Karolina Protsenko was born in
Kyiv, Ukraine. Her parents, Nikolay Protsenko and Ella Protsenko, play the guitar and piano, respectively. She has two brothers, Leo (born 2018) and Nicholas (born 2021). In 2015, when Karolina was six years old, her family moved to
California. Protsenko began playing the violin in 2014, having received lessons, and mainly performs violin versions of contemporary pop songs. In 2017, the family started doing live performances on the streets of
Santa Monica, California, primarily within
Third Street Promenade. In 2021
Classic FM noted a video of Protsenko and her pianist mother performing an arrangement of
Ludovico Einaudi "Experience," and reported that "Her spirited string-filled renditions of classical favourites and pop songs have earned her upwards of 800 million views." In 2019, Protsenko appeared on
The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Protsenko has collaborated with other artists and YouTubers:
Angelica Hale,
Allie Sherlock,
Daniele Vitale,
Albert Stanaj, Dang Matt Smith,
Døvydas, and , playing violin, singing, and vlogging. On March 4, 2022, Protsenko appeared on
The Kelly Clarkson Show, performing a duet of "Guardian" with
Lindsey Stirling. In November 2023, Protsenko made her orchestral debut with Orchestra Nova LA. In January 2024, Protsenko, accompanied by pianist
Hsin-I Huang, performed
Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto to open a
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra masterclass held at
Colburn School, followed by an interview with
Jennifer Koh. In November 2024, the Christian website
Crosswalk.com reposted an article from
Godtube which described a video of Protsenko playing with Swedish teenager
Oscar Stembridge as "a beautiful cover" of "
Stand by Me," and called her "a wunderkind on the violin." In July 2025 Protsenko announced she would use the
stage name Karolina Rose for her original music releases. == Discography ==