Ukrainian Popular Music in Times of War: National Identity, Transnational Projections and the Musician as Grassroots Ambassador

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5429/2079-3871(2024)v14i2.2en

Keywords:

Ukrainian popular music, National Identity, (Nation) Branding, Music and War, Ukraine, cultural diplomacy, grassroots

Abstract

This article investigates the ways in which Ukrainian independent popular music after February 2022 has contributed to domestic nation-building and international nation-branding. Taking as case studies six artists who have extensively toured abroad with their musical projects, the article traces the evolution of the internal imaginings and external projections of Ukrainian identity enabled via musical activity. The article shows that the war has generated a reconfiguration of the relationship between the artist and their social responsibility, in which music has become a fundamental weapon to raise transnational awareness of the Ukrainian struggle and to materially influence Ukraine’s defence. This reconfiguration has prompted the performers to take the role of grassroots cultural ambassadors and create DIY networks of solidarity, largely outside of state initiatives. In this process, ideas about Ukraine did not adhere to a standardized framework for the purpose of articulating unity, but rather reflected Ukraine’s unity in cultural diversity.

Author Biographies

Marco Biasioli, University of Manchester

Marco Biasioli is a lecturer in Russian and East European Studies at the University of Manchester. His forthcoming book (Routledge, 2024) explores the interactions between popular music, language, politics and national identity in contemporary Russia (2008-2022). His latest article (Russian Review, 2023) develops the concept of ‘songwashing’ to explain how the Russian state apparatus, in its diverse, loose, and often undercoordinated points of affiliation, used popular music for regime legitimation domestically and for soft power internationally. His current research focuses on activism and culture in the context of migration, specifically on how émigré Russian artists and grassroots organisations reimagine Russian culture in times of war.

Thomas Drew

Thomas Drew completed his PhD in Russian and East European Studies at The University of Manchester in 2023. His research interests include 'underground' or 'alternative' culture, perceptions of identity and temporality, and cultural resistance to authoritarianism and repression.

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Published

06-11-2024