Photo by Yakub Islamov
AS THE FIRST VICE PRESIDENT OF THE CROCUS GROUP, EMIN AGALAROV AMAZINGLY SUCCESSFUL TO TAKE THE TOP OF THE MUSICAL OLYMPUS ON THE WORLD SCALE, AND FOR THIS TIME IS SHARE.
I admit honestly, my first impression of your music was related to Crocus City 10 years ago. You come in - and the song Still is heard all over the mall.
Emin: It was an experiment. RAO (Russian Authors Society) collected from all of our facilities a fee for broadcasting music, which was then transferred to the authors. I was in the RAO Union for several years as an author and asked: do the money reach the performers? They said yes. Then I began to play only my music in our shopping centers. And, of course, I received no money. After that, I left RAO, and since then it has been impossible to hear my music at my sites - neither in shops nor in restaurants.
You have already released more than eight albums, and the song Woman from the new English album More Amor has become a world hit, witha colorful arrangement and a video clip. This means that all these years have been well spent. What do you think?
Emin: It is difficult to evaluate oneself, but one thing I know for sure is that for me, a day without music will be spent in vain. I need to sit at the piano every day, compose, sing. And when I have the opportunity to do this in front of a large audience - this is happiness, especially if they also pay for it.
And at what age did you realize that you want to sing?
Emin: Years at 11-12. Nobody ever told me that I have a voice or talent. I just learned all the songs of Elvis Presley and sang them in karaoke. But since I did not have a musical education, I did not know which way to approach this, and threw it away. Engaged in business. And then I realized that I still can’t live without music.
Did you produce yourself?
Emin: Yes. Although if I had a producer, I probably would have been easier. My education and experience did not give an understanding of how to get started and succeed in the music field. On the other hand, in the language of business, I am a product that should be sold. And of course, I am not capable of selling myself. If there was a producer, he would immediately say what to do. And popularity would come not now, but much earlier.
But then it was impossible to persuade me to anything - for example, I sang only in English. He sang in Russian only two years ago. And now for the first time I began to cooperate with the producer.
What for?
Emin: I realized that I myself can’t move on. Collaboration with the producer opens up new facets and gives a different result. Now we are working with Max Fadeev. He was imbued with my work on a completely free basis. He says: "You know, I see you like this, let's try and you will see."
The song Boomerang recently topped the British charts. But it’s quite difficult for Russian performers to break into the English charts. How did you do it?
Emin: I didn’t succeed, but my music. As an artist, they still don’t know me in England. Paparazzi don't follow me on the street, like Robbie Williams, but nevertheless, the effect of the constant presence of my music exists. If I had more time, I would be more likely to be in England, give interviews, meet people. Then my music would take on a face. 
But you do not plan this?
Emin: No, I'm still busy with business. I have a certain responsibility: more than 2 thousand people work for me, I am the only son of my parents and I can not devote all my time to myself and my music.
How does your father, the head of the Crocus Group, relate to your musical success?
Emin: I don’t know. My father does not praise me, and I do not discuss this topic with him. But if you do something and achieve success in it - what can parents say?
In one of your interviews, you described yourself as a pragmatic romance. That you are pragmatic, I can understand - you are from a business family, but where do you get so much romanticism from?
Emin: Romanticism is a certain sentimentality, dreaminess. And how can you compose songs if you do not possess these qualities? What then to sing about? Over time, you realize that the key to a successful song lies in its sincerity. You can compose a lot of beautiful songs that will not touch the hearts of others. I understood this relatively recently. I composed hundreds of songs. But they do not even make sense to write down, because this is creative trash. It’s necessary to put some kind of emotion into the song, then the magic will happen. This is the key.
Jared Leto, who also successfully combines two professions - an actor and a musician - once said that in order to be a super popular group, talent is generally not so important. The main thing is performance and desire.
Emin: I absolutely agree. In any case, talent gives only 10% success. Efficiency can compensate for talent, especially if you are clearly aware of the degree of your talent.
I understand that I am not super talented, but I have a great desire to learn and develop. There are unique cases, of course, such as, for example, Muslim Magomayev, when it is 100% talent, which is complemented by voice, appearance, and all together it gives a grandiose effect. But there are very few such people.
Then you were incredibly lucky to learn from Muslim Magomayev, because he was your mentor.
Emin: Of course. I put him on a par with Adriano Celentano, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson. I had known him since childhood, we played music a lot, talked about music, he didn’t specifically teach me anything, but I studied with him.
With such a mentor and your capabilities, many doors have been opened for you.
Emin: Possibilities in music do not solve anything. How can I compose a song with the possibilities? If I could do that, I would love to pay a lot of money for musical success. Saved yourself thousands of hours of flights, promotions, press conferences, etc. I’d just buy everything. If you didn’t have to compose songs yourself. If someone could come and write a hit, I would pay millions for it. But musical success cannot be bought. There is only one option - to compose. And you need to compose a lot - then there is an opportunity sooner or later to write a real hit.
What is your main flaw?
Emin: Impatience. I want to always get the result right away.
And the strongest quality that allows you to achieve success in such different areas?
Emin: One is performance. It’s hard for me to remember any of my failed projects, be it a boutique of Italian watches U-Boat, Crocus TV or restaurants. If something doesn’t work out, I’ll figure out how to modify it to work out. It is very important that it works.
Many people work hard, but not everyone succeeds.
Emin: Because people are used to doing the same thing - it's easier. If you built a panel house and sold apartments in it, you developed a technology. Next you need to buy land, build a house and sell again. And this is how you can build new homes all your life. I'm not so interested. I am not interested in repeating myself, neither in my business, nor in my restaurants, nor in my work.
And where did you start in business?
Emin: My first idea was to sell Russian watches on Ebay - then I was 16 years old. My investment was $ 100. I sold the watch for 300 and spent money on acquiring new ones and so on. Then I started to do nesting dolls, caskets, scarves, trays. Agreed with the plants on the supply. At 18, my monthly turnover was 50 thousand dollars. This is if someone suddenly thinks that I borrowed everything from my father. Since childhood, I realized that I did not want to take money from him. Because it gave him the right to dictate his terms. And I always wanted to be absolutely free. I always have been and will be.
About ten years later, how do you see yourself?
Emin: I want happiness and prosperity for my children. So that after 10 years I also sat here, and they - already 17 years old - came to me and drank tea. The most important thing is the children. Everyone else is not that important.
But what about creativity? Will you continue to give concerts?
Emin: Of course. The most valuable thing in music happens just at concerts. These are meetings with people who came to you. It can be in Moscow, Yekaterinburg, Rostov, Berlin, London, Dubai. I give big concerts in Russia, small ones abroad, but the feeling of this does not change. Music is a privilege. Some understand this, and some who find it relatively easy, no. But I have been going for this for a long 10 years and I will go further. And it’s unlikely that something will stop me. I do not do it for the sake of money or fame, I do it because I can’t do it.
