Top 10 most popular songs in Belarus in recent years: the ranking features only Russian artists — Z-supporters and 'silent ones'
The "Yandex Plus" service has published a list of the most popular tracks among Belarusian users. The top ten leaders included exclusively representatives of the Russian show business.
Singer XOLIDAYBOY.
For its seventh anniversary in Belarus, the "Yandex Plus" service compiled a playlist of compositions that users in the country listened to most often. The final list did not include a single Belarusian or Western artist:
- "Pozhary" (Fires) — XOLIDAYBOY
- "Poezda" (Trains) — Zhenya Trofimov
- "Po Baram" (To Bars) — ANNA ASTI
- "Shelk" (Silk) — Vanya Dmitrienko
- "Tsaritsa" (Empress) — ANNA ASTI
- "Kukla Kolduna" (Sorcerer's Doll) — "Korol i Shut"
- "Hoodie" — Dzhigan
- "Asfalt" (Asphalt) — Jakone
- "Samolety" (Planes) — Zhenya Trofimov
- "Rain and Thunder" — White Noise
Some of the artists in the ranking openly support Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The author of the most popular track XOLIDAYBOY (Ivan Minaev) initially did not comment on the war, but after complaints from pro-government activists in Russia, concert cancellations, and receiving a summons to the military enlistment office, he recorded a video address. In it, he declared support for Vladimir Putin and military actions. Zhenya Trofimov also expressed support for the Russian state course on his social media. Rapper Dzhigan (Denis Ustimenko), who was born in Odesa, demonstrated his newly acquired Russian passport during the Russian presidential elections in spring 2024, for which he was added to Ukraine's sanctions lists.
Other artists avoid making statements on military actions. Singer ANNA ASTI (Anna Dziuba) met the beginning of the war in Ukrainian Cherkasy, but later returned to Russia, obtained Russian citizenship, and continues to perform on state television channels. Because of this, she was added to the Ukrainian "Myrotvorets" database. Vanya Dmitrienko and rapper Jakone also ignore the political agenda, continuing their touring activities in Russia.
Only among the former members of the band "Korol i Shut" did a political split occur. While Andrey Knyazev (KnyazZ) avoids statements about the war and continues to perform in Russia with nostalgic projects, the emigrant Alexander Balunov (Balu) openly condemned the aggression, for which he received an administrative case in Russia for "discrediting the army".
Tenth place in the ranking is occupied not by a musical work, but by the track "Rain and Thunder" from the White Noise project. This is a white noise recording with sounds of rain and thunder, used for sleep and relaxation. A kind of musical escapism from the surrounding world.