The fifth annual TEDxAUBG conference took place on April 9th, 2016 at the Carl Djerassi Theater Hall. For this year's edition all speeches and performances were based on the topic of Patterns.

Bulgaria: breeding ground for musical talent. News to you? That's because Ruth Koleva is a different breed of artist. Born into a volatile world of corruption and hardship in post-Communist Eastern Europe, she endured a difficult childhood largely spent without her mother, found salvation in the classics (Marvin Gaye, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole) and became 'tour-hardened' by jaunts to far-flung destinations such as India and Thailand. From there, Koleva quickly developed into a rounded musician, spending an eye-opening year at the Hollywood Pop Academy and embarking on free-spirited excursions into several local scenes including soul, hip hop and the more ephemeral bass movement. In 2015 Ruth was awarded the Best Female Vocalist prize at the Jazz Ain’t Jazz Awards in Japan. Her debut album, RUTH, was an instant success in the UK Soul Chart and the BBC playlists.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx