Controversial pop star looks unrecognisable, 20 years after releasing smash hit

She was one-half of one of the most famous pop groups in the early noughties – but 20 years on, the singer looks completely different.

Controversial former pop star Julia Volkova – better known as one half of Russian duo tATu – has popped up on social media, looking unrecognisable from her former self.

The singer – whose hits with Lena Katina included All The Things She Said and Not Gonna Get Us – showed off her long mane of hair in a new Instagram picture, marking a dramatic change from her trademark pixie cut.

“Everyone knows how often I like to change hairstyles, haircuts, colour, and especially, my love is long hair,” Volkova wrote in the caption.

t.A.T.u. became global sensations in the early noughties.

She’s now sporting long, thick hair extensions.

Volkova and Katina, both 38, became household names following the release of their surprise global smash hit All The Thing She Said in 2002, which was boosted by the then-teenage duo’s controversial image.

They wound up going their separate ways in 2011 following a string of albums.

Volkova and Katina released six albums together.

Twenty years on, and Lena is now married to a multi-millionaire businessman named Dmitry Spiridonov. It’s her second marriage, after splitting from rock star Sasho Kuzmanovich, with whom she shares seven-year-old son Alexander.

Katina and Spiridonov are married.

However, life after t.A.T.u. has been much more controversial for Volkova.

She made headlines in 2013 when she declared she had converted to Islam three years earlier. Despite opening up about her bisexuality in numerous interviews, Volkova caused a huge fan backlash in 2014 when she went on a homophobic tirade during a Russian talk show appearance.

Saying she would “condemn” her son if he turned out to be gay, she said: “I believe that a real man must be a real man … a man has no right to be a f*g.”

She also claimed, “two girls together – not the same thing as two men together”.

“It seems to me that lesbians look aesthetically much nicer,” she said.

Her comments drew widespread condemnation – including from her former bandmate, who said: “I think everybody should be free to love who they love and be with who they want to spend their life with.”

Volkova later backtracked and insisted she “loved” t.A.T.u’s gay fans.

Originally published as Controversial pop star looks unrecognisable, 20 years after releasing smash hit