What Is Regina Spektor's Net Worth?
Regina Spektor is a Russian-born American singer, songwriter, and pianist who has a net worth of $12 million. The daughter of Jewish immigrants who came to the United States to escape political and ethnic discrimination, Regina Spektor honed her skills on piano before passing out recordings she had made of herself along the Lower East side of Manhattan. Eight years later, she was performing at the White House.
Early Years
Regina Spektor was born on February 18, 1980, in Moscow, Russia. She comes from a Jewish family. Regina's father, Ilya Spektor, was a photographer and violinist. Her mother, Bella Spektor, was an elementary school music teacher and a college music professor. Regina began taking piano lessons at the age of seven and practiced on a Petruf upright piano that her grandfather had long ago gifted to her mother.
The Spektor family left the Soviet Union in 1989. They had nearly canceled their plans to emigrate when they learned that they would have to leave Regina's piano there in Russia. They eventually realized they had no other choice than to flee the discrimination they were faced with due to being Jewish. The family first relocated to Austria and then Italy before entering the United States with the help of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. They settled in the Bronx, New York. There, Regina took classes in classical piano and practiced on the piano in the basement of the synagogue her family had begun attending.
Spektor attended the Salanter Akiba Riverdale Academy, a private Modern Orthodox Jewish school. She then attended two years of high school at the Frisch School, a Jewish educational institution in New Jersey. Regina went on to complete the studio composition program at Purchase College's Conservatory of Music in New York, graduating with honors in 2001.
Music & Tours
Spektor made her presence and talent known by performing independently around Manhattan's Lower East Side. She self-published two albums, "11:11" in 2001 and "Songs" in 2002, and handed them out to anyone interested after her performances.
Regina eventually caught the attention of record producers and was offered a contract with American record label Sire Records. Her first nationwide tour was as the opening act for the American rock band The Strokes on their 2003 tour "Room on Fire." She then opened for the American rock band The Kings of Leon as they performed around Europe.
In 2004, Spektor produced her third album, "Soviet Kitsch." The following year, she opened for the English piano rock band Keane on their North American tour.
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Making the Charts
Spektor's fourth album, "Begin to Hope," was released in 2006 and contained the song "Fidelity," which debuted at #70 on the "Billboard" 200 music chart and later climbed to #20. The song went on to receive gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America, and its video was viewed over 200,000 times within two days on YouTube. The song was voted the #1 song of 2006 by Sirius Radio's "Left of Center" channel, and the video reached #3 on VH1's Top 20 Countdown. That year, Regina was referred to by "Blender" magazine as one of the "Hottest Women of Rock."
Performing Around the World
In 2007, Spektor performed at several major music festivals and released the video for her song "Better." The following year, she wrote the song "The Call" for the film "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian."
Regina's fifth album, "Far," was released in 2009 and sold 50,000 copies within its first week. The album reached #3 on the "Billboard" 200 music chart. That year, Spektor performed at several major European music festivals and headlined a concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
In 2010, Regina performed for Barack and Michelle Obama, along with hundreds of other musical artists, at a White House reception in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month.
Albums, Film, & Television
Spektor released her sixth album, "What We Saw from the Cheap Seats," in 2012. It debuted at #3 on the "Billboard" 200 music chart.
In 2013, Regina wrote and recorded the title theme song for the Netflix series "Orange is the New Black." The song was nominated for an award in the Best Song Written for Visual Media category at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards.
Spektor's seventh album, "Remember Us to Life," was released in 2016. That year she was also featured on the album "The Hamilton Mixtape."
In 2018, Regina wrote the song "Birdsong" for an episode of the Amazon Prime series "The Romanoffs." The following year, she released the song "Walking Away" which she wrote for the Amazon Prime series "Modern Love."
Spektor's music has appeared in numerous television shows, including "Criminal Minds," "Grey's Anatomy," and "How I Met Your Mother." It can also be heard in the background in several films and television advertisements
Accolades
On May 18, 2019, Regina was inducted into the Bronx Walk of Fame. The following month, Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York City, proclaimed June 11, 2019, as Regina Spektor Day.
Personal Life
In 2011, Regina married Jack Dishel, a Russian-American musician, actor, writer, director, comedian and producer. The couple has two children.
Latest Work
Spektor released her eighth studio album, "Home, Before and After," in 2022.
