Alex Sparrow

Alexey Vladimirovich Vorobyov (Russian: Алексей Владимирович Воробьёв; 19 January 1988) is a Russian singer and actor who performs both in Russian and English. For international purposes Vorobyov is also credited as Alex Sparrow, a translation of his Russian name. He is best known for appearing on the Russian version of The X Factor at the age of 17 in 2005. In 2006 Vorobyov was contracted by Universal Music Russia, and in December 2007 was appointed as a goodwill ambassador for Y-PEER, a youth-based initiative of the United Nations Population Fund. Vorobyov represented the Russian Federation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Germany. Alex was born on 19 January 1988 in Tula (Russian: Тула), RSFSR, Soviet Union. His father is Head of Security, and his mother is a housewife. Alex played football as a child and played for the local youth team in Tula. At first, he wanted to pursue a career in sports but later chose to pursue music as his profession. Alex studied the accordion at the College of Music. While there, he participated in many competitions. When Alex graduated he decided to return to the musical school, however this time he opted to study in the vocal department. For a short period of time, he was the lead singer of the Tula folklore ensemble "Delight."