Grandma's Smuzi

Year of foundation – 2019
City – Odesa (Ukraine)
Language – Ukrainian, English
Genre – heavy metal

Lineup:

Tufan Cigdem – vocals;
Alexey Apostolov – drums.

Band history

Grandma’s Smuzi is a rock band from sunny Odessa. The band appeared in 2019 and quickly gained recognition among Ukrainian fans of the heavy metal scene. The idea of creating a band arose from the desire to give world rock hits a new life in a Ukrainian sound.

The founder of the group was Tufan Çigdem, a native of Turkey who moved to Ukraine in 2004. Çigdem received a medical degree at Odessa National Mechnikov University. Although he had no professional musical training, singing was Tufan's long-standing passion. He liked Ukraine so much that later the future leader of Grandma's Smuzi decided to stay in the country forever.

Tufan often emphasizes that he is a fan of heavy music. This style has accompanied him since childhood. Çigdem considers the genre to be as honest and emotionally truthful as possible. And the energy that heavy compositions give inspires him to go on stage and share his creativity with the audience. Among the Ukrainian artists who made a special impression on the founder of Grandma's Smuzi are the groups Okean Elzy, Boombox and the Hutsul metal band KARNA.

Creative path

Today, Grandma’s Smuzi is no longer just a band, but a real phenomenon of the Ukrainian scene. Bright performers are masters of Ukrainian-language adaptations of world rock hits, favorites of the audience and powerful support for the fighting spirit of our defenders.

However, the history of the stars of the modern music industry began with the performance of covers of legendary world rock compositions. Just imagine: Metallica, System of a Down, Linkin Park, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rammstein, Disturbed, Five Finger Death Punch – and all this in Ukrainian! From time to time, unexpected interpretations seeped into the setlist – from songs by Michael Jackson and Adele to the classic “Shchedryk”. But all this sounded in a driving manner that is characteristic only of Grandma’s Smuzi.

Thanks to such an exclusive program, special stage charisma and powerful energy, the band quickly gained recognition and popularity. The musicians constantly toured the country. Grandma’s Smuzi became almost the only cover band in Ukraine that was regularly invited to major festivals. Among them are Metalhead's Gathering, Rock Out and other events.

The year 2022 was a landmark for the band. Grandma’s Smuzi reached a new level. The musicians presented their first original track “Shadows” and a video clip for it. Although the large concert tour, which was being prepared for the spring, had to be postponed, the concerts took place in the fall. The following year, the band held three large-scale tours: “Indestructibility Tour”, Open Air Tour and Orchestra Tour. Later, the audience heard new original works: “Ammonia”, “Descendant of the Night”, “Almost There”.

Style and development of the band

Grandma’s Smuzi formed their own sound at the intersection of heavy metal and classic rock sound. This can be described as a combination of a driving mood and high performing skills. In 2024, the artists went on the “Spring Will Come” tour, which covered not only Ukraine, but also Europe. Among the cities where the group’s compositions were performed were Krakow, Poznan, Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, Prague, Vienna, Warsaw and others. In parallel, the band played concerts in 15 Ukrainian cities, confirming the status of a group that feels equally confident on both the domestic and European stages.

Social activity

Since the first months of the full-scale invasion, Grandma’s Smuzi have been actively supporting the Ukrainian defenders. So, during the tour "Spring Will Come", they managed to collect more than 1,000,000 hryvnias for the needs of the Azov National Guard brigade. And in the spring of 2025, the musicians organized a charity tour of the cities of Ukraine, the purpose of which was to raise funds for the medical service of the 12th Azov Special Purpose Brigade of the National Guard.

Grandma's Smuzi's live shows became not only a musical event, but also an important front for aid. An example of how the power of art can work for Victory.

The band's discography

In the summer of 2025, Grandma's Smuzi announced an autumn tour of 16 cities of Ukraine in support of their first author's album, which was called "Labyrinths of Souls". The album's 10 original compositions reflected the mood of Ukrainians during the war. The musicians explain that this release is a kind of emotional chronicle of the last three years. It contains both elation and disappointment, bright hopes and bitter sadness that the people experienced together with the country.