At a recent gathering of exiled Russians in eastern Paris the hall was packed. Members of the audience included Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, and a Russian serviceman who deserted Moscow’s army in Ukraine.
They all listened intently to a 27-year-old pop singer who has emerged as one of the brightest anti-Kremlin stars since quitting Russia in 2022 in protest against its invasion of its neighbour.
The singer-songwriter Monetochka, who is known for evocative pop songs and rebellious lyrics, has made it her mission to support the Russian diaspora as well as those who cannot protest against the war, propaganda and repression back home.
“It pains me a great deal to see the young generation growing up in an environment where war, violence and cruelty are being normalised,” Monetochka, whose real name is Elizaveta Gyrdymova, told the conference at the weekend.
“All I can do is steer clear of these lunatics and support those they have taken hostage,” Monetochka said of the Kremlin.
After the singer left Moscow with her composer husband and settled down in Vilnius, authorities declared her a “foreign agent”, launched a criminal case against her and put her on Moscow’s wanted list.
– Subversive lyrics –
The prosecution has complicated the logistics of her concert tours and cut off a major source of income.
She used to draw huge crowds in countries such as Serbia and Turkey but now has to avoid such Kremlin-friendly states and choose her airlines carefully to avoid extradition to Russia.
“Every flight I take must be approved by my lawyers,” Monetochka told AFP in an interview in her dressing room in the 1,500-seat Bataclan hall ahead of her Paris concert late last week.
Despite the pressure, Monetochka, whose stage name means “little coin” in Russian, has managed to reinvent her career.
During her current tour she will perform in dozens of countries including the United States, Australia and Japan.
In 2024, she released a new album in exile and is now working on another one. Together with dissident rapper Noize MC she has raised more than 400,000 euros ($460,000) in support of Ukrainian refugees.
The singer rose to fame at the age of 17 but she has truly hit her stride in exile, with her lyrics becoming a powerful form of social and political commentary on modern Russia.
In front of a sold-out crowd in Paris she performed her new song “You are a soldier,” whose lyrics feature lines such as: “You smell of blood, you’re one big scar.”
Alexander Sterlyadnikov, one of the Russian army deserters who found refuge in France, attended the concert and later thanked Monetochka for the “cool” song.
Another hit song, which evokes feelings of nostalgia for a pre-war Russia left behind, went viral on TikTok where Monetochka has 3.6 million followers.
She said she had hope for Russia and its young generation despite the unprecedented repression and the aggressive pro-war propaganda.
– ‘Our secret code’ –
Despite the criminalisation of dissent, Monetochka’s songs have not been banned in Russia, and she said that her fan base in the country has grown since the start of the war.
She calls her songs “our secret code” and a form of resistance that helps her fans in Russia survive the dark days.
“Not everyone in Russia supports the war, I know this by looking at my fans,” she said. “Many of them travel from Russia to attend my concerts.”
Monetochka has become a target of hate for propagandists, while high-profile dissidents in exile have praised her songs.
Last month, Alla Pugacheva, Russia’s most famous pop diva and herself an outspoken critic of the Kremlin, told President Vladimir Putin that the war against Ukraine must end.
In the interview that went viral, Pugacheva, 76, also sang Monetochka’s praises, calling her “smart” and “very interesting”.
Monetochka said such encouragement from her “idol” was deeply inspiring.
She said she should have been more outspoken when she lived in Russia.
“Had I known that these people were actually preparing for war, I would have behaved differently,” she said.
“At that time, I was far removed from all that.”
Monetochka first ran into trouble with the Kremlin before the war when she expressed support for gay men and women. She said she was invited by a member of Putin’s administration for a chat but did not show up, unlike many others.
She said that she was able to pack up and leave when the war broke out because she maintained her independence. She knew of artists who had been silenced due to Kremlin pressure on them and their families.
The singer, who has had two children in exile, also encourages fans to be kind to themselves in times of turmoil.
“Why all this heroism if there is no simple human happiness?”
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