The European Union adopted this week a 14th package of sanctions against Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine. Mainly economic sanctions, but some are more unexpected and target Russian singing stars.
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In the long list of EU sanctions, two names well known to Russians appeared this week: Polina Gagarina and Yaroslav Dronov, aka Shaman, two stars of the Russian scene. Both are now banned from traveling to Europe for openly supporting Russian power and the war in Ukraine. Polina Gagarina, who represented Russia at Eurovision, is thus sanctioned for having given concerts in front of Russian soldiers in Ukraine. She is at all the big celebrations of power, just like Shaman, who has become, in two years, the archetype of the nationalist pop singer.
As evidenced by his big hit Я русский! (I am Russianin French): “And I’m going all the way, despite what the world thinks.”says the song. The singer also reacted after the announcement of the European Commission by writing on his Telegram account: “I am sanctioned because I am Russian.”
If we add the European, American, British and Canadian sanctions, a good fifteen singers have been sanctioned, starting with Nikolai Rastorguaiev, the leader of the group Любэ́, Vladimir Putin’s favorite singer. There is also Oleg Gazmanov, who parades his old hit in all the meetings of the government Сделан в СССР, literally Made in USSR.
“Ukraine and Crimea, Belarus, Moldova, this is my country”, says this song which dates from 2005, so well before the war in Ukraine. Gazmanov says it’s nostalgia but it’s hard not to hear something else in it today. Oleg Gazmanov is therefore banned from staying in Europe and deprived of the two apartments he owns in Italy. The singer cries scandal but that in no way changes his positions.
A few months ago he described “tribe of Judas” all the Russian artists, and there are many, who have left the country. He said he would never reach out to them again, but it is likely that the same is true reciprocally.