© 2025

Usein Bekirov is a professional jazz pianist who was born in Uzbekistan. Since his youth, Usein has been living and creating music in Ukraine. In 2016 he released first album "Tatterium" which consists of compositions based on Crimean Tatar folk songs. Two other albums "Moleskine" and "Hands" were released in the following years. In addition to them, the composer wrote many songs for theater productions, such as Gogol's "Overcoat" and Lesya Ukrainka's "Forest Song". Even now, when the country is at war, he continues to create new music.
Interviewer: Jazz. A rather banal question, but there is no way without it. Why did you choose this direction in music? Where did your love for this genre come from?
Usein: My father is the first Crimean Tatar jazz pianist. He is a member of the ethno-jazz ensemble Sato, which was created in Uzbekistan. The legendary Enver Izmaylov played together with my father. I listened to all this since childhood, I liked it. My father Riza Bekirov brought me love for jazz.
Interviewer: How did your creative path begin? You also graduated from a music school, then the academy... Tell us more about the time when everything was just starting.

Usein: After we moved to Crimea I was given to learn to play the violin. I graduated from the music academy as a violinist. But I was always drawn to play the piano I really liked it, probably because my mother is also a pianist. Therefore, I simultaneously learned to play both the violin and the piano. My musical career began right at the Simferopol Music School. Right from the first course. We assembled the Tutti ensemble, which was on tour. I created this ensemble with Jamala. We performed in the ensemble together until she moved to Kyiv. She entered the Kyiv Music Academy, then I moved to Kyiv and also entered the same academy to continue our work. That's how we recorded our first CD.
Interviewer: In 2016, your first album "Taterrium" was released. What inspired you during creation? How was the process of preparing the release of the first album?
Usein: "Taterrium" is an album that contains all my deepest works from a certain period of time. I made it a collection. Many Ukrainian musicians play there. My daughter and wife inspires me to write songs. Now they are far from me. I still try to hold on.
Interviewer: What projects are you currently working on? What new jazz hits can Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars expect already this year?
Usein: My new album was released that year. It was already a slightly more serious album. It's called "Hands". I recorded it with Ukrainian drummer Maksym Malyshev. World stars took part in the album, including Mike Stern, Turkish guitarist Sarp Maden. It entered the Grammy Long List that year. A single "Maalouf Song" I made in collaboration with Ibrahim Maalouf.
Interviewer: Has the present time somehow influenced your creativity?
Usein: I am in Ukraine, I teach at the music academy at the pop and jazz department. I work as an arranger with Ukrainian musicians, since I have a studio. I make a lot of music for movies and TV shows. I write arrangements for artists. Now it was less, because of the situation in the country. I have a cool colleague with whom I have been working for more than 16 years - Ihor Melnyk. My friend who helps me. Currently, despite the fact that it is difficult for us, there is no light, nothing will stop us. I make new music when there is light. I work hard for our lads (ed. - Ukrainian army), like all Ukrainians.
Photo from social networks of Useim Bekirov and picture with Jamala by Anastasia Gornostay
George Manta is a digital artist, illustrator from Argentina, and founder of his own design studio — someone who was never drawn to the traditional path or classical art education systems. George believes in self-education and is convinced that if you truly love what you do, you will succeed. He works in the field of concert posters, portraying artists with a deep sensitivity — capturing their individuality while maintaining his own distinctive style. According to the artist, his journey into creating concert posters began with his friends who played in local bands. It was the independent music scene that first opened the doors to art for him. The artist’s main goal is to evoke emotions and create true works of art — not just serve as a visual tool to convey information about a concert. George has created posters for artists such as Paul McCartney, Dante Spinetta, The Rolling Stones, and many others. Most recently, he designed a poster for Paul McCartney's Got Back Tour 2025. George shared with Drive Music Media his insights on the beginning of his artistic journey, his commission for Paul McCartney, the creative vision behind the concert poster, and the easiest and most challenging sides of the artistic profession.
Sofia Lapsiuk is a Ukrainian makeup artist specializing in creative makeup who has chosen to avoid using any animal-based products in her work, creating all her looks without gelatin. Unfortunately, the exploitation of animals for the sake of art still goes unpunished in the fashion industry. According to Sofia, she doesn’t like it when her work is called “creative,” as she considers her looks simple. With Halloween approaching, her next project will be a Frankenstein-inspired look — Sofia is drawn to eerie and macabre styles. Sofia shared with Drive Music Media about the beginning of her journey, her refusal to use animal-based products in cosmetics, and her upcoming projects.
On October 9th, the founder of our media, Asya Radko, was invited to a private viewing of the exhibition "Women in Water" by the renowned American artist and one of the protagonists of pop art, James Francis Gill, held at Castle Fine Art Gallery in Exeter. The collaboration between James Gill and Castle Fine Art began in 2019. The event was attended by Richard Roden, Sales Director at Castle Fine Art in Exeter, and took place with the support of Queens Kunst Galerien and Ted Bauer, CEO of Premium Modern Art. For the artist himself, this exhibition represents a sense of calm and a desire to preserve beauty in such an unstable and turbulent world, given everything happening around us. His goal as an artist is to bring people peace. James Francis Gill began painting in the pop art genre in the 1960s and became one of the first artists to introduce pop art to the world. Our founder, Asya, had the chance to speak with James personally about the private viewing, his favorite painting from the «Women in Water» series, and his upcoming projects.
FEIA is a Ukrainian singer who feels a deep connection to nature and believes that her defining quality is her sense of magic. For her, FEIA is not just an image — it’s who she truly is. She brings all her emotions and the breath of a forest fairytale into her music. In our conversation, FEIA opened up about the beginning of her musical journey, honesty in music, and the meanings she weaves into her songs.
Paul McCartney is a British multi-instrumentalist musician and one of the deepest lyricists of our time, as well as a member of The Beatles, who has remained faithful to his simplicity and craft throughout his life. But he has another side — a love for photography, through which he has captured many important moments of life during the early years and the first wave of The Beatles’ popularity in 1963–1964. The uniqueness of Paul’s photographs lies in their sincerity: they are not staged shots, and they can transport the viewer back in time. The slight blurring and defocusing in some photos adds a feeling of being able to see the beauty in every moment. This is exactly the kind of exhibition titled Rearview Mirror: Liverpool - London - Paris, which opened at the end of August in London at Gagosian and will run until October 4, 2025. Drive Music Media received background information about Paul’s works and how they capture a time before "Beatlemania" through the lens and perspective of 21-year-old Paul — how he saw that time and how he preserved it on his film.