War in Ukraine
Volodymyr Zelensky (R) looks at his wife Olena in Kyiv on April 21, 2019 ( AFP / Sergei Gapon)

Video does not show Ukrainian presidential couple singing

  • This article is more than one year old.
  • Published on March 10, 2022 at 19:40
  • 3 min read
  • By AFP Canada

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Social media posts claim a video shows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife Olena Zelenska singing together. This is false; the clip shows singers from America and Britain recording a cover of the 1981 duet "Endless Love."

"'Endless Love' sung by Pres. Volodymyr Zelensky & wife Olena for each other & for Ukraine," says a March 8, 2022 Facebook post featuring a video of a man and a woman performing in a studio.

Screenshot of a Facebook post taken on March 10, 2022

The claim also appeared on Facebook here and here.

As people were quick to point out in comments, the clip does not show the presidential couple, but rather a cover of "Endless Love," a duet originally sung by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross.

The video was posted on YouTube on February 20, days before Russia invaded Ukraine, with the performance credited to Alejandro Manzano of the American cover band Boyce Avenue and British singer Connie Talbot.

Screenshot taken on March 10, 2022 shows a YouTube video

Below, side-by-side comparisons show the difference between Manzano and Zelensky, who starred in a television comedy series prior to his election, and Talbot and Zelenska.

Screenshot taken on March 10, 2022 shows Alejandro Manzano singing in a video posted on Facebook
A video grab from footage broadcast by the UK Parliament's Parliamentary Recording Unit (PRU) shows Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky speaking by live video-link in the House of Commons, in London, on March 8, 2022 ( PRU / )

 

 

Screenshot taken on March 10, 2022 shows Connie Talbot singing in a video posted on Facebook
First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, pictured in 2019, in Riga, Latvia ( AFP / Gints Ivuskans)

 

 

AFP Fact Check has debunked other inaccurate claims about the ongoing conflict in Ukraine here.

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