Svoy
Mikhail Tarasov (Russian: Михаи́л Тара́сов), better known by his stage name Svoy (which can be loosely translated as "self-contained"), is an American producer/writer/artist for Universal Music Group[2] in the genre of pop/electronica. He has ten self-produced albums released via Mack Avenue Records/Sony Music Entertainment[3] formerly known as Rendezvous Entertainment belonging to multi Grammy-nominated RIAA Gold-certified musician/media mogul Dave Koz and legendary radio chief executive/record producer Frank Cody, P-Vine Records/Blues Interactions,[4] Thistime Records[5] and Songs of Universal/Universal Music Group, Inc.,[6] respectively.
Svoy | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mikhail Tarasov |
| Also known as | Misha Tarasov; Svoy |
| Born | 18 March 1980 |
| Origin | Vladivostok, Russian Federation |
| Genres | Electronica[1] EDM Alternative Pop Indie Rock Ambient Experimental |
| Occupation(s) | Music producer singer songwriter poet keyboardist pianist visual artist |
| Instruments | Vocals Piano Electronic Keyboard Digital Audio Workstation |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Labels | Universal Music Group Songs of Universal Rendezvous Entertainment Mack Avenue Records P-Vine Records Thistime Records |
| Associated acts | Adam Levy Kenny Garrett Meshell Ndegeocello Ilya Lagutenko Mumiy Troll |
| Website | svoy |
In 2009, his single "Beautiful Thing" reached No. 69 on the Billboard Japan Hot TOP 100 Airplay and No. 82 on Billboard Japan Hot 100 Singles[7] chart. Besides remaining in top 40 and 100 airplay charts of numerous major Japanese radio networks for over 8 weeks, the song peaked at No. 3 on Alpha Station FM Kyoto 89.4's TOP 40 Overseas Chart.[8] Also in 2009, Svoy's album Automatons reached No. 100 on the Billboard Japan Top Independent Albums and Singles chart.
In 2011, Automatons and its title track were nominated for Best Dance/Electronica Album and Best Dance/Electronica Song at The 10th Independent Music Awards,[9] and won in the latter category.[10] He won the 10th IMA's Vox Populi in both categories.[11] 10th Independent Music Awards judging panel included Seal, Fall Out Boy, Portishead, McCoy Tyner, Counting Crows, Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, Suzanne Vega, Jesse Harris, Tom Waits, Aimee Mann, Jonatha Brooke among other artists and music industry professionals.[12]
In 2004, Svoy won the BMI John Lennon Award for songwriters and received the award from Yoko Ono.[13]
In 2002, he won BMI Pete Carpenter Fellowship for film composers, that led to studying with multi Grammy and Emmy-winning composer Mike Post and Atli Orvarsson for one month at Post's studio in Los Angeles.[14]
In late 2012, Svoy collaborated on an electronic production/arrangement of a song with multi Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Meshell Ndegeocello and Grammy-nominated The Roots' bassist Mark Kelley for an upcoming album of jazz artist Claudia Acuna. In 2013, Svoy co-wrote a string arrangement with Kenny Garrett for his Grammy-nominated 2013 album Pushing the World Away and made a vocalist appearance on Garrett's 2012 multi Grammy-nominated album Seeds from the Underground. In 2016, Svoy collaborated with Garrett on an electronic jazz album and the record is awaiting release. Song "I'm Breaking", written by Eurovision Music Awards-winning songwriter Demir Demirkan and Svoy, was released as part of Demirkan's 2019 album Elysium on Ashes.
In 2015, aside from continuing to release regular studio albums, Svoy began work on ongoing experimental vocal electronic Symphony series and by 2019 has released five such pieces containing ten movements each.[15][16]
Over the course of his career, Svoy has collaborated with Grammy-winning artist Kenny Garrett, multi Grammy-nominated artist Meshell Ndegeocello, multi Grammy-winning artist Lenny White, Grammy-winning artist Manuel Seal, Demir Demirkan, Claudia Acuna, Raul Midon, Adam Levy, Sergio Galoyan and Ilya Lagutenko, among other artists. Svoy is a voting member for The Recording Academy (responsible for the Grammy Awards), a Yamaha Digital Artist,[17] a Berklee College of Music and Gnessin Russian Academy of Music scholarship recipient/graduate.
New York music critics Jack Rabid of The Big Takeover Magazine and Jesse Seilhan of TheCelebrityCafe.com describe Svoy as a "...Robot-driven repetitive-trance big-dance-rhythm cold synth-pop modern-chart soul futuristic electro-disco techno meister" and an artist who "...Is not afraid to explore" with Tower Records Japan dubbing him "...Electropop prince" and Timmy Kusnierek of YourEDM calling him "...One of the most accomplished experimental electronic artists", as well as his music "...An incredibly forward-thinking production that's beyond description". In addition, Meshell Ndegeocello described his music as "...Modern and moves".
In 2009, Svoy was granted a Green Card in the United States as an Alien of Extraordinary Ability and became a naturalized United States citizen in 2017. Svoy resides in New York City.
Discography
Solo albums
| Year | Album | Chart peak positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan Top Independent Albums and Singles | |||||
| 2005 | Eclectric | - | |||
| 2009 | Automatons | 100 | |||
| 2010 | Et Al. (unreleased) | - | |||
| 2011 | Grow Up | - | |||
| 2014 | Lovedsolved | - | |||
| 2017 | Beautifulie | - | |||
| 2018 | Raw (unreleased) | - | |||
Symphony albums
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 2015 | Symphony No. 1: What Happened When I Was Asleep |
| 2016 | Symphony No. 2: Amurdeswa |
| 2016 | Symphony No. 3: 321 |
| 2018 | Symphony No. 4: FRea |
| 2019 | Symphony No. 5: Tocktick |
EPs
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 2009 | Consequence EP 1.0 |
| 2012 | Solved EP |
| 2014 | Lovedso EP |
Compilations
| Year | Album |
|---|---|
| 2012 | Yours, Svoy: The Best of 2005-2012 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan Hot 100 Airplay |
Japan Hot 100 Singles | |||
| 2007 | "Driving Away" | — | — | Eclectric |
| 2009 | "Beautiful Thing" | 69 | 82 | Automatons |
| 2009 | "I Don't Love (LIVE Acoustic)" | I Don't Love (LIVE Acoustic) | ||
| 2011 | "Never Grow Up" | — | — | Grow Up |
| 2011 | "Right Here, Right Now" | — | — | Grow Up |
| 2012 | "Navsegda" | — | — | Navsegda |
| 2015 | "Waiting for You" | — | — | Symphony No.1: What Happened When I Was Asleep |
Collaborations
| Year | Artist | Album | Credit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Kenny Garrett | Seeds from the Underground | vocals |
| 2013 | Kenny Garrett | Pushing the World Away | string arrangement |
| TBA | Claudia Acuña | Futuro | co-production with Meshell Ndegeocello and Mark Kelley, keyboard & drum programming |
| 2019 | Demir Demirkan | Elysium on Ashes | co-write of the song "I'm Breaking" |
Awards and Nominations
| Year | Result | Award | Category | Work |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Won | BMI Pete Carpenter Award | Film/TV Music | original instrumental composition |
| 2004 | Won | BMI John Lennon Award | Songwriting | original song |
| 2003 | Won | Berklee Performance Award | Jazz Piano | jazz piano performance |
| 2011 | Nominated | Independent Music Awards | Best Electronica/Dance Album | Automatons |
| 2011 | Won | Independent Music Awards | Best Electronica/Dance Song | Automatons |
| 2011 | Won | Independent Music Awards Vox Populi | Best Electronica/Dance Album | Automatons |
| 2011 | Won | Independent Music Awards Vox Populi | Best Electronica/Dance Song | Automatons |
References
- "Svoy Myspace".
- "Svoy Universal Music Group profile".
- "Mack Avenue Records". Archived from the original on 18 March 2013.
- "P-Vine Records".
- "Thistime Records".
- "Universal Music Group".
- "aCharts.us".
- "FM Kyoto Overseas TOP 40 September 6, 2009".
- "Svoy Independent Music Awards Profile/Interview".
- "10th Independent Music Awards Winners".
- "10th Independent Music Awards Vox Populi".
- "10th Independent Music Awards Judges".
- "BMI Announces John Lennon Winners".
- "BMI Announces Pete Carpenter Winners".
- "Svoy – "Waiting for You" (audio) (Premiere)".
- "Your EDM Premiere: Svoy – Symphony No. 1: What Happened When I Was Asleep".
- "Yamaha Digital Music Artists".