Galina Vicheva Gencheva (Bulgarian: Галина Вичева Генчева) known professionally as Galena (Bulgarian: Галена), is a Bulgarian pop-folk singer.[1][non-primary source needed]
Galena Галена | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Galina Vicheva Gencheva |
Born | Smyadovo, Bulgaria | 21 May 1985
Genres | Pop-folk, folk, Pop |
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Years active | 2003–present |
Labels | Payner |
Galena was born May 21, 1985, in the village of Smyadovo, Bulgaria. She has studied folk singing at the music school of Shumen for 4 years. Two years after that she moved town and continued her music education in Dimitrovgrad.
In February 2008, Galena was engaged to her boyfriend Galin. On June 22, 2009, they had their first child, Stefan. On February 17, 2017, they welcomed a second son - Aleksandar.[2][3]
Galena was discovered by the singer Milko Kalaydzhiev. She started her career under the stage name Galya (Bulgarian: Галя) and recorded her first single "Можеш ли" (lit. Can You?) in 2003.
Her debut studio album was named after her - Galena (Bulgarian: Галена) and was released under the Payner Music label on 21 May 2006 - the singer's 21st birthday. The album consists of 12 songs, 3 of which unheard before.
On 31 October 2007, a short pornographic video with her in it was leaked on the internet. The clip was quickly gaining popularity in Bulgarian media - thousands of views, articles in online and traditional media. One of the most popular magazines at the time Blyasuk (Bulgarian: Блясък) called it "Hit of the year".
On 12 September her second album „След 12“ (lit. After Midnight) was released, and she introduced her single "Неплатена сметка" (lit. Unpaid Bill) on Planeta TV's Christmas programme.
Galena has since collaborated with a great number of Bulgarian artists including Niki Nankov,[4] Malina, Preslava and Andrea and is currently one of the most popular singers in the country.
From 2021 to 2022, Galena was a coach on The Voice of Bulgaria. In her first series as a coach, Petya Paneva, a member of her team, won the competition on 12 December 2021. On 5 May 2022, it was announced that Galena would return as a coach in September 2022. On 5 December, a day after the finale of the ninth season, Galena announced she would not be returning to the show.
In 2013 she created her own line for Beyond, called G Spot - Galena for Beyond. The singer is working in collaboration with her stylist Dobromir Kiryakov and Borche Ristovski.
Following is a list of awards Galena won under the Planeta TV Awards.
Title | Year |
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Miss Sexy | 2006 |
Best Young Performer | 2007 |
Best Young Performer | 2008 |
Best Club Song ("Знам диагнозата") | 2008 |
Best Video of the Year | 2009 |
Preferred Song on Radio Veselina ("Тихо ми пази") | 2010 |
Female Artist of the Year | 2010 |
Ambassador of Bulgarian music abroad | 2011 |
DJ Hit of the Year ("DJ-ят ме издаде") | 2011 |
Album of the Year (Аз) | 2011 |
Original Performance on Club Stages | 2012 |
Video of the Year ("Спри ме") | 2012 |
Female Artist of the Year | 2013 |
Duet Song of the Year ( "Кой" feat. FIki) | 2013 |
Video of the Year ( "Дай ми") | 2013 |
Artist of the Year | 2014 |
Club Song of the Year ("Хавана Тропикана feat. DJ Jivko Mix") | 2014 |
Video of the Year ("Хавана Тропикана feat. DJ Jivko Mix") | 2014 |