Alexander Gradsky, born on November 3, 1949 in Kopeisk in the Chelyabinsk region, moved with his family to Moscow in 1957. After the death of his mother in 1963, he adopted her surname, Gradsky, and in the same year emerged as a solo performer, singing several pieces with the youth ensemble that later became known for its dynamic sound.
In 1966 Gradsky established the amateur rock group Skomorokhi, where he served as lead singer and guitarist until 1976. His breakthrough came with the performance of How Young We Were, a song with lyrics by Nikolai Dobronravov and music by Alexandra Pakhmutova. By the late 1970s he started giving solo concerts, often accompanying himself on a 12-string guitar.
Throughout his career he released dozens of albums, composed the music for more than forty feature films, and became a defining figure in Russian rock. He also served as a mentor on the popular Channel One show The Voice and led the Gradsky Hall Theater as artistic director from 2014 to 2021, shaping contemporary Russian stage culture according to industry observers and estate records.
Gradsky’s private life included four marriages. His first union with Natalya Gradskaya was described by him as a youthful fling. The second marriage was to actress Anastasia Vertinskaya, lasting four years. In his third marriage with Olga Gradskaya Fartysheva, he had two children, Daniil, who pursued business and music, and Maria, a television presenter and arts administrator.
For the last 17 years of his life Gradsky was in a relationship with Marina Gradskaya Kotashenko. Their son Alexander was born in 2014, followed by Ivan in 2018. The couple formalized their relationship just weeks before Gradsky’s death on November 28, 2021, at the age of 72, leaving behind a legacy estimated to exceed one billion rubles. There was no will filed at his passing, according to estate reporting.
What legacy did Gradsky leave?
At the time of his death, Gradsky is said to have owned real estate valued at about 780 million rubles, with a commercial building on Kozitsky Lane spanning roughly 401.5 square meters on the ground and first floors, and a value of around 200 million rubles attributed to that property which once housed his theater and concert association. A 189 square meter apartment on Nikitsky Boulevard, dating from 1999, carried an estimated value near 170 million rubles and could fetch about 500 thousand rubles each month in rent. Another small studio of about 15.1 square meters near Kutuzovskaya is also listed among his assets.
In the countryside, Gradsky owned two houses in the Naro-Fominsk region. The three-storey mansion with land was valued at approximately 250 million rubles, while another house covering 1172 square meters was estimated at around 140 million rubles. Additional plots in the Moscow region, several cars, and personal savings completed the portfolio of assets associated with the artist.
Over the years Gradsky arranged elite housing for his older children. Maria received an apartment on Tverskaya Street covering about 172.1 square meters with a value near 70 million rubles, and Daniil inherited an apartment of roughly 96.9 square meters. The three-bedroom unit in an elite complex on Mosfilmovskaya carried a value of about 70 million rubles, while a portion of a home on Malaya Dmitrovka, valued at around 60 million rubles, was also part of the estate; the rest of that property belonged to Olga, the artist’s former wife.
Who inherited Gradsky’s legacy?
Most of Gradsky’s assets were transferred to his widow Marina Gradskaya, who raised the two younger children. Reports indicate she acquired multiple Moscow apartments, including a large house on Kievskoye Highway, several plots in the Moscow region totaling around 4,700 square meters, and a house in Mishutkino, alongside other savings. In 2022 Marina Gradskaya reported a theft of about 100 million rubles, as aired on a television program.
By contrast, Gradsky’s children, Daniil and Maria, were described as inheriting a much more modest dwelling in the Moscow region, described in some accounts as an old and dilapidated house. Observers noted that the estate described as a grand winter residence with a park, a summer house, a servant’s house, and a large garden designed to his personal tastes might have been more valuable to the family in memory than in cash. The children have indicated a desire to pursue legal action to claim at least one apartment in Kozitsky Lane where their father resided in his later years.
The ex-wife, Olga Fartysheva, who was not included in the inheritance, expressed concern for the children. She told Malakhov that the children faced a difficult situation and that the family should preserve the cultural space Gradsky intended. She also noted that a portion of the estate remained with Marina, which she believed could have become a cultural center for the public. In 2022 a legal claim by Olga was reported, and in October 2023 her bid was rejected, with a subsequent appeal in 2024 also dismissed. Daniil spoke publicly on a gossip program about the family dynamics, emphasizing the long partnership and the absence of shared property post-divorce. In July 2024, reports indicated a court decision to divide cars among the heirs, with Marina Gradskaya purchasing one vehicle and Maria and Daniil set to share three vehicles.