Anton Savlepop returns to Russian-language show at concerts in Germany

Anton Savlepop, the lead vocalist of the well-known Ukrainian band Quest Pistols, has announced a series of concerts in Germany, where he promises to perform familiar hits accompanied by a DJ set. However, it was not only the content of the performances that caused confusion, but also the language in which they are being advertised.

The posters and promotional videos published by the organisers on the impreza.de page are in Russian, despite the artist's public status as a Ukrainian performer and the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia.

«Не успели перевести» ("We didn't have time to translate"): Spain, 2023 — now Germany, 2024

This is not the first time Savlepop has found himself at the centre of a language scandal. In June 2023, while performing in Spain, he sang Russian-language versions of songs, explaining that "не успели перевести тексты" ("we didn't have time to translate the lyrics"). The promotion was also conducted in Russian at the time — and the audience's reaction was mixed.

The situation in Germany looks similar: the posters are in Russian again, with no signs of adaptation to the artist's Ukrainian identity in the description.

Formally — the organisers' initiative, in fact — reputational losses

Savlepop's supporters may argue that the choice of language for advertising is the promoters' responsibility, not the performer's. However, in the current political and cultural climate, such passivity on the part of a Ukrainian artist looks, at the very least, strange.

The public positioning of Ukrainian musicians abroad has long ceased to be simply a marketing issue, becoming a symbolic act of support for national identity. And it is precisely for this reason that the use of the Russian language to promote a Ukrainian artist is perceived as ignoring the current context.

Why Russian-language marketing for a Ukrainian performer in Germany?

The German stage has long welcomed Ukrainian musicians and actively supports Ukrainian culture. Nevertheless, the promotion of Russian lyrics within the framework of a Ukrainian artist's performance raises legitimate questions.

In the context of a full-scale war, when every public step by an artist becomes a statement, such carelessness is perceived as disrespect towards one's own country and audience. Especially when such a story has already happened before.