In the fall of 2000, Batyr decided to leave the group and pursue a solo project. According to the artist, the decision was dictated not by creative differences, but due to ‘domestic’ reasons. The musicians remained on good terms.

The singer had a son, Maksut. 2002 was the year of another first-born,“Otan Ana”, the debut solo album in the Kazakh language. The music for seven compositions was written by composer Kuat Shildebayev. The album’s title song became a real patriotic anthem for Kazakhstan.

After leaving A’Studio, Batyr had an emotionally difficult period: serious, unjustified cooperation with the producer… in Almaty he had a conversation with the composer Kuat Shildebayev, who said, “I suggest you come to your senses now. Let’s make a Kazakh album. You have to sublimate all your energy into creativity”. Batyr Shukenov, Kuat Shildebayev, sound engineer Alim Baygarin and the novice at the time composer and arranger Renat Gaisin settled in the studio at Kazakhfilm. They worked on the Otan Ana song for a year. Batyr was scrupulous in his work, taking into account everything, from the arrangement details to the way the words are pronounced in the song. The vocals for Otan Ana were performed by the opera singer Maira Mukhamedkyzy, who has just received citizenship in Kazakhstan (in 2018 she will perform this song at the concert in memory of Batyr together with the Eurovision star Kristian Kostov). It was Otan Ana that set the tone for the album. Shildebayev wrote only two of the album’s songs during that period. The rest – including “Kolybelnaya” and “Sagym Duniye” – were created earlier, but got a new sound thanks to Batyr Shukenov. The sound was composed in Moscow. That is how the most patriotic album of the singer, which made Kuat Shildebayev famous as a composer, appeared.

In 2003, they launched the first all-Kazakhstani vocal talent show, based on the British Pop Idol. Batyr, along with violinist Arman Murzagaliyev, music critic Roman Reifeld, and editor Lyailya Sultankyzy, became a member of the jury for the first season of Superstar.kz. The jury traveled to 16 cities across Kazakhstan to hold auditions. In the first season, 5,563 people took part in the Superstar.kz auditions. Other jurors noted Batyr’s tactfulness. An accomplished star, he did not allow himself to treat the cast members disparagingly, no matter what vocal data they demonstrated. Often he was upset by harsh remarks, carelessly released by colleagues on the project. Batyr believed that one could learn something from everyone, even if it was a worker without hearing or voice who came to audition in Taldykorgan.

During those years, he began to turn to the spiritual a lot. Batyr didn’t just look at us as equals. He was taking something from everyone. Usually with someone who wasn’t close, you wouldn’t start talking about the soul. But with him it was possible. It just happened by itself.”

In 2005 Batyr took part in the 1st semifinal of the Russian national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2005, which took place in Kiev, Ukraine. With the song “Tvoi shagi” by the results of the voting he took the 7th place, failing to pass to the final of the national selection.

A new edition of the Otan Ana album is released, including the “Sagym Duniye” song as a continuation of the triptych about the homeland.

In 2006, “Tvoi shagi”, Batyr’s second album, was released. The lyrics of the song that gave the album its title were written by the poet and composer Yerkesh Shakeyev, based on a sad event from the past.

“I wrote this song a long time ago and sang it myself, in the early ‘90s. Then Vadim Azarkh sangit, but he went to live in London. The song was left without a performer. To be honest, I just really wanted to offer Batyr something, to work together somehow. The song suited him very well. And Batyr, of course, brought his inimitable handwriting. In general, the author was very pleased!”

Together with Ilya Khmyz, Batyr releases Superficial J, an experimental instrumental album, consisting of 8 compositions. The names of the songs and the album were invented by musician and friend of Batyr, Arman Murzagaliyev. Several works from the album were recorded with the members of the group JCS: pianist Viktor Khomenkov and guitarist Yermek Diyarov.

The famous joint performance of the song “Zhizn bila bi skazkoy” at the concert in memory of Daniyar Makashev, when all the musicians of Almaty gathered on stage.

“He was a living legend among us. We periodically met in Almaty on one occasion or another. I remember how before the concert in memory of Daniyar Makashev in 2006 we stood backstage and worried. The audience gathered in the hall. Batyr gathered us into a circle, we hugged each other, and he tuned us into the performance, “Guys! We’re going to do it! Let’s ask the Almighty for everything to go well!” Together we said, “Yes! We’re going to do it!” And all the anxiety went away, and we were so good! You remember bright moments like that for the rest of your life.”

Batyr’s solo concert was held at the Palace of the Republic in May 2006. Lights, sound, filming of the TV version – everything was brilliantly organized. Batyr collaborated on this concert with the British producer Greg Walsh, who in his time worked not only with A’Studio, but also, among others, with Tina Turner and Pink Floyd. According to colleagues, the concert was dedicated not only and not so much to Batyr’s music, but also to the people whose work he appreciated. Along with Batyr, Vladimir Presnyakov, Daler Nazarov’s band and Uzbek singer Sevara Nazarkhan performed. The people who attended the concert remembered it as a milestone for Kazakhstan’s music scene.

“In 2006, I had just returned from India and immediately got to Batyr’s concert. It was a special event. All the work was done by professionals. Batyr controlled every detail. The stage was beautiful, both sound and light. The atmosphere was calm and generous. We – all of his friends – got to experience a real concert in which we could be ourselves, because that’s exactly what he wanted. To gather all his dear friends and let them meet, that could be Batyrkhan’s concert – an expression of his love for all of us, not just a performance of his program. Of course, there could be many more concerts, but we could experience the feeling of being right where we need to be only there… in Batyr’s heart. It’s always incredible to be onn stage with him. He can pick up any note of any people’s music, but, while remaining himself, dance and celebrate life. The mastery of performance, full awareness made his work unexpected and powerful. There is no difference whether Batyr is young or old, on stage or at home, on the street or as a guest, in India or in the USA… Batyr is always a true Batyr and never changes in the way he receives the world from the hands of the Almighty with open arms and clear eyes. I look up into the sky or into the sea, I look into the computer where a new song is coming together and he is there – laughing with a loud open laugh. Batyr is an example of what a man can be – honest and decent, kind and generous, humble and forgiving.”

In 2008, the southern capital was preparing to host the first leg of the Beijing Olympic torch relay. Eighty torchbearers were to run in Almaty: athletes, Olympians, politicians, including Batyr.

“The relay began. The turn came to Batyrkhan’s stage. He was running on one of the final stages. You know, it was really great. He did it very artistically, he ran really beautifully. Along Dostyk Avenue, there were tens of thousands of people standing and chanting “Batyr! Batyr!” They bathed him in their love. And he felt it. He was running for these people. That’s when this picture was born. It became the jewel in the gallery of memorable events of my life.”

Batyr released Ostorozhno, milaya devushka, his fourth solo album. The title was suggested to him by Alla Pugacheva. The first song of the album, “Nemnogo slez i moey lyubvi”, was recorded with the composer and arranger Oleg Tolstov three years before the album was released. Batyr’s fifth solo album, Vsyo proydet, was also released in 2010. This year, on December 7, by decree of President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Batyrkhan Shukenov was awarded the title “Honored Art Worker of Kazakhstan”.

In addition to the familiar solo albums and individual songs, Batyr often participated in the recording of songs together with other performers. One of Batyr’s most famous collaborations was the “Pevica i saksofon” song with Karina Abdullina. Together with the Meladze brothers, Batyrkhan recorded the songs “Sera”, “Strannica osen” and “Rassvetnaya”, and took part in Murat Nasyrov’s song “Kto-to prostit”. Also among the performers with whom Batyr worked were Irakli with the song “Tak ne byvayet”, Sergey Lyubavin “Zvezda nenaglyadnaya”, “Sinie glaza”, and Sergey Trofimov “Ostrov po imeni schastye”.

“He came in and just started looking for something to play. It took him about five minutes, no more. And at some point Kostya said, “That’s it, stop. Thank you, Batyr. It’s all recorded”. Batyrkhan says, “I haven’t even found the sound yet, I haven’t found the part yet!” And Kostya says, “No, it’s fine! You don’t need anything else.”

In the fall of 2011, the Kazakh TV series “Aldar Kose” was released, with Batyr as its musical producer. The series tells the famous story of a good and resourceful poor man who fought injustice and helped the common people. As part of the production together with Kuat Shildebayev Batyr wrote a song with the same name, which was later included in the album “Amanat”.

In 2013 Dusha, Batyr’s last album, was released; it consists of 11 compositions. Guitarist Baglan Sadvakassov, bassist Anton Revnyuk, sound engineer Vladimir Ossinski and composer Pavel Yessenin, with whom the “Brat” song was recorded, took part in the work on the album.

“For many years we lived with Batyr in the same entranceway in a block of apartments on Simferopolskiy Boulevard in Moscow. If Batyr was in town, we saw each other every day, went together to concerts, meetings, studios, television and radio broadcasts. If we didn’t return late, we traditionally had dinner at my house in the evenings and drank Kazakh tea with milk. In Batyr’s arms my youngest son Timur laughed for the first time. We waited for a long time for the baby’s first laugh, we were worried, and only the artistic Batyr was able to make him laugh for the first time! Batyr often played with my children, impersonating different characters, causing genuine delight. They loved spending time with him. We worked together for ten years. Batyr never stopped and never gave up. His life as if consisted of two halves: Kazakhstan and Moscow. In Kazakhstan he was the people’s favorite star and he didn’t have to prove anything to anyone. But in Moscow after leaving A’Studio he had to fight for a place under the sun. I remember how happy we were to get our first broadcasts on TV and radio and invitations to big concerts and festivals.
The creative process was going on constantly – all his free time between concerts Batyr spent in the studio, getting acquainted with new poets, composers, arrangers, looking for material, recording songs. He listened to an incredible amount of diverse music, went to all the important concerts in Moscow, regardless of the genre: jazz concerts and classical concerts, concerts of Sade or Ozzy Osborne. And if we went to friends’ parties, Batyr would take his saxophone with him and arrange spontaneous performances – he liked playing with different musicians, improvising, trying things out, experimenting. On April 28, we were rehearsing at Mosfilm before the last shooting day of the TV show “Odin-v-odin” (As like as two peas), in which Batyr successfully participated. It was a rehearsal, but he really put himself out there. I told Batyr that he should save himself for the shoot. That day he performed as Grigory Leps with his song: “I’m happy! I’m not lying! That’s how happy I’ll go!” That was the last song Batyr sang. A few hours later he was gone…”

The first digital release of the concert “Batyr Live” is released for cinema screening in Kazakhstan in 5.1 sound format. The program was recorded in May 2013 in Almaty, where Batyr’s two solo concerts in Kazakhstan, celebrating 30 years of creative activity, took place. The legendary Greg Walsh was the sound engineer of the concert, and the mixing of the concert was done in several studios, one of which was the famous “Angel Studio” in London.

“Batyr Live is not just a concert, it is a film about the work of our entire team, including the work behind the scenes. Preparation for the concert took place in New York, London, Riga, Moscow and Almaty, which is reflected in the film.”

In 2013, with the support of “Kazakhfilm” a Kazakh comedy “Prepod” about the student youth of Kazakhstan was released.
In the film Batyr acted as a musical producer and also played a cameo role. Dastan Orazbekov, the soloist of the Orda band, starred in the film, and the main female role was played by Aisulu Azimbayeva. According to the plot, he falls in love with a student and for the sake of acquaintance with her pretends to be a new teacher, having no idea about “his” subject.

“My acting needs a lot of work, but most importantly – the film turned out to be kind, beautiful. The actors are non-professionals, but all gave 100%.”

Batyr died of a heart attack on April 28, 2015. He was 52 years old. The musician’s sudden death came as a shock to fans. The next day, while a farewell ceremony was taking place in Moscow, thousands of Kazakhs in Almaty lit candles in memory of Batyr on the square in front of the Palace of Republic and sang his songs for several hours, joining together in a heartfelt memorial service for their favorite singer and composer. Batyr is buried in Almaty’s Kensai-2 cemetery, where a memorial complex in memory of the musician has been installed.

“It was fascinating to talk with Batyr about many things – not only music. He was interested in architecture and collected books on modern buildings, brought heavy folios and rare magazines from his travels. Our conversations with him were a conversation of people passionate about their profession: he - about music and I - about architecture. These different elements are in some ways similar – in the search for form, voice, rhythm, balance. During our meetings the boundaries between the two disciplines were blurred; we were looking for and finding things in common, sharing our discoveries. The work on creating the Batyr memorial was a continuation of the dialogue that had broken off. True, his voice was already to be discerned through the forms left on the hill of the Kensai cemetery. But maybe it wasn’t a voice. Maybe they were questions to the master who set an example to others of loyalty, hard work, calm, height. Height. By infinity his experience grew, but stopped at 52. The metal pipes are arranged and stretched in a spiral – the references to the wind instrument and to the organ hall, on the stage of which Batyr made his first appearance as an artist in Alma-Ata.
Loyalty. Batyr’s family asked his friends to send stones from their native places and we received a blue bar from the Pamirs from dear brother Daler. A piece of rock from Adil’s Kyrgyz brother. A rock from Greg’s English garden. Tommy brought a fragment from California. The builders of the memorial asked to keep their stone from Kazakhstan. Fragments of close friends are now on the slab with his name on it. Name. Above the photo, “Batyr” is written in strokes. This is the autograph he left in the book of a young man sick with leukemia. The young man recovered and kept that gift. We found it many years later in order to transfer the name to the last stone. Naively, I believed that working on the memorial would help reconcile with Batyr’s passing. Hoping that the last word to the master would be expressed in stone and metal and heard by him in the silence of Kensai. But the last word is not to be found. The conversation continues, until the path of searching for the form and the voice of those whom the master inspired and amazed with his love for the work and his sincere acceptance of the immensity of the world.”