: Since late 2024, any public distribution of media advocating for "non-traditional sexual relations" or "childfree ideology" is outlawed.
Once a popular rapper, Face fled Russia to avoid criminal charges. His video "В Малиновом" (In Raspberry) was banned within 24 hours of upload. The uncut version is a stop-motion nightmare of the Russian flag burning while a chorus chants Orthodox prayers backward. Roskomnadzor (the federal censor) stated the video incited "extremist activity." The raw, unedited master—which includes a scene where a Ruble note is torn in half—has never been legally released in Russia.
No discussion is complete without Nastya Kreslina and Nick Kostylev. The duo has been arrested, detained, and blacklisted for years. Their video for "Марш" (March) was one of the first to be universally banned. The uncut version features surreal violence, burning police cars, and children in gas masks—a metaphor for state oppression. Banned- Uncensored Uncut Music Videos Russia
Censorship in Russia is anchored in several key laws designed to regulate the "information space":
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Miron Fedorov, known as Oxxxymiron, is one of Russia’s most influential hip-hop artists. Long a thorn in the side of state censors, his videos frequently tackle themes of historical trauma, totalitarianism, and intellectual freedom.
: Rappers and pop stars are increasingly forced to rewrite lyrics and edit video scenes to avoid "drug propaganda" charges. The uncut version is a stop-motion nightmare of
When a music video is banned from Russian television and local streaming platforms, it does not disappear. Instead, it migrates to decentralized or foreign digital hosting spaces.
A primary mechanism for censorship, this law is broadly interpreted, allowing authorities to target artists whose lyrics or imagery involve themes of addiction, alternative lifestyles, or any content deemed socially destabilizing.
Many artists in the rap and rock genres are accused of promoting drug use, leading to their videos being banned from public streaming services. Accessing the "Uncensored/Uncut" Underground
: Cases in this category demonstrate how broadly the law is applied. In one instance, a Russian man was fined for posting a still image from Queen's 1984 music video "I Want to Break Free," showing the band in drag. The court ruled the post was "destroying family values" and "distorting the idea of the relationship between a man and a woman". Even global pop culture has been censored: Russian TV channel TNT Music, fearing fines, altered a K-pop music video by the boy band Seventeen, digitally blurring a rainbow into a grey cloud to avoid an "LGBT propaganda" violation. Even the popular pro-war singer Nikolai Baskov , who was awarded the Order of Honor by Vladimir Putin, had a music video fined for "LGBT propaganda" because the plot involved a man being jealous of another man. The TV channel airing it was fined 1 million rubles ($11,000). Another music video, a 2002 hit by the band Ruki Vverkh! ("He Kisses You"), which featured a drag performance in a nightclub, was quietly removed from the band's official YouTube channel, even though it was never on the official banned list—a clear case of self-censorship.