Anna Kuzenkov, known professionally as Anna Zak, is an Israeli Internet personality, model and singer. Her following consists of 4 million followers on Tiktok and over 1 million followers on Instagram, becoming famous on social media both in Israel and internationally. She is regarded as one of the most influential Israelis on the internet. She was ranked by Nana 10 as number 1 on the list of Israeli youth influencing Instagram in 2017. As of 2017, she ranks as the number 1 most influential Israeli Instagrammer, ahead of Bar Refaeli, according to the Israeli Internet Association. She works as a host of Music 24's show 'To be a singer'.
Biography
Anna Kuzenkov was born in Sochi, Russia, to Natalia and Denis Kuzenkov. Her family immigrated to Israel in 2010 when she was nine years old with her parents, her sister, and her grandparents. The family settled in the city of Ashdod, and in a short time Zak was speaking Hebrew well. Her parents later separated, and her father, left Israel, and returned to Russia, working on the Sochi Olympics, while her older sister was a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces at that time. Zak studies at the Mekif Hey High school in Ashdod. The surname "Zak" she uses was selected as a short catchy stage name. Her father is Jewish, whereas her mother is not. In 2018, Zak said that "Although she herself is not-Jewish, she never thought of having a conversion to Judaism, yet she feels very connected to this country and culture".
Modeling and media career
She began her career in 2014 on Israeli kids reality show The Boys And The Girls. In 2016, she was chosen to be the face of Scoop shoes, earning a NIS 50,000 contract at the age of 15, considered to be a large sum for her age. She has also led a global campaign for hair removal brand Veet. She says that at her highschool, some of her teachers do not know about her social media career. While still in ninth grade, her monthly income from her social media profile was at least NIS 10,000 excluding her sponsorship deals. Her large income at her age has raised eyebrows, but she told Israel Channel 2 that her career is being supported by her family. In 2017, she became the host of Music 24's show 'To be a singer'. She also collaborates on social media with model Neta Alchimister. In 2017, she became the most influential person on Israeli Instagram, according to the Israeli Internet Association, ahead of Bar Refaeli. She was also ranked by Nana 10 as the most influential Israeli youth influencing Instagram in 2017. In June 2017, she was chosen to be the face of Office Depot's back to school campaign in Israel. In 2018, she modeled alongside Yael Shelbia and Neta Alchimister in the Fix brand campaign.
She auditioned for Simon Fuller's new project international project Now United, to be part of an international band. It was later announced that she was chosen to head the project, which would mean regular flights from Israel to Los Angeles, while still at school. She learned that she was supposed to be the band's presenter and did so on one occasion in Russia.
Singing career
On August 23, 2017, she made her singing debut with her song "Money Honey" which currently has about 4.5 million views on YouTube. On December 24, 2017, she released a second song called "My Love", which currently has about 3.5 million views on YouTube. On March 27, 2018, she released a third single called "Bang Bang", which currently has about 5 million views on YouTube. She has been routinely performing in concerts throughout Israel, also performing covers of popular songs. On July 3, 2018, Anna released a new soundtrack for the Israeli movie “To The Edge” produced by Israeli songwriter Henree, which is sung in Hebrew, which currently has about 1.9 million views on YouTube. On August 2, 2018, she was featured in a song by Richard Orlinski called "Gravity" alongside Fat Joe, which currently has about 5.4 million views on YouTube. On April 22, 2019, she released a fourth single called "Tik Tok", which is sung in English and Hebrew, which currently has about 5.4 million views on YouTube. On June 2, 2019, she released a fifth single called "Call It Out", which currently has about 1.2 million views on YouTube. On September 24, 2019, she released a sixth single called "Hola Mamacita", which is sung in English, Spanish, and Hebrew, which currently has about 3.9 million views on YouTube. In 2019, she was cast to the annual Israeli sing and dance show for children Festigal.
