T.A.T.U is a all female super duo hailing from Russia

T.A.T.u. (Russian: Та́ту​ (help·info) Russian pronunciation: [ˈtatu], translated: "This that", in feminine grammatical gender form, like "She Her") is a Russian duo formed in Moscow, Russia in 1999 by Ivan Shapovalov. The group consists of Lena Katina and Yulia Volkova. Early on, Katina and Volkova put forth an image of a lesbian couple, but their 2003 documentary, Anatomy of t.A.T.u., made it clear that this was just part of the group's image, and that they were not lesbians.

In an interview in September 2008, Katina is quoted as saying that everything was overblown but very real, that they were showing the emotions they had at that time for each other. In the article, Volkova also adds that it was their teenage years, and it felt at the time that it was real love.^[5]

In 2004, the group took a hiatus after they split from their producer. In 2005, they released Dangerous and Moving and Lyudi Invalidy. During 2006, t.A.T.u. released a compilation album and then ventured on their own after negotiating out of their contract with Universal Music.

A third Russian studio album, titled Vesyolye Ulybki was released on 21 October 2008 on iTunes, the official t.A.T.u. web shop, and select Soyuz stores in Moscow. There is still no confirmed release date, or title, for its English counterpart.^[6]

On 21 March 2009 Insider announced that there had been a staff meeting in December and they'd decided to cease the "operation of t.A.T.u. in full-time mode". Firstly they will close all "open items" i.e release the third video as promised, the girls will do their part in a promo for their movie You and I which will be released. There will also be special releases of Happy Smiles album.^[7]

On 27 March 2009. An interview with both Katina and Volkova was posted on their websites media blog. In this, it was stated that Lena and Yulia would both go solo, but the girls would still keep t.A.T.u. alive. Katina said "From now on there will be not only t.A.T.u., but also Yulia and me as two different artists." Meaning that the girls will be working on both their solo careers, and t.A.T.u. respectively. Katina will also be working with the t.A.T.u. team in correspondence with her solo career. As one of the most successful pop groups in Europe, t.A.T.u. has sold over 15 millions of CDs and singles worldwideFor almost a year a working title of the album was Upravleniye Otbrosami / Waste Management. But a month before the release - for the sake of ironic smile of those, who understand –the title changed. The essence, however, remained.

The Russian version of the album – Vesyolye Ulybki - has been released on the 21 October, 2008. Among album’s authors are songwriters Valery Polienko and Sergio Galoyan, who wrote music and lyrics for numerous tracks (Nas Ne Dogonyat, Ya Soshla s Uma included). Billy Steinberg, the author of All About Us (t.A.T.u.) and Like a Virgin (Madonna) also produced a song for t.A.T.u.’s Happy Smiles.

Some songs of this LP will be featured in the soundtrack of the movie You and I that was filmed during 2007-2008 and presented in Cannes May 16, 2008. The movie was directed by Roland Joffe and has Mischa Barton and Anton Yelchin in the cast. It is based on the story of two t.A.T.u. fans, their love and dangerous encounters in today’s Russia.

t.A.T.u. have 2 most subscribed YouTube and 1 most subscribed MySpace accounts in Russia. t.A.T.u. keep staying in the MySpace top 10 electronic bands of the world.

Yulia Volkova and Lena Katina are 24 years old now. They live in Moscow together with their families. December 27, 2007 Yulia Volkova gave birth to her second child, Sam. She also has a 4-year-old daugher Vika.