. Two years later she came back to Sofia where she settled with her family.
“Since I’ve been back in Bulgaria, I’ve performed at the Swingin’ Hall club in Sofia every night,” Zhana Bergendorf says. “I am very grateful to all musicians I have performed with – Stoyan Yankulov-Stundji, Villy Stoyanov, Misho Yossifov and other talented instrumentalists. They taught me all the subtleties of singing, made me feel at home on stage. They got me interested in jazz – a new genre for me.”
Last year Zhana Bergendorf auditioned for the Bulgarian version of X Factor. She reached the finals, alongside Anna-Maria Yanakieva and Atanas Kolev-Nasko, who came 3rd and 2nd respectively. At the X factor finals on December 20, Zhana Bergendorf won first place.
“I had to learn how to be natural on camera,” the singer says. “To begin with it was a great shock to me; with so many people watching the strain was enormous. But I overcame my fear. And all the time, my incentive was my four-year old son Leon. When I came on stage I always thought of him.”
Zhana Bergendorf recently returned from London where she recorded her debut single:
“Everything that my life is today is thanks to my Virginia Records producer, Sanya Armoutlieva. We went to London twice, and I was lucky enough to work with one of the leading European independent studios Metropolis. There I met some of the foremost names in the music industry, like Ray Hedges and Nigel Butler who are highly successful composers and producers in the UK. When they heard my single Samurai they suggested I record an English-language version called Remember Me.When I heard the music, I literally fell in love with the song. The lyrics to Samurai are by Rushi Videnliev and I want to thank him for tailoring the words especially for me.”
A video to Samurai, was made a month ago, using the cutting-edge hi-end technology, used also in the making of Kylie Minogue’s surreal videos.
English version: Milena Daynova
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