Michelle Gurevich

Michelle Gurevich

Michelle Gurevich is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Toronto. She formerly records under the name Chinawoman. Her work is influenced by her Russian background and is described as slowcore rock and lo-fi pop, with a large fanbase in Eastern Europe.

Background and early work

Gurevich is born in Toronto, Ontario, to Russian immigrants and grows up speaking Russian as her first language. Her father is an engineer in Soviet Leningrad and her mother is a Kirov ballerina, a family background that also appears in her song “Russian Ballerina”.

Before turning to music, she wants to become a filmmaker and works in the film industry for ten years. She begins recording in her bedroom and later explains that writing songs gives her a cheaper and easier way to get a good result than filmmaking.

Chinawoman and name change

The stage name Chinawoman is chosen as a spur-of-the-moment joke after GarageBand prompts her former band name. Michelle Gurevich later performs and records under her own name.

Style and influences

Her music draws on Russian cultural influence and is associated with lo-fi pop and slowcore rock. She cites Alla Pugacheva, Adriano Celentano, Charles Aznavour, Yoko Ono, Francis Lai, Nino Rota, Xavier Dolan, Todor Kobakov, Jennifer Castle and Federico Fellini as influences.

Notable songs and wider recognition

“Russian Ballerina” appears in a commercial for the Nokia Lumia 1020 in 2013. Her song “Party Girl” inspires the 2014 French film Party Girl.