Russian artists against the war

While Italy is being flooded with Russian propaganda, and on social media you can read people, especially at the extreme ends of the political spectrum, justifying what is, at a European level, perhaps the most serious violation of international law since the Second World War, in Russia there are those who have quite clear ideas about the invasion of Ukraine. That is, anyone in the world of culture and sport who isn't on Vladimir Putin's payroll, or who doesn't consider that paycheck more important than their own dignity.

As far as sport is concerned, OndaRock is not the place to discuss it: suffice it to mention the article “Moscow, the (hidden) dissent”, published by Marco Imarisio for Corriere della Sera, on February 27, 2022.

Here, instead, we have tried to list all the protests raised by Russian musicians against the military aggression ordered by Putin: they are arranged alphabetically by surname, and we have surely forgotten someone, given how many statements on the matter there have been. Pussy Riot have been deliberately left out: despite the fact that, for Western media, no other band seems to exist in Russia besides them, back home they are essentially unknown to the public and their voice has no real echo.

Boris Grebenshikov

A titan of Russian music, an all-round rock genius who fears no comparison with the great Anglophone acts. Capable of ranging across a thousand strands of popular music at the helm of his band Akvarium (or Aquarium, depending on how you prefer to transliterate it), he celebrates fifty years of career in 2022 - a career that began underground during the 1970s: at the time, in the Soviet Union it was strictly forbidden to play rock music without the State's consent, since the State demanded control over every aspect of artistic production.

Grebenshikov has fought for the freedom and dignity of his people at every stage of his career, and he could not stay silent at a moment like this. His message, posted on Facebook on February 24, was brief but unequivocal:

This war is Russia's madness and shame.

On February 28 he followed up with a video, in which he reiterated:

The war between Russia and Ukraine is madness, and the people who unleashed it are Russia's shame.

Kasta

A veteran quartet of rappers from Rostov-on-Don, active since 1999.

On February 24, they released a joint statement on Instagram, which reads:

We are shocked by Russia's attack on Ukraine. This is a military aggression with no justification. We do not support this so-called 'special military operation' in any way whatsoever - it is essentially a war. According to the leadership of the Russian Federation, most Russians support its actions, but that isn't true. Not a single one of our loved ones supports this war. We ask everyone reading this message to speak out about the situation on their own social networks.

A curious side note: on several international sites, Billboard chief among them, the statement was reported as the work of "rappers Kasta, Shym, Vladi, Khamil and Zmey," as if Kasta were the name of a single rapper rather than the quartet made up of the names listed right after it. It's yet another symptom of the sloppiness with which Anglophone music magazines often treat what they consider the empire's provinces.

Kristian Kostov

A model and pop singer of Bulgarian and Kazakh descent, but born and raised in Russia, he came second at the 2017 Eurovision Song Contest. On February 24 he posted the following statement on Twitter:

Imagine waking up and hearing 'sorry guys, the war has started.' I can't believe this is happening and I'm speechless. We do not support our government's behavior and I am truly sorry that it cannot be stopped.

Sergey Lazarev

A Russian pop singer on the scene since 2002, he represented Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2016 and 2019 with songs in English, although at home he usually sings in his own language.

On February 24, he wrote a personal message on Facebook, talking about the fear of war felt by his son. It ends with these words: “No one supports the war! I want my children to live in a time of peace. I want to live and create in a time of peace.”

Manizha

A Russian pop singer of Tajik descent, she represented Russia at the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest. On February 24, she published a lengthy statement on Instagram. Here's an excerpt:

“The current aggression goes against my will, against my family's will, and I believe it goes against the will of our peoples. There are Ukrainians in my family too. My daughter-in-law is Ukrainian. My future husband is half Ukrainian. My closest friends are Ukrainian. Russia and Ukraine aren't just two countries. We are relatives. Any war between us is fratricidal.”

It's a significant remark, as it highlights just how intertwined Russia and Ukraine are. Countless Russians have relatives or friends in Ukraine, and vice versa, which makes the conflict all the more painful.

Valery Meladze

A Russian singer of Georgian descent, he first became known to the public as the vocalist during the final phase of the Ukrainian progressive rock group Dialog, before the band broke up in 1993. From there he pursued a career as a pop singer, making soft, radio-friendly music that was, at least early on, fairly refined, backed by his brother Konstantin Meladze, a multi-instrumentalist and producer.

On February 24, he stated, via a video on his Instagram profile:

“Today something happened that should never happen. History will one day judge and set everything right. I beg you to stop the war and sit down at a negotiating table. People can talk - that's what language was given to us for.”

A guitarist and rapper active since 2008, among the most skilled in Russia at blending rap and rock with alternative sounds while still reaching a wide audience, he published the following post on his Instagram profile on February 24:

“I was woken up by a message from a cousin in Belgorod (a Russian city on the border with Ukraine, ed.) at 6:52: 'We're shaking.' Messages from Ukrainian friends immediately started coming in: 'Kyiv is being hit by missiles,' 'people are being called into air-raid shelters,' and so on. […] Russia has attacked Ukraine, and the fact that a representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations has forbidden calling it a 'war' doesn't change the essence of what's happening. […] I went to my first protest against the actions of Putin's regime in 2011. The last time was in 2021. It's a shame that none of it did any good and didn't stop my country from turning into this (i.e., into a regime, ed.). There is no justification for what we're witnessing right now.”

Oxxxymiron

Born Miron Fyodorov, and raised in Saint Petersburg, he has been one of the best Russian rappers from 2011 to the present day, already known in the past for his critical stance against Vladimir Putin's political positions, particularly regarding the poor living conditions Russian people are forced to endure.

On February 24, he posted a video on Instagram in which he called the attack “a crime and a catastrophe,” adding:

“I know that many people in Russia are against this war, and I'm convinced that the more who speak out about it, the sooner we'll be able to stop this horror.”

He also announced the cancellation of six already sold-out concerts:

“I cannot entertain you while missiles are falling on Ukraine, while the people of Kyiv are forced to hide in basements and metro stations, while people are dying.”

Yuri Shevchuk

The most furious reaction undoubtedly came from Shevchuk, singer, guitarist and leader of DDT, one of the most important Russian rock bands in history, a musician who has been on the scene for over forty years and whose prestige is comparable to that of the aforementioned Grebenshikov. On February 24th he made the following statement in an interview with the Russian section of the BBC:

“This war is wanted by psychopaths who have gone mad. Right now, from the Kremlin. People who have embraced a feudal way of thinking. Right now I'm thinking about what society can do. We have a tour planned and we're thinking about whether to go, not go, what to play if we do go. Should we cancel the shows that are scheduled, or [play them] to talk about all this? Maybe that's the right thing too. Am I afraid? You do what you have to do, whatever happens.”

Ivan Urgant

An extremely popular TV host, but also a significant figure in the music world, having put together the shows “Ciao 2020” and “Ciao 2021”, both already reviewed by OndaRock, and among the most interesting offerings of the international pop scene during the pandemic era.

On February 24th he posted a black background on Instagram, with an eloquent caption:

“Paura e dolore. No guerra”.

In response, his TV show on state television, “Vecherniy Urgant”, was immediately suspended indefinitely.

An isolated show of support: Timati

A rapper of the lowest artistic caliber, ultranationalist, homophobic, a conspiracy theorist and often used by the Kremlin as a useful idiot, he is the only genuinely well-known singer – excluding state-funded classical musicians – who has spoken out in favor of Putin. As reported by the Russian section of the BBC, he has essentially backed the hoaxes being spread by his own government both at home and abroad: namely, that the war was wanted by Joe Biden.

It's worth noting that in the past, in his songs, he called Putin “my best friend” and a “superhero”, drawing accusations of corruption and a flood of negative comments on YouTube: predictable reactions, given that the rap community has for years been one of the few voices critical of the Kremlin within the country.

Epilogue: reality and fiction

Excluding Timati, over whom the least said the better, Russian artists have shown great integrity and dignity, opposing Putin's decision unequivocally and without any qualifications. And the people followed their lead, to such an extent that the Russian authorities had to block Facebook and Twitter for fear the situation would spiral out of their control.

After that, the usual squad of paid trolls was unleashed (nothing new under the sun, just think of the Internet Research Agency) and everything went back under control, at least on the surface. Because then people started taking to the streets to protest against the war, and the police, in an attempt to contain them, responded with a wave of arrests with no legitimacy whatsoever, targeting even those who were simply standing still holding a sign.

A situation sadly similar to what's happening in Italy: squares full of people protesting against the war and in support of Ukrainian sovereignty, social networks flooded with squalid slogans that have nothing to do with the issue, like "What about NATO, though?", "What about Donbass, though?", "What about Palestine, though?", "But when the US bombs someone, that's fine, apparently."

Small consolation: here, at least, the people in the squares haven't been arrested en masse.

A Voice for Ukraine: Ivan Dorn

The last slot goes to a Ukrainian singer. Practically every Ukrainian artist has spoken out against the war, but from their standpoint that's understandable and predictable, given they're on the side being attacked: the aim of this piece, if anything, is to highlight the critical voices against the war coming from the nation that's doing the attacking.

The exception made for Dorn is due to his considerable popularity in Russia (Russian is his first language, though that doesn't make him feel any less Ukrainian), to the fact that he's one of the most sophisticated and visionary pop singers on the planet, and more generally to his intellectual depth. Here's what he expressed on February 24th in an Instagram post:

Today my country was woken up by explosions. Today, the government authorities of the Russian Federation started a full-scale war against my country. And I appeal to the Russians for whom my words, I hope, still mean something. I urge you to stop this catastrophe. I ask you not to take part in this murderous war. We don't need anyone, we want to decide our own fate for ourselves. I also urge my Russian colleagues, who have their own audience. Tell them that we don't need anyone. Spread the message that Ukraine is an independent, sovereign state. Please, let's stop this disaster together. Don't stay silent. My beloved Ukraine, I am with you.

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