‘A series of celebrations’

Ahead of the presidential elections, Putin plans to drum up support with patriotic concerts

The Putin administration, looking for ways to ingratiate itself with the Russian public ahead of the 2024 presidential elections, has already announced a family-themed travel and housing giveaway. Now, according to sources close to the Kremlin, a series of concerts across Russia featuring Kremlin-loyal musicians is in the works. Putin’s pre-election celebrations are set to continue with a star-studded musical tour of pop and rock delegates. But the president himself isn’t planning on making an appearance.

The Kremlin is preparing to organize concerts across Russian regions starring government-loyal musicians, two sources close to the Kremlin told Meduza. According to them, the tour will be an unofficial part of Putin’s 2024 presidential election campaign. However, it probably won’t have a set slogan like Boris Yeltsin’s “Vote or lose” campaign (with a music tour supporting Yeltsin in the 1996 elections) did. And there aren’t any plans for Putin to participate in the regional concerts.

“This is about fostering patriotism and, consequently, the president’s ratings. The right artists [will perform] with the correct patriotic message. Vladimir Putin has the same message; it’s as if they’re his team. They say: if you support Russia, that means you support the president. Plus, it sends a signal [to those outside of major cities] — you’re not forgotten, we’re sending cultural brigades to you,” explained one of the sources.

The source said Putin’s administration is now negotiating “with everyone who is loyal and somewhat active: pop and rock stars, state theaters.” As an example, he cited regular participants in pro-government concerts — Grigory Leps, Shaman, the band Lyube, and Polina Gagarina. Last year, the Kremlin organized a similar patriotic tour with pro-government Russian stars, called “For Russia” (“Za Rossiyu,” with a Latin Z — a pro-war symbol in Russia) in support of the war. It cost about 100 million rubles (about $1 million), with concerts held in 31 cities.

The Kremlin has already started preparing a list of “trusted persons” for Putin for the 2024 elections, the outlet RBC has reported. Meduza’s sources say this list is also expected to include artists who will go on these “patriotic” tours across Russia. The Kremlin’s Public Projects Department, headed by Sergey Novikov, is in charge of organizing the concerts. Meduza’s sources call Novikov “the main censor of cinema, theater, and music,” and say that his department is now responsible for key decisions regarding cultural policy.

The planned concerts are part of a broader initiative by the Putin administration to bolster patriotic sentiment and encourage voter turnout in the lead-up to the 2024 elections. The upcoming election period should seem like a “series of celebrations.” For example, the government is holding a nationwide family-values-themed competition called “It Runs in the Family,” where participants can win housing, vacations, and other rewards. All this is supposed to help project an image of stability and “increase social optimism,” as the Kremlin looks to show that everything in the country is “normal,” despite the war.

Story by Andrey Pertsev

Translation by Emily ShawRuss