Saving grace

Beware: She is blond, sexy and Russian and claims she knows what is best to do "when the lights go down" - sing!

ґAn up-and-coming singer going under the stage name Grace V has made it to one of the oldest and most influential American music charts, the Billboard, the first time in its 75-year history for a Russian female solo artist.

Her debut single When the Lights Go Down has gathered almost a million and a half views so far. Some fans are calling Grace V a "Russian Britney" copying Lady Gaga`s style, while others say it is the first time they have heard quality music from a Russian signer.

Grace V is not ashamed of the fact that she was "born in Moscow but raised on American music."

Singing to Destiny`s Child and Christina Aguilera as a child, she spent hours in front of the mirror polishing her skills with a hairbrush as a substitute for a mic.

Last year the promising Russian singer moved to LA, where she has been working with the cream of the crop, including the famous judge on American Idol, Grammy winner Randy Jackson.

A video clip for her hit When the Lights Go Down was directed by none other than Brian Friedman who worked with Britney Spears on Toxic and Me Against the Music. The single is currently #17, with Beyonce`s Best Thing I Never Had surpassing her by only a few points.

Some say she is just "another wannabe". Even if so, she has already become the fifth artist in Russian show-biz history to hit the Billboard charts after acts such as rockers Gorky Park and the provocative girl duo t.A.T.u..

sections: Celebrities