spring of 2011. The song reached the Top 30 in Russia and the Ukraine, and eventually bowed at number two on the charts. In Romania, the single went to number four on the Romanian Top 100 in 2011. The song remained on the charts for a total of 49 weeks. Balan started recording the video for "Freedom", which was directed by Pavel Hudeakov in May 2011 in southern France. While recording for the song, the singer climbed up and stood on a steep cliff without protective equipment. In an interview after the official video was released, he said that the video was one of the most dangerous shootings of his career. “Lish do Utra” He released his second Russian single, "Lish do Utra," on 26 September 2011. The song was recorded in studios in several countries, including Romania, the U.K., Russia and the U.S. In an interview, Balan explained that upon thinking the concept of the song, he had an immediate notion that the song would be best presented in the Russian language. The single reached number one position on the Russian digital sales chart. He wrote the concept for the song's music video himself and enlisted French director Steven Ada to direct the video. The singer selected Ada because he wanted a director with a very particular, photographic eye for composition and light, who could convey the natural beauty of the waking day and contrast it with the two lovers sharing their last morning together. The video was filmed in Corsica Island, with Balan starring opposite Ioana Raicu. The video premiered on 25 October 2011. In April 2012, Balan released another Russian single, pop-rock song "Lyubi". The song reached number one on the Top Hit Weekly Audience Choice, number thirteen on the Russian chart and number two on the Ukrainian chart. The music video for the song was directed by Alan Badoev and starred Russian theater and film actress Ekaterina Vilkova. Later that year, he was nominated for the best male singer award by the music channel Muz-TV. and was named as Russia's sexiest singer by online magazine Woman.ru at the RU.TV Russian music awards ceremony. He was also nominated for Best Singer and Best Song for "Lish do Utra". On 1 December 2012, the singer won a Golden Gramophone award for the second year in a row for "Lish do Utra". Balan was also awarded the Krasnaya Zvezda