As the history of Armenian pop music develops, one fact remains constant, talent wins. You can imitate styles and copy sounds, but in the end you will not survive. Your career will be short-lived and unremembered. Singer/songwriter Sako possesses an immense talent for music. Sako’s meaningful and devoted approach towards music led to taking an actively practical part in the transformation of Armenian pop music. Rather than imitating music from other cultures, he has proven that Armenian music is adaptable to new styles. He has exposed the new generation to modern Armenian music which can be appreciated by many. Although he has had numerous hit songs and received prominent awards, the artist’s achievements can be ascertained by his collection of albums over time. Sako has evolved significantly over the years. His endurance is a result of creating the best music. In less than 11 years, and at age 35, Sako has already released 9 remarkable albums and has performed in front of thousands of fans throughout the world. With his unique style and distinct sound, the unsurpassed artist continues to progress and amaze fans with his vast talent. What makes Sako ultimately rare is his divergence from other musicians in his genre. With an immensely proficient ear for music, Sako is a leader, not a follower. The highly skilled artist owns a fully equipped studio and has his own record label, ME Productions. His ideas and methods are his own and stem from his talent and extensive musical background. Sako was born Sarkis Antranik Ghazarossian on September 14, 1969, in Beirut, Lebanon. At the early age of 7, he filled the church with his harmonious voice as a member of the choir. Due to a breakout of war in Lebanon, Sako was forced to leave the country at age 13 and move to The United States. Upon arrival in The US, Sako worked hard during the days to support his family and at nights attended school to learn English and pursue his education. While in school, Sako followed his musical interests and sang with the school band. The artist’s extensive abilities resulted in many lead and solo performances. Early in 1989, Sako took the first step towards what would be a prominent future. He formed his first band, Shant, and began performing at various clubs, restaurants, and events in Los Angeles. In 1991, Sako met Vatche Mgrditchian, a well renowned Armenian and international singer. Vatche realized Sako’s strong knack for music and offered to mentor the young artist. With Vatche’s guidance and encouragement, Sako began working on his first solo album, ‘Garodelem’. The album was released in July of 1993. Later that same year, Sako was introduced to Andy G., whose forte was arranging music. Seeing the lack of originality in the Armenian market, they decided to work together to create music and songs with a new style. Their hard work and creativity led to the making of Sako’s second album, ‘Siroumem’, which was released in September of 1995, and contains one of Sako’s greatest hit songs, ‘Gaghatchem’. With styles never yet seen before, ‘Siroumem’ was a breakthrough in the Armenian market. Emerging from the ‘Siroumem’ album was the first ever professional Armenian music video, produced by Boris Nerses. The video was aired across Armenian channels. Being an affirmed perfectionist, Sako was still not satisfied and knew he was capable of much more. The inventive artist had ideas that he set forth to accomplish. In 1998, Sako pioneered Armenian trance music with the release of his third solo album, ‘Why’. Now, Sako was completely original and was writing much of his own lyrics. ‘Why’ is a smooth collection of modern love ballads and compulsive dance beats. The album won ‘Best Dance Album’ at The First Annual Armenian Music Awards (AMAs). Boris Nerses produced 4 phenomenal music videos from the ‘Why’ album, which were aired on Armenian television programs worldwide. Simultaneously, world music radio stations were playing songs featured on the album. Sako was now beginning to obtain the recognition he deserved. It was after the release of his ‘Why’ album that Sako renounced working with Andy G. due to irreconcilable differences. He began working with his long time friend and former keyboard player, Robert Keyllian. The two collaborated on Sako’s fourth album, ‘Solitude’, which was released in 1999. The remarkable music from the album was produced by Sako and arrangements were completed by Robert Keyllian. ‘Solitude’ is a collection of brilliant melancholy ballads, combined with a great dance sound. The album received 3 nominations at The Second Annual AMAs, including: ‘Best Dance Album’, ‘Best Original Song’ and ‘People’s Choice’. By October of 2000, Sako had gathered together a new body of work, ‘Gravity’. Sako formally released the CD to a crowd of over 800 eager fans at Tower Records on November 19, 2000, in Glendale, California. Following the release, the album was on listening stands for over 2 months in both Tower Records and Virgin Records. It was also one of Tower Records best selling albums for 2 consecutive weeks. The outstanding success of the ‘Gravity’ album was marked by the hit song, ‘Ganidzem’. Through music promoter Stepan Partamian, Sako was introduced to duduk player Roubik Haroutounian. Upon hearing ‘Ganidzem’, Haroutounian improvised a duduk riff to go with the song. Sako was captivated by the accomplished playing of Haroutounian and instantly requested the dudukist have the piece recorded. There was an overwhelming response from dedicated fans everywhere through e-mails, phone calls and letters, praising the album, and at the Third Annual AMAs, the album received 3 nominations including: ‘Best Dance Album’, ‘People’s Choice’, and ‘Best Album Cover’. The ‘Gravity’ album became Sako’s boldest album yet. Complimenting the song was an extraordinary video directed by Koji Zadori. The video was filmed in Death Valley, California, with a crew of over 30 people and became a smash hit. It was practically unheard of for an Armenian artist to create such a professional and exhilarating music video. For the first time in the Armenian market, people were paying money to play Sako’s videos on television. Through Sako’s creativity, a trend was created among the Armenian market, and more singers began shooting music videos, attempting to add originality. On June 23, 2001, Sako set another milestone with his outstanding concert at the Alex Theater in Glendale, California. The concert included professional dancers, an incredible stage setting with captivating lights, a full band, and most importantly, the unsurpassed power of Sako. Over 1,300 fans watched in amazement as Sako took the stage like a storm and gave a thrilling performance, one that is yet to be matched. It was that day at the Alex Theater that over 1,300 spellbound fans witnessed the transformation of a singer becoming a legend. Sako’s concert was the first Armenian event that was advertised on 2 large billboards along with an airplane flying above the Alex Theater the day of the concert with a banner reading, ‘Sako at the Alex Tonight.’ Sako’s hard work in promoting the concert earned him an award at The Fourth Annual AMA’s for ‘Best Concert Commercial’. Soon after, a DVD of the memorable June 23rd Concert was released, that was by far the most professional and most compelling among other DVDs in the Armenian Music Industry yet to be surpassed. On July 8, 2001, Sako performed at the 26th Homenetmen Western United States Navasartian Games in Los Angeles, California. More than 18,000 spectators, athletes, Homenetmen members and visitors took pleasure as Sako brought the evening to a close with a memorable performance. On September 22, 2001, Sako made a special appearance at the Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California. He performed as a guest artist in ‘Armenia Unbound: A Musical Journey’, which opened the Gordon Getty series complementing the Getty Museum’s illuminated manuscripts exhibition ‘The Armenian Gospels of Gladzor’. He portrayed the remarkable sounds of traditional Armenian music combined with his stunning style to hundreds of delighted spectators. Sako’s performance was described as romantic and compelling. His picture was featured in the Getty calendar for the month of Septembe