- Real name - Hanna Viacheslavivna Makiienko
- Date of birth - May 25, 2001
- City - Poltava (Ukraine)
- Language - Ukrainian
- Occupation - singer, blogger
- Genre - pop, indie
The Artist's Journey
Kazhanna is a Ukrainian singer, blogger, and songwriter whose real name is Hanna Makiienko. She is a rising TikTok star originally from Poltava. She lived in Odesa for some time and has been based in Kyiv since 2024. No one in her family was connected to the cultural sphere or involved in creative work. Nevertheless, Hanna chose a future on the big stage. She has been passionate about music since childhood. Later, she received an acting education, which allowed her to work in the theatre. However, the young actress decided to leave the profession because she feared that its routine would limit her creative freedom.
According to Hanna, she always played comedic roles and did not feel she had the seriousness required for deeper characters. Makiienko noted that she would not have been able to perform the same role for a long time because it would have been exhausting. At the same time, she possessed a naturally charismatic personality that deserved to be seen by a wider audience. Interestingly, alongside her creative career, Hanna also had completely ordinary jobs unrelated to creativity. The singer recalls trying herself in various fields, from making sushi and pizza to working as a warehouse picker. Hanna often worked night shifts, sleeping only a few hours, before performing the lead role in a theatre production later that same evening. The artist says this experience was incredibly valuable and fascinating.
Despite her deep attachment to Kyiv, Hanna Makiienko decided to move to Odesa, following her heart. This became an important stage in her life, opening new horizons and opportunities. The city, known as the Pearl of the South, with its unique atmosphere and vibrant rhythm, became not only Hanna's new home but also a source of creative inspiration. She decided to begin her music career by choosing a stage name that reflected her unique image. According to Hanna, Ukrainian music often features artists using ordinary first and last names, so she wanted to create something more distinctive. She associated herself with a gothic aesthetic and combined the Ukrainian words «кажан» (bat, «kazhan») and «Анна» (Anna), creating the nickname «Кажанна» (Kazhanna). Hanna believes this name perfectly reflects her style and energy.
Creative Career
Although a music career had always been Hanna's dream, her path to success proved to be unusual and quite challenging. She decided to start with TikTok, where she gained popularity and recognition thanks to her creative content and unique style. To build her audience, she had to overcome numerous obstacles. In just two years, she experienced seven account bans. However, her patience and dedication paid off: in March 2023, the song «You're Bitter» became a TikTok hit. This marked the true breakthrough in the singer's career. Her actual musical debut, however, was the track «My Grandfather's Bedsheet».
The sudden success of «You're Bitter» became Kazhanna's key to entering the music industry. Within a short period, the music video surpassed 150,000 views on YouTube. Her talent and potential attracted the attention of several music labels, opening opportunities for creative growth and work on more ambitious projects. At first, Hanna had doubts and concerns. She feared that commercial interests might influence her creativity and diminish its authenticity. However, her love for music, charisma, effortless performance style, and determination to remain true to herself overcame all these concerns, and Kazhanna decided to move forward.
The track «You're Bitter» caught the attention of Jerry Heil, who launched her own music label NOVA MUSIC in the summer of 2023, focusing on what she described as "honest music." The star invited Kazhanna to join her team. Hanna recalls that Jerry Heil approached her with an offer of collaboration. Without hesitation, Hanna replied, «Yes, let's do it.» The young artist admitted that probably nobody expected her career to continue developing, as most people perceived Kazhanna as a participant in humorous projects.
Jerry Heil shared that she considers the young singer a breath of fresh air for the Ukrainian pop scene. According to her, Hanna's unique flow and edgy delivery made her recognize a future star while watching her on TikTok. Jerry Heil also said that Kazhanna reminded her a little of herself back in 2019, while remaining completely different - eccentric and one of a kind. In everyday life, Hanna is gentle, shy, and incredibly talented. On stage, however, according to her producer, she transforms into a true "bat" straight out of Tim Burton's films.
The Artist's Style and Development
Active collaboration with music professionals became a key stage in Kazhanna's artistic development. The singer not only received valuable advice but also significantly broadened her musical perspective, discovering new sounds and genres that inspired her to experiment boldly. Her catalogue has gradually expanded with new hits, including the single «Puzzle», which accumulated more than 730,000 YouTube views and earned the artist a place on the cover of Spotify's Hot Hits Ukraine playlist in December 2023. The young artist also took on a bold experiment by creating a Ukrainian-language version of Tina Karol's song «Chinchilla». In her interpretation, only the chorus remained from the original, while the verses were completely reimagined and performed in Kazhanna's signature style. Her subsequent releases «Traces», «Crying», and «Smile» further strengthened her popularity and expanded her audience.
On December 3, 2024, Kazhanna released her debut album «Bat». The record is a conceptual work consisting of seven unique compositions. Each one symbolizes a separate emotional state. Throughout the album, emotions transform into music, revealing Kazhanna's inner world to listeners. Through its melodies and lyrics, the artist conveys her deepest feelings: tenderness and loneliness, disappointment and guilt, as well as love. In 2024, she also performed her first solo concert in Kyiv.
Social Activity
Kazhanna is not only dedicated to music but also actively supports social initiatives. She participates in charitable projects and campaigns. Hanna is known for her principled stance and openly admits that after the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, she completely rejected everything associated with Russia. During one missile attack, while staying in a shelter, she wrote the song «Traces». Through its powerful lyrics, the singer expressed her emotions while telling the story of those who betrayed Ukraine and sided with the enemy.
Kazhanna emphasizes the importance of taking responsibility for every word, especially during such difficult times. She believes that public recognition is not only a tool for popularity but also a powerful way to help others. Thanks to her visibility, she actively participates in fundraising campaigns for the Armed Forces of Ukraine and promotes Ukrainian culture. According to her, cultural figures today must be strong, serve as motivators, support people, help others, and at the same time remain resilient with a clear and focused mind. Kazhanna says she receives many grateful comments from listeners who find that her songs help them process their own experiences and overcome difficult periods in life.
The Singer's Best-Known Hits:
- «Puzzle»;
- «Crying»;
- «You're Bitter»;
- «Regrets»;
- «The Worst»;
- «Little Sun» and others.
Interesting Facts About the Singer:
- Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, has repeatedly highlighted Kazhanna's work on his Telegram channel;
- the singer considers her most important recent achievement to be deciding not to listen to anyone and to make the music she truly likes;
- at one point, the artist stopped reading comments about her work, noting that it had a positive effect on maintaining her self-esteem;
- a bat is Hanna's spirit animal;
- according to the artist, her image often gives people the wrong impression of her personality. As a result, people are genuinely surprised to discover that Kazhanna is kind and sincere in real life.
