Zulya Nazipovna Kamalova, known professionally as Zulya, was a Russian-born Australian singer of Volga Tatar background. Born on August 8, 1969, in Sarapul, Udmurt ASSR, Russian SFSR, USSR, Zulya began performing and writing music at age nine. In 1991, Zulya moved to Australia. In 1992, Zulya met Martin Tucker, who became a collaborator. Zulya started recording albums with support from like-minded individuals in Hobart, releasing a debut album Journey of Voice (1997). Zulya moved to Melbourne, formed the band The Children of the Underground, and signed to the independent record label Unstable Ape Records in 2004. Zulya won an ARIA Award for Best World Music Album for the album 3 Nights (2007) with the band. Zulya recorded ten albums, including Elusive (2002), The Waltz of Emptiness (And Other Songs On Russian Themes) (2005), and Tales of Subliming (2010). In February 2024, Zulya was diagnosed with stage four cancer and died on September 18, 2024.
