TEMA (group)
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| TEMA | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Asya Arhipova |
| Also known as | Asia |
| Origin |  Russia |
| Genre(s) | Electronica |
| Years active | 2004 – present |
| Label(s) | none |
| Website | http://supertema.ru/ |
| Members | |
| Asya | |
| Former members | |
| Sasha Anohina Nastia Kotova Alia Mary |
|
Contents |
[edit] Original TEMA
TEMA was created by Maugly Jr., a former rapper turned musical producer, in May 2004. The two members were Sasha Anohina and Nastia Kotova. Their debut album, released on July 27, 2005, on "Nikitin Records" was titled "Просто Я Фанатка" (Prosto Ya Fanatka), meaning "I'm Just A Fan." Two official music videos were released for the album, for the song titled "Это Тема!" (Eto Tema!, or What An Idea!), and "Lyubov Vnutrivenno" (Love Introvenously) which shows Sasha and Nastia being rejected by their idols. In the video for "Это Тема!", Ivan Shapovalov (t.A.T.u.'s former producer) acts with Sasha, and the two appear to be having sex. A third video was made, but never commercially released, because Sasha Anohina, and Nastia Kotova were kicked out of TEMA.
Their first song "Kto Esli Ne Ya?" caused many t.A.T.u. fans to think it was them, because TEMA's vocals sounded almost identicle to t.A.T.u.'s. This rumor was later confirmed by t.A.T.u.'s management that the song was not by t.A.T.u. TEMA's management quickly capatalized by this PR move, which landed the TEMA girls (Anohina and Kotova) on MUZ-TV, talking about their song. In all truth, TEMA quite often gets a lot of criticism for being "too much" like t.A.T.u., because both groups were an all girl duet, both sang about powerful themes, and both released cutting edge pop music throughout Russia.
During the year of 2005, tension grew between the ТЕМА girls, their producer (Maugly Jr.) and the company. On an unknown date, Sasha and Nastia decided to leave the studio, and went along with their PR manager, Natalia Kulesh. They attempted to negotiate contracts behind Maugly Jr.'s back, which forced him to take action. He denied them allowance to the name "ТЕМА", and restricted them from singing any of the songs that were produced under his name. This was a devastating blow, due mainly to the fact that almost all of TEMA's music was created by Maugly Jr.
After this, the former TEMA girls (Anohina and Kotova) struggled to regain their fame. They changed their name too many times to count... OXI, DNK, TE MA, TE MY, and more were created, but never trademarked, or even used for that matter. The ex TEMA girls (still under Natalia Kulesh at this time) recorded one song called "Za Proschayu." They were also going to release an English Variant of the song by english song writer Steven Blake and that was called "Lost" The music was done by the late Alexander Kuroedov (the musician behind TEMA's hits "Eto TEMA, and Radiatsia) though this song was never released, because Natalia Kulesh realized she did not have the resources to be the producer of the project.
The girls then went to Alexander Bondarev... A relatively unknown Russian PR man. He promised the girls that he could once again get them on the radio, and more. He released a statement on Russian news sources that TEMA would be back in the fall with a new song "Devochka Problema," though this song was never even recorded. The girls (Anohina and Kotova) soon realized that all of their "so-called" producers did not have the resources, or the know how to produce them.
For a long time, it was silence for these girls. Although, in 2007, it was definite that the old TEMA girls would not be back in TEMA. Now, they plan to record new songs under a new group name "COM'MA and are gathering material for a new album.
[edit] Discography
- 2005 Просто Я Фанатка (Prosto Ya Fanatka)
[edit] Non-Album Tracks
- Menya Vstavlyaet (Appears on the "Kto, Esli Ne Ya?" Digital Single)
- Davai Splusuyemsa (Appears on the "Kto, Esli Ne Ya?" Digital Single)
- Radiatsia (Unreleased)
More songs were recorded, but not released as "TEMA." Therefore, they will not be listed here, so fans won't become confused.
[edit] TEMA, Attempt two
After the complications with the former TEMA girls, producer (Maugly Jr.) promised fans that TEMA would live on, but with new girls. Maugly Jr. let out a casting call to find two new girls through supertema.ru and 1mp.ru. He did in fact find them... The two new girls were Alia and Mary. Alia (A war correspondent for the РИА Новости news agency in Russia) & Mary (A Japanese girl, who sings Japanese in the songs).
Their first (and only) song together was entitled "Pozvonyu" (I'll Call.) This song is about a friendship that was ripped at the seams by betrayal. Music and lyrics were created by Maugly Jr., and this song was said to be about the ex TEMA girls (Anohina and Kotova.) The song strayed from TEMA's standard uptempo fierce pop sound, though it was much more complex, vocally. In fact, it utilized vocal techniques that were never used by the ex TEMA group.
Shortly after the songs release in 2005, Alia had to leave on a business trip with her news agency. This would have been okay, but a horrible incident happened a little bit later... Maugly Jr. was attacked in the streets of Moscow in broad daylight. This worried Mary's father, who already feared about his daughter's safety in Moscow. It came as no surprise when Mary's father forced Mary to return to Japan, which of course ended the 2nd lineup of TEMA.
[edit] Non-Album Tracks
- Pozvonu (I'll Call)
[edit] Current TEMA... 3rd Time's a Charm!
Now that all of the drama has passed, it was time to begin anew. Maugly Jr. let out a 2nd casting call, to find the new "TEMA." Lots of letters came in to Maugly Jr. and Frederick Newton, but only one girl was used... Her name is simply "Asya." Her first song (entitled "Bei Ili Begi" (Hit or Run) was released on January 5th, 2007. The song features an uptempo beat, set to a driving guitar rhythm. Music and lyrics were created once again by Maugly Jr. For the first time in years, the TEMA project is moving.
Moving indeed! In fact, much faster than before. Asya possesses the building blocks of a great performer... a decent voice, with a strong work ethic. Fans have complained that the new song sounds nothing like the old TEMA, but songs are already being planned, which will please even the old TEMA fans.
Aside from Maugly Jr., the new TEMA is helped by songwriter/consultant Frederick Newton, under the pseudonym tAO. Both of these men help create a pop group which is rich in talent, and thought. Recently, TEMA announced that they will create a "Street Team" to help regain the fans of the past, and new ones for the future. News updates are constantly given on the websites superTEMA, TEMA on MySpace, and tAO.
