Lyubov Uspenskaya

The restaurant had a 1930s design and style and was wildly popular among the celebrities of Los Angeles until it was bought by Russians and renamed.

Uspenskaya was born in Kyiv (Ukrainian SSR) to Zalman Sitsker (1932–2002), the director of a household appliances factory in Kyiv, and Elena Chaika, a nurse from Ashgabat, who died during childbirth.

Uspenskaya was adopted and raised by her grandmother (father's mother), whom she considered to be her mother and her father, who she considered to be her brother.

Although she was not told the whole truth, and this topic was almost never discussed, Uspenskaya understood that there was a certain "secret" in the family, and she didn't feel it was necessary to get to the bottom of it.

Subsequently, after her father got married, Uspenskaya began to live with him and her stepmother – Sarah.

Uspenskaya also has half-brothers – Efim and Yakov as well as a sister – Stella.

From an early age, the future star was surrounded by music.

She was taught piano by her father and graduated from music school, where she studied to play the accordion.

It was not her choice since it was her relatives who wanted, in memory of her grandfather, a professional musician and a director of the factory of folk instruments in Zhytomyr, her to master folk instruments.

Lyubov Zalmanovna Uspenskaya (Russian: Любо́вь За́лмановна Успе́нская; born Sitsker (Си́цкер); 24 February 1954) is a Soviet, Russian and American performer of Russian popular music, much of which is the so-called "urban romance" or Russian "chanson" (Russian: городской романс, gorodskoy romans) style.

Multiple winner of the "Chanson of the Year" (Russian: Шансон Года) award.

After the music school, she entered the Kyiv Glier School of Music and graduated in 1969.

The start of her career as a singer began in her hometown.

One day, the family was celebrating a birthday at a restaurant, and her father asked her to sing.

Uspenskaya went on a small stage and performed several songs accompanied by an orchestra.

The musicians loved it so much that they offered her to work as a singer.

Uspenskaya at that time was attending high school and since she was the accompanist of the orchestra, she was able to easily skip classes and fully immerse herself into the work.

So, at the age of 16, Uspenskaya began to sing in restaurants and although she earned good money, she dreamed of being independent and living on her own.

At the age of 18, she met and married Viktor Shumilovich.

In this marriage in 1973, she gave birth to two twin sons who died shortly after birth (one in childbirth, the other in a few days).

The marriage didn't last long after that and the couple divorced.

In the restaurant where she was working at that time, she was noticed by musicians from Kislovodsk, who were looking for a good singer all over the country and, found everything they were looking for when they heard her sing.

Subsequently, they offered her a job and invited to move out to Kislovodsk.

Without thinking twice, Uspenskaya agreed and went to Kislovodsk to begin an independent life and build a career as a singer.

There she quickly gained popularity and offers of other jobs.

After working in Kislovodsk, the singer decided to go to Yerevan where she experienced her first break through.

She worked with such an outstanding musician as Levon Malkhasyan, who is known as the legendary jazzman.

People went to the restaurant where she sang just to listen to he.

But the more popular she became, the more it was hinted that her repertoire and behavior on stage should be corrected.

Lyuba's voice, known for its hoarseness, was considered criminal and did not meet the standards of the USSR.

In 1978, together with her second husband, Yuri Uspensky, she emigrated from the USSR.

For about a year she lived in Italy, and was planning to move to Canada – to her parents and brothers who already lived there.

However, refusing cash benefits, Uspenskayadecided to move to the United States, where she was offered a job by Leonard Lev of a singer in the city of New York City at the most popular Russian restaurant, "Sadko".

During the first three days of Lyuba's performance, people who lived in Brighton Beach, the Russian-Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, were lining up to hear her sing.

In America, Uspenskaya divorced her second husband, when she met Vladimir Nizovsky, known as "Vladimir Franz", who moved to America from Germany.

He became not only the singer's third husband, but also her producer who invested money in her first album.

After "Sadko", Uspenskayamoved on to work at the restaurant called "Odessa" that belonged to Leonard Lev.

In the late 1980s, she moved from New York City to Los Angeles.

There Luba was offered a job at the restaurant "Arbat", formerly known as "Brown Derby".

In 1985, Uspenskaya recorded her first album, produced by Mikhail Shufutinsky.