In May 2025, a list of Russian performers spread in the media and Telegram channels, the compositions of which Ukrainian authorities demand to remove from YouTube, from Spotify and Apple Music. We checked the reliability of this news.
Messages about the demand of Ukraine to the largest world music services were distributed on May 14. The publications said that the country's authorities turned to Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music calling to block the accounts of several hundred Russian artists so that they cease to receive income from monetization. A list of 570 musicians was attached to the posts, including those who condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, for example Zemfira, a coin, Noize MC, Face, etc. It was their mention that attracted increased attention of the media and bloggers, noting that even the political position of the performers did not stop the Ukrainian authorities.
This request was told Lenta.ruas well as Telegram channels "Panchenko"(302,000 views at the time of writing this analysis),"KB"(256 000),"Rhymes and Panchi"(229 000),"Rhymes and music"(69,000) and others.
In Ukraine, indeed, there are restrictions both against music in Russian and against Russian performers. Since the summer of 2022 in the country acts A law prohibiting the public reproduction of compositions created or performed by artists from the Russian Federation. For residents Some cities restrictions Even stricter: any public use or listening to Russian -speaking works is prohibited, regardless of citizenship of the contractor. At the same time, listening to songs in Russian in private today does not fall under these norms.
However, among activists, discontent arises from time to time that the inhabitants of Ukraine can still listen to Russian-speaking tracks, and some of them become popular, despite the war. In 2023, the office of the President of Ukraine Turned To Spotify with a request to block the songs of Russian artists who support the invasion and "aggressive policy of Putin." A year later, streaming service Removed The accounts of Shaman, Polina Gagarina, Grigory Leps, Julia Chicherina, Oleg Gazmanov and the Lyube group, and a few days later their channels disappeared on YouTube. However, such a decision of both services is not connected with the requirement of the Ukrainian authorities, but with announced EU sanctions against these performers. Nevertheless, the Apple Music is still Can Unhindered listen Anyone Of these artists.
Despite the restrictions, some songs of Russian performers are becoming popular in Ukraine, often launching new discussions among local activists and the media. At the beginning of April 2025, the Ay Yola Bashkir Group Homay has gained worldwide fame, heading the Apple Music chart, including in Ukraine. In local media appeared many Materials about the danger of listening to the composition, because, according to the authors of notes, monetization goes to artists who support the invasion. Activists and journalists made such a conclusion in connection with the publication of Ay Yola participant Rinat Ramazanov, who, according to them, spoke on his VKontakte page about his brother’s wires for war (now the profile is closed, it was not possible to verify this information). However, discontent Caused and entering the charts of artists who declared their anti -war position, for example rapper Morgensternawhich at the same time enters into list People who pose a threat of national security according to the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine. The authorities sometimes speak on similar topics-for example, the song “Sigma Boy”, which Russian teenage girls Svetlana (Betsy) Cheatcheva and Maria Yankovskaya sing and which in January in January Entered In the top ten of the world chart Billboard, the Ukrainian State Center for Combating Disinformation He called it part of the information war.
February 17, 2025 local activists Launched A petition calling the authorities to block songs in Russian for users of streaming in Ukraine. The authors of the appeal brought several arguments in favor of such a decision: protecting the Ukrainian information space, refusing to financing the aggressor, the prohibition of propaganda of pro -Russian ideas, assistance in the development of Ukrainian music and protecting youth. At the same time, they did not propose to contact the blocking services themselves, but wanted the Ukrainian authorities to limit access to Russian -language music in the country.
Although the petition quickly scored 25,000 signatures for consideration, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine refused to satisfy the requirements specified in it. The government referred to the fact that in Ukrainian and international legislation there are no legal grounds for restricting access to musical works on a linguistic feature. At the same time, in the decision of the authorities it is emphasized that in connection with public resonance and in order to ensure the information and national security of Ukraine, the responsible ministries are instructed to additionally work out this issue.
The publications that Ukraine demanded that the streams block more than 500 Russian performers are spreading along with the list of these musicians. It is decorated in the form of Excel tables called “SNBO.SOICKI_VICONAVTSI” (“National Security and Defense Council of Russian Artists”-Ukrainian). The document consists of pairs of names and links to Spotify accounts without any explanation (and even links to profiles in Apple Music and YouTube channels, which are supposedly also proposed to close).
The publications do not say where the table is made, but the name of the file indicates the abbreviation of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. He regularly announces sanctions against Russian cultural figures who come into force after the president of the country by the president. The last such decree is Vladimir Zelensky signed April 18. The sanctions provide for the deprivation of Ukrainian state awards, blocking assets and restriction of trade operations, but do not prohibit Ukrainians to listen to the songs of such artists in a private order. On the official website of the department No Document from viral publications. Moreover, it is strange that in the title of the file the abbreviation is indicated in Russian (in Ukrainian it looks like RNBO).
Some posts say that the list is not compiled by NSDC, but by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine. This is the department, as mentioned above, Publishing The list of persons who, according to him, threaten the country's national security. It includes more than 200 Russian cultural figures. Nevertheless, the ministry website also No No list from social networks, no appeal to musical platforms.
In addition, the logic of introducing an artist in a register of viral publications is incomprehensible. The table contains performers who condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and those who did not speak publicly at all. However, there are no many musicians who openly supported aggression and therefore fell under Ukrainian sanctions. So, the document is not indicated Entered Garik Sukachev and Alexander Rosenbaum, as well as those who who Under sanctions For a long time - for example, Stas Pieha or Anita Tsoi. There are no Mentioned above Shaman, Gagarina, Lepsa, Chicherina, Gazmanov and Lyube, as well as the outraged activists of Ay Yola and the performers of the song “Sigma Fight”. It is unlikely that the Ukrainian authorities drew up a similar document, but did not include in it those against whom the sanctions themselves were introduced, and those who were recently actively discussed by Ukrainian society.
If the criterion for getting on the list is not political support, then they could be the citizenship of the aggressor country (which Russia recognized back in 2015), especially since Ukraine already has a suitable for this legislation, which was mentioned above. But this hypothesis is not confirmed - in addition to Russian performers, the list has Belarusian, Kazakhstan, Armenian and even Ukrainian artists who produce songs in Russian. Some of them create compositions in the national languages of their countries, which also raises the question of whether they need to block their entire repertoire or only Russian -speaking tracks. In addition, the American rapper unexpectedly got into the list Nle Choppa, performing tracks exclusively in English.
Finally, the list and news of the requirement to block the artists mentioned in it did not spread in the Ukrainian -speaking media. Given the resonance of this topic, it is unlikely that journalists would miss such information.
The news diverged mainly in Russian -speaking sources, while for the first time appeared In the Telegram channel of the Ukrainian pro-Russian journalist Diana Panchenko May 14 at 16:43 Moscow time. By data TGSTAT, she first wrote that the requirement was received from the leadership of Ukraine, and then changed the wording to even less specific (“Ukraine demands”). She was the first to lay out the list with the artists without indicating its source.
In February 2022, Panchenko sharply condemned A full -scale Russian invasion, but in August of the same year she moved to the occupied territories of Ukraine and stated that her previous posts were written under pressure. In 2023, Ukrainian authorities Introduced Against her sanctions, and then They accused in the state treason. Now Panchenko is a frequent heroine Prochremplevsky Media.
The topic of prohibitions on listening to Russian-language songs in Ukraine has long attracted the attention of pro-Kremlin media and Telegram channels. Often their publications are built on manipulations or exaggerations - "verified" Disassembled Some are messages.
Thus, there is no evidence that the distributed list was prepared by the Ukrainian authorities and was sent to streaming services for the subsequent blocking of Russian musicians. Three months ago, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, responding to a request from activists, indicated: neither Ukrainian nor European legislation allows such locks. The origin of the list itself remains extremely doubtful.
Photo on the cover: UNSPLash
- Is it true that in Ukraine they showed a cartoon with an appeal to report the SBU about relatives listening to music in Russian?
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- Is it true that Noize MC performed in a T -shirt with the symbols of the Azov brigade?
- Is it true that the singer Monetochka put an ultimatum to the Russians: “Either I, or Putin”?
- Did Oleg Gazmanov wrote on Twitter that he had to cancel the concert in Kherson due to unsolved tickets?
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