However, the problems deepened when the UA:PBC immediately presented Maruv with a contract which prevented her from making any appearances or performing in Russia in the lead-up to Eurovision. Not only that, she was banned from improvising on stage or speaking to journalists without explicit permission – or she would face a fine of around £56,000.
Vyacheslav Kyrylenko, Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Culture, weighed in with an ominous public statement, saying that artists who performed in Russia or “did not recognise the territorial integrity of Ukraine” should not represent Ukraine in Eurovision.
Maruv, who had indeed been planning to play two Russian concerts before Eurovision, refused to sign. Instead, she made a furious statement of her own. “I am a musician, rather than a tool of the political stage,” she protested.
UA:PBC offered the honour of a Eurovision spot to the runner-up, Freedom Jazz, and then, when they refused it, to third-placed dance act Kazka. No dice. “We do not need a win at any price,” said Kazka on their Instagram. “Our mission is to unite people with music, not to sow discord.”
The UA:PBC had no choice but to withdraw from Eurovision altogether, putting the blame, in their statement, on “a systemic problem in Ukraine’s music industry: the connection of artists to the territory of the aggressor state.” In some parts of their society, they professed, that tie to Russia “causes indignation and rejection”.
The controversy rumbles on. Ukraine’s original 2022 Eurovision contestant, Alina Pash, stepped down after it was discovered that she’d visited Crimea in 2015 – after Russia’s annexation. Instead, runner-up Kalush Orchestra – who mix rap with traditional folk music – will compete in Turin with their song Stefania, an ode to mothers.
Kalush Orchestra’s Oleh Psyuk recognised the significance of this moment, saying: “In difficult times for our country, we must reaffirm ourselves to the world. That is why we are ready to present Ukraine with dignity to the whole of Europe.”
Though we now know that Russia will be absent at this year’s Eurovision, that doesn’t mean this proxy war won’t continue to play out. As much as organisers might wish otherwise, many artists feel a responsibility to express their views on this huge stage – and right now, the world is listening.
