Oxxxymiron, a popular Russian rapper, has canceled a run of six sold-out concerts in Moscow and St. Petersburg in protest of President Vladimir Putin’s assault on Ukraine. One of the many celebrities in Russia who have spoken up against the attack, he has also changed his official website to read “NO WAR.”
Born Miron Fyodorov, Oxxxymiron made the announcement in an Instagram video. “I cannot entertain you when Russian missiles are falling on Ukraine,” he said, according to a translation from The New York Times. “When residents of Kyiv are forced to hide in basements and in the metro, while people are dying.”
In the same clip, Oxxxymiron expressed his strong opposition to the Ukraine invasion. “I know that most people in Russia are against this war, and I am confident that the more people would talk about their real attitude to it, the faster we can stop this horror,” he stated. “This is a crime and a catastrophe.”
Watch Oxxxymiron’s announcement below.
As Pitchfork points out, this isn’t the first time Oxxxymiron has spoken up against Putin. He’s also been critical of the Russian government’s propensity of labeling political opponents as “foreign agents” and attended the court hearings of political activists.
Oxxxymiron is a skilled battle rapper, having faced off against former King of the Dot champion Dizaster in the 2017 finals of the Canadian battle rap league. His most recent album is 2021’s Красота и Уродство (Beauty & Ugliness).
Other Russian rappers who have spoken up against the Ukraine invasion include Kasta, Shym, Vladi, Khamil, and Zmey. In a joint statement (translated by Billboard) on Vladi’s Instagram, they wrote, “This situation is a military aggression that has no justification. We categorically refuse to support this ‘military operation,’ which is actually a real war.”
On Friday (February 25th), Russian forces entered the Ukrainian capital Kyiv as missile strikes continued to hammer the city.
