Around a hundred Russians gathered on Nevsky Prospect in St. Petersburg to perform songs by Noize MC. The police intervened, detaining 18-year-old Diana Loginova, the vocalist of the band Stoptime. Noize MC, whose real name is Ivan Alekseyev, fled Russia in 2022 after condemning the war and performing at benefit concerts for Ukrainian refugees. He continues to release songs and videos denouncing the Kremlin’s crimes and celebrating Ukraine’s resilience.
SANKT PETERSBURG OCTOBER 17: Around a hundred Russians gathered on Nevsky Prospect in St. Petersburg to perform songs by Noize MC, who refused to live in Putin’s Russia and emigrated. The young people sang the song “Swan Lake Cooperative,” which a St. Petersburg court had deemed “extremist” back in May 2025 and completely banned its performance, broadcast, and streaming, Kyiv Insider reports .
Every word of this song challenges the very foundations of Putin’s rule. A video of the impromptu concert in St. Petersburg quickly went viral. Media outlets are calling the performance one of the boldest acts of protest in Russia since 2022. The police intervened, detaining 18-year-old Diana Loginova, the vocalist of the band Stoptime. She performed songs not only by Noize MC and Monetochka, but also by other “foreign agents.” The girl was taken to the police station. Law enforcement officials accuse Diana of publicly discrediting Putin’s army and organizing an unsanctioned rally. Human rights activists note that censorship is increasingly clamping down on culture in Russia, and criminal prosecution may now extend to street musicians.
The mass performance of banned songs and Diana’s arrest illustrate two sides of modern Russia: a new generation rejects not only silence but also its own state. Even under threat of arrest, young people take to the streets and continue to sing. Media reports indicate that Diana and other musicians from her band were already detained in August for performing songs by “foreign agents” and violating the nighttime silence.
Noize MC, whose real name is Ivan Alekseyev, fled Russia in 2022 after condemning the war and performing at benefit concerts for Ukrainian refugees. Now living in a civilized nation, from exile, he continues to release songs and videos denouncing the Kremlin’s crimes and celebrating Ukraine’s resilience. His music, banned from Russian media, circulates widely through VPNs and encrypted messaging apps.
The song’s title intertwines two powerful symbols: “Cooperative Ozero”, the dacha association that produced Putin’s inner circle of oligarchs, and Swan Lake, the ballet broadcast on Soviet television during the 1991 coup — long associated with regime collapse.
Only days later, another episode of musical defiance — and repression — unfolded in the same city. Fontanka reports that street singer Naoko (Diana Loginova) was detained in St. Petersburg for performing songs by artists designated as “foreign agents.” Naoko, the lead vocalist of the local band Stoptime, regularly performs works by Monetochka, Zemfira, and Noize MC — all of whom have condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Police accuse her of publicly discrediting the Russian army and organizing an unauthorized rally, charges that carry fines or potential jail time. Her detention, human-rights observers say, underscores the expanding scope of Russia’s cultural censorship, where even street performances now risk prosecution.
The crackdown has failed to extinguish public solidarity. “People came to hear live music and ended up chanting for freedom,” one eyewitness told Kyiv Insider. “It feels like the city itself is starting to hum in protest.”
