Leyla Teymurzadeh

**Leyla Yusif qizi Teymurzadeh** (Azerbaijani: *Leyla Yusif qızı Teymurzadə*, Russian: *Лейла Юсиф кызы Теймурзаде*; born 14 February 1981) is a Russian-Azerbaijani singer, songwriter, and model. A popular figure in Azerbaijani popular culture, Teymurzadeh is known throughout Azerbaijan and Russia for her dance club hits.

After graduating from high school in 1999, Teymurzadeh moved to Moscow to pursue a career as a musician. After years of working as a model, nightclub performer, and go-go dancer in Moscow nightclubs, Teymurzadeh was signed to MegaMusic Records in 2006. Her debut single "Lebedinaya pesnya" was released the following year and became a dance club success. She later went on to release a collection of dance club hits from 2007 to 2012, all of which were included on her debut album *Leyla*, released in 2013. Following the release of *Leyla*, Teymurzadeh began her first headlining tour, *The Leyla Show* (2013). Teymurzadeh has went on to release several more dance singles, which have achieved varying levels of success.

Teymurzadeh has sold over 500 thousand records worldwide, making her one of the most successful Azerbaijani musicians of all-time. She has been dubbed the "Queen of Dance Music" and the "Azerbaijani Dancing Queen" by the Azerbaijani media.

## Early life and education

Teymurzadeh was born on 14 February 1981 in Baku in the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic of the Soviet Union to parents Yusif Teymurzadeh (1940–2012) and Mehriban Mammadova (born 1944). Her father worked as a cardiovascular surgeon, while her mother was an ophthalmologist. Teymurzadeh is the youngest and only daughter of five children; her elder siblings include Yusif (born 1970), Ilhan (born 1972), Artem (born 1975), and Eldar (born 1979). All four of her brothers work as doctors in Baku, like both of her parents. Teymurzadeh grew up in an affluent family in the Zağulba Bağları neighborhood of Baku.

Teymurzadeh began her education in 1987, later graduating from high school in 1998. Despite her family wanting her to pursue a career as a doctor, in 1999, Teymurzadeh left Azerbaijan and moved to Moscow in order to pursue a music career.

## Career

After graduating from high school in 1999, Teymurzadeh moved to Moscow to pursue a career as a musician. After years of working as a model, nightclub performer, and go-go dancer in Moscow nightclubs, Teymurzadeh was signed to MegaMusic Records in 2006. Her debut single "Lebedinaya pesnya" was released the following year and became a dance club success. She later went on to release a collection of dance club hits from 2007 to 2012, all of which were included on her debut album *Leyla*, released in 2013.

Following the release of *Leyla*, Teymurzadeh began her first headlining tour, *The Leyla Show*, which performed shows in Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, and Ukraine from February 2013 to June 2013. Teymurzadeh has went on to release several more dance singles, which have achieved varying levels of success.

## Personal life

Teymurzadeh began dating Russian actor Boris Pskov in 2007. They became engaged two years later and married in Baku, Azerbaijan in May 2010. Pskov and Teymurzadeh have two children together; their children include Boris Borisovich Pskov (born 2012) and Dilara Borisovich Pskova (born 2014). Pskov is a Russian Orthodox Christian, while Teymurzadeh is a Shia Muslim, yet they have stated that they are raising their children "without religion". The family resides in Moscow, yet also has residences in Baku and Sochi.

Teymurzadeh became a Russian citizen in 2012. She speaks fluent Russian, Turkish, and English, in addition to her native Azerbaijani.

## Discography

*Main article: Leyla Teymurzadeh discography.*