Onuka (Ukrainian electro-folk band by Yevhen Filatov & Nata Zhyzhchenko).

This is my first conversation with Nata Zhyzhchenko. It took place in July 2024 from her home in Ukraine.
Onuka ("granddaughter" in Ukrainian) is a Ukrainian electro-folk band. The project was created in 2013 by Yevhen Filatov and Nata Zhyzhchenko. Other group members are Daryna Sert (keyboardist and backing vocalist), Mariia Sorokina (percussionist) and Yevhen Yovenko (banduryst). The band's instrumentation includes electronic drums, trombones, French horns and Ukrainian folk instruments bandura and sopilka.
History: The Ukrainian word onuka translates to "granddaughter", a tribute to lead singer Zhyzhchenko's grandfather and folk music instrument maker Oleksandr Shlionchyk. Zhyzhchenko started her music career as a member of the band Tomato Jaws, a band that she started with her brother. Tomato Jaws were active for 11 years. Several of its songs were remixed by Filatov's band The Maneken, ultimately leading to the creation of Onuka. Lead singer Nata Zhyzhchenko believes that she can revitalize old traditions and classic folk instruments (such as the bandura and sopilka), which disappeared in the Soviet times.
Onuka's debut album was released on October 15, 2014, and it became the best-selling record of the month in Ukraine's iTunes. Their first EP, Look, was released on May 15 and debuted at #1 in iTunes Ukraine. They released a second EP, Vidlik on February 8, 2016. Zhyzhchenko cites the Chernobyl disaster and its impact on Ukraine as a major influence on the album. The EP's name, Vidlik, means a new beginning, or countdown.
In 2017, Onuka was featured in an interval act at the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest, performing with the NAONI folk orchestra.
Discography
Studio albums
Onuka - Released: 15 October 2014
Mozaїka - Released: 22 March 2018
KOLIR - Released: 18 June 2021
Ukrainian Constructivism (with Yevhen Filatov) - Released: 27 May 2022
ROOM - Released: 21 July 2023
Live albums
Live with NAONI Orchestra - Released: 11 December 2017
Mozaїka Live with NAONI Orchestra - Released: 25 December 2019
EPs
Look - Released: 15 May 2014
Vidlik - Released: 22 February 2016