Propelled to fame by a reality show, Timati has become most recognizable face of Russian rap.
It's midnight in the mirrored changing room of a night club on Novy Arbat. A posse of dancers and backing singers waits patiently for Russia's best-known rapper, Timati, who is due to perform at a corporate Christmas party.
Boys in baggy pants and hoodies practice dance moves, while a girl pouts in front of the mirror in a tiny skirt and patent high heels. When a song by Snoop Dogg starts up in the distance, they all mouth the lyrics.
As Timati makes his entrance, wearing a headband, a black beanie and sunglasses, the mood changes. The group runs up to him, performing a handshake choreography of various clicks, angles and slaps until the rapper feels that he has greeted everyone adequately.
Talking about his career, Timati said his background gives him the edge over his rivals. "In Russia I am the only real hip-hop and R&B performer. I grew up in Los Angeles, I know the culture from inside out, I know the music inside out," he said.
Timati, whose real name is Timur Yunusov, may be the closest that Russia has to a rap star. He was born in Moscow to a wealthy, ethnically mixed family -- his father is a Muslim and his mother is Jewish. His privileged background enabled him to spend three years studying in Los Angeles.
He became famous after appearing on the television talent contest "Star Factory" in 2004, although he didn't win. He and three other contestants were taken on by influential producer Igor Krutoi who formed a group called Banda. In 2006, he released a solo album and played the role of a rapper in the hit comedy film "Heat."
Today his MySpace site lists friends including P. Diddy. It posts a video clip of a collaboration with Xzibit, the rapper host of MTV's "Pimp My Ride," alongside the required tough, tattooed and topless photos.
And Timati is certain that Russia loves hip-hop, "Just last week, 50 Cent was packed; Beyonce was sold out [in October]," he said. "When Shaggy came here five years ago the seats in the cinema were less than half full. Interest in this music is definitely increasing."
The 24-year-old singer grew up listening to music by U.S. hip-hop artists Naughty by Nature and rapper MC Hammer and wanted to rap for as long as he could remember. He concedes that he came back to Russia -- where he raps in Russian -- because the U.S. hip-hop scene was too difficult to break into.
"I wanted to perform, but the market was full," he said. "At the end of the day, I am Russian and it's better for me to be in my own country and develop the genre there,"
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Despite the music's American roots, Timati insists that hip-hop and rap appeal to Russians. "This music is the music of today. Yes, a Russian person likes harmony and melody more than they do beat and rhythm," he said, "But there is a time for everything and many young people like this music. There's classical music, there's jazz, there's hip-hop -- each music has a time, and in Russia it's a time for hip-hop."
"The person that told you rap was popular in Russia lied," said music critic and popular blogger Maxim Kononenko. "Rap culture doesn't exist in Russia. Russians like a melody, a tune, this is not something they understand."
When asked about Timati, he retorted, "Who is Timati? He is just a socialite. Can you name one of his songs?"
Timati's hits include "In the Club," with its chorus, "Where are the best parties? In our club. Where are the best girls? In our club. Where do people live hip-hop? In our club."
The video to his catchy single "Dance with Me" features It-girl Ksenia Sobchak grinding against him, spliced with images from what purports to be a sex tape featuring the pair.
Despite his fame, Timati is not an influence on all Russian rappers. Careful not to be too rude about Timati, 26-year-old rapper Set just said, "He is not on my player. If I liked him, he'd be on my player." He added that, "I am just not that interested in rap about expensive cars and girls."
Set has a much more modest entourage than Timati. His studio is a room in the basement of Praktika Theater, a small experimental venue near Patriarch's Ponds. He met for an interview there while preparing for a concert at the theater.
The Krasnodar-born singer has been rapping since he was young. "Even my mother calls me by my stage name," he said, laughing. He explained that he wanted his stage name to be a strong sound, relevant in English and Russian.
Even though his English isn't strong enough to catch all the lyrics, Set said that he enjoys Western hip-hop. "I only understand maybe 70 percent of rap songs," he said, "but it's the bass and the tone that I love." He sees rap as an way of expressing himself. "Unlike in songs, you can fit in many more words," he explained. "I don't like to write about cars and girls."
He described one of his songs about a boy meeting his abusive father for the first time in years: "They sit in a cafО, and the boy realizes his dad has not changed and is still the same alcoholic he always was. When the dad asks about the mother the boy replies that she is dead and walks off."
Set is planning to start a record label with Praktika Theater to promote others like him. His latest song, "Rich Dad," has had airplay on Next FM, a station specializing in rap and R&B.
While Timati's lyrics are generally more lightweight, his rap also engages with the world around him to some extent. In a 2006 track called "Questions," he reflects on the news headlines and asks, "Why are we fighting in Chechnya? Who sponsors this campaign? I can't understand"
The song even brings up Yukos founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky, asking, "Why was Khodorkovsky investigated for two years and why is he now in jail?"
"I love the opportunity to write about things as they are," Timati said. "I like to write about politics, life, nightlife, I am not shy to talk about themes like sex the way it is, or like street life the way it is. There is a certain freedom to rap."
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