Sergey Stepanov

Sergey Igorevich Stepanov (Russian: Серге́й И́горевич Степа́нов, [sʲɪrˈɡʲej ˈiɡərʲɪvʲɪt͡ɕ sʲtʲɪˈpanəf], Romanian: Serghei Stepanov, [serˈɡej steˈpanov] (commonly known as Epic Sax Guy or Ultra Sax Guy); born 3 September 1984) is a Moldovan musician and composer from Transnistria and a member of the SunStroke Project. He is ethnic Russian.

Biography

Stepanov graduated in 2005 from Transnistrian State Arts Institute of Tiraspol. After graduation he served in Transnistria's army, where he met Anton Ragoza. Later they formed Sunstroke band, now known as SunStroke Project. Stepanov is dubbed 'Epic Sax Guy' by many on the internet.

SunStroke Project

As a member of SunStroke Project, Sergey participated at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo, where SunStroke Project finished 22nd, with their song "Run Away". After the contest, Stepanov, thanks to his extravagant look and dancing style, quickly became an Internet meme named "Epic Sax Guy" through a YouTube video with Sergey's instrumental solo performance during the group's Eurovision performance. It quickly went viral and spawned a number of remix videos, including a ten-hour long remixed version.

In 2014, Stepanov's 2010 performance was included in the Eurovision Book of Records, a collection of the most memorable moments in the history of the contest. In 2017, SunStroke Project returned to Eurovision with the song "Hey, Mamma!", and this time finished 3rd. Many notable publications around the world wrote about the comeback of the "Epic Sax Guy", and on the Internet new videos and remixes with Stepanov's performance appeared, this time known as "Ultra Sax Guy". On returning to Moldova, SunStroke Project were awarded the Order of Honour by the President of Moldova Igor Dodon.

Personal life

Sergey is married to Olga Deleu, and they have a son, Mikhail.

Honours

• Order of Honour