Cilver
Cilver is a rock band from New York City. Originally formed as MeTalkPretty in 2006, the group changed their name in 2013. The band, fronted by Romanian immigrant Uliana Preotu, has enjoyed one hit single, , which charted in 2016. Origins as MeTalkPretty Frontwoman Uliana Preotu recounts standing in bread-lines as a child during the waning days of Communist Romania. She had fronted the Romanian rock band AcvilA in 2001, playing shows in her hometown of Iași. She emigrated from Romania while still in her teens alongside her mother in 2005, arriving in the United States without any fluency in English. Preotu started work at McDonald's before ever getting into music. Worried that Lyazidi and Kluz (who specifically advertised for a male singer) would reject her due to her gender, Preotu signed her emails to them leading to her audition as "J" (short for Julia, the anglicized version of Uliana she went by) rather than risk dismissal prior to getting her chance to sing for them by revealing her feminine name. Preotu lists Gwen Stefani and System of a Down as inspirations. MeTalkPretty formed in 2006 by Uliana Preotu (lead vocals), Leon Lyazidi (guitar/keyboards) and James Kluz (drums). Nate Meng