Russian musician known for anti-Putin war songs dies at 35
Prominently known as the founder of the Russian band Cream Soda, musician Dmitry Svirgunov, also known as Dima Nova died at 35. According to a report by The New York Times, the musician died after falling through ice while crossing the frozen Volga River. At the time of the incident he was with his brother and three friends, the independent Russian outlet Meduza reported.
What exactly happened during the time of the incident?
On Tuesday, the news of his demise was announced by the band's official page. On Sunday, the incident with the musician reportedly occurred in the village of Dievo-Gorodishche, in Russia's Yaroslavl region, where he was making his way through a frozen river. Two of Svirgunov's friends were rescued from under the ice, while the third, later, breathed his last in the ambulance.
The official identification took place on Tuesday
Cream Soda took to Instagram to announce the news with the caption, "Our Dima Nova with friends was walking along the Volga and fell under the ice. Aristarchus, our friend who also fell under the ice, was caught, but could not be saved." In another post, the group shared photos of the musician saying, "an official identification took place today (Tuesday) at 9:00."
Here's the announcement post
The artist often criticized Russian president Vladimir Putin
He was prominently known for criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin in most of his songs. Notably, his songs were frequently used as an anthem during anti-war protests in Russia. Among a long list of popular songs, Aqua Disco is apparently the most controversial, which was sung at protests against Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. In his song, Svirgunov took a target on Putin's $1.3B mansion.
Svirgunov's band rose to popularity in 2021
Cream Soda was founded in 2012 by Svirgunov and Ilya Gadayev, and since then, they have put out four studio albums. The band has collaborated with groups like Khleb and Loud as well as musicians like Feduk, Antokha MC, and Alexander Gudkov. The band attained global popularity in 2021 when Russian comedian Alexander Gudkov parodied President Putin in a video using their song.
