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Nothing has been able to stop Karolina Protsenkin from breaking the internet with her talent and incredible musical skills. Ever since her earliest cover videos became viral and gained millions of views in record time, the young violinist has equally enthralled and impressed people all over the world, even gaining a couple of features in renowned TV shows and music portals which have certainly taken Karolina closer to achieving her goal of becoming a star.
While Karolina’s skills are quite unforgettable, many of her fans have lost sight of the latest moves in her career and overall life, but that’s what we’re here for! Stay with us to take a look into the whereabouts of Karolina Protsenko, her career so far, and her plans for the future.
What Is Karolina Doing Now?
If you are one of those people who got to know about Karolina thanks to her internet viral videos, then you’d surely be happy to know she’s still doing what she loves the most, which is playing the violin.
As seen in Karolina’s very active social media accounts and YouTube channel, Karolina is actively creating violin covers of famous songs, recording herself as she plays on Santa Monica streets in California, in front of hundreds of people every weekend.
Karolina’s talent is one in a million, especially considering her young age and how accomplished she has become as a performer. That includes performing in events such as A Seat At The Table in 2022 or becoming viral in faraway countries such as India and Sri Lanka due to her cover songs of artists from those places.
Karolina isn’t always alone while playing, though. Some of the most memorable guests to her street performances are the young Swedish musician and also viral sensation Oscar Stembridge, her pianist mother Ella, and sometimes even her young brothers Leo and Nicholas.
All in all, Karolina is still conquering the hearts of millions thanks to her music, and will most likely keep doing so for many years to come.
What Happened To Karolina’s Grandmother?
Unfortunately, not everything has been good news for Karolina Protsenko in recent times. As she announced in January 2023, her great-grandmother Babushka Jenia passed away in Ukraine, where Karolina’s family is from. It’s unclear what the cause of Babushka’s death was, but as explained by Karolina in an Instagram post, she hadn’t seen her great-grandmother in person since the Protsenko family moved away from their native Ukraine to the US around eight years ago.
The woman was a big support for the family during the time they were still living in Ukraine though, taking care of a very young Karolina when she was at home: ‘She played a big role in my life’, as Karolina wrote, also affirming Babushka was a big fan of her music, always phoning the family to know about their whereabouts.
While the loss of the Protsenko’s great-grandmother is sad, it’s for sure that she was deeply loved and appreciated by her family.
YouTube Fame & Family
There’s no denying that Karolina Protsenko has worked hard to get where she is now, using YouTube as the main platform in contributing to her success. Though her channel on the platform has been active since 2016, it wasn’t until a couple of years later that Karolina’s earliest videos were uploaded, gaining huge visibility with covers of songs such as Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On”, and Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”. Back then, it was also usual to see videos of Karolina playing alongside her father Nick at local Californian events and in churches.
It took Karolina less than half a year to make it big by covering the worldwide hit “Despacito”, sharing her video around the world with music fans and people impressed at seeing a young girl playing the violin with such tremendous virtuosity. Later on, her second channel Karolina Protsenko Violin was started, this one gaining even wider visibility than her first channel, amassing almost eight million subscribers and over a billion views in a matter of five years.
The latter has her most famous videos to date, including her rendition of the Happy Birthday song for her brother Leo. Later in 2021, the Protsenko Family channel was launched on YouTube as well, though this one is less about Karolina’s music, and more about the family’s adventures and everyday life.
TV Appearances
After so many years of gaining millions of views with her cover songs both on YouTube and several other social media platforms, it’s only normal that Karolina passed from being an internet-only celebrity to becoming TV famous as well. Her first memorable appearance on a TV show was in 2019, when she performed her violin cover of Post Malone’s “Sunflower” in “The Ellen Show”.
After impressing everyone with her incredible stage presence and talent, Karolina was interviewed by host Ellen DeGeneres, who didn’t hesitate to inquire of the then-10 years old Karolina about her musical background and how long she had been playing until then.
After getting some laughs from the audience at admitting that she chose to play the violin without knowing what it was, and saying she was saving money to get a puppy, DeGeneres gifted her an Ellen-styled violin and tip pot, along with what looked like lots of cash.
Later in 2022, Karolina went back to the small screen, this time for an appearance in “The Kelly Clarkson Show”. What Karolina didn’t expect from appearing in the show was to get a surprise visit by fellow violinist, dancer, and songwriter Lindsey Stirling, whom Karolina has affirmed before as one of her biggest inspirations. The duo ended up performing Stirling’s song “Guardian” together, surely turning this moment into one of the most memorable for Karolina.
Will Karolina Join A Contest Show?
Considering how far Karolina Protsenko has gone thanks to her talent and the huge fame she’s amassed in a couple of years, one of the most common questions is whether she’s planning on joining a contest TV show soon.
The nice Girl Karolina Protsenko. pic.twitter.com/W0ttYwpT7C
— Neumann, Ralf (@NeumannRalf1) September 29, 2020
Karolina already answered that question in 2019 during an interview with “Hollywood Access”. Back then, the show had contacted “America’s Got Talent” long-time judge Howie Mandel, who told Karolina she had a bright future ahead, advising her to keep working hard towards her dreams and being not afraid of rejection.
When asked if Mandel’s words encouraged her to join “America’s Got Talent”, Karolina didn’t hesitate to say yes. Nevertheless, no news about her joining the show’s auditions was known after that interview, hinting that maybe she chose to explore a different path in the entertainment industry, or plans on becoming better before taking that huge step.
With that being said, it wouldn’t be strange for Karolina to try her luck in a contest show, as her musical inspiration Lindsey Stirling is a former “America’s Got Talent” contestant herself.
So what will be the next steps in Karolina Protsenko’s career? Let’s wait and see, but in the meantime, she seems content practicing the violin and just having fun.
