Young Musician Faces Fines for Anti-Government Songs

In Russia, an 18-year-old musician named Diana Loginova, who performs under the name Naoko, found herself in hot water with the law. She was recently fined 30, 000 rubles, which is about $369, for playing songs that criticized the Russian government and military. This happened after her performance of a banned song by Noize MC, a rapper who lives in Lithuania, went viral on social media. Loginova, a music student, was first arrested on October 15 and spent nearly two weeks in jail. Her crime? Playing a song that the Russian government said was against the law because it promoted hate and violence. Two of her bandmates also got short jail sentences.But that wasn't the end of it. After she got out of jail, authorities charged her again. This time, it was for playing another song called "You are a soldier" by Monetochka, who also lives abroad and is wanted by the Russian government. The court found her guilty of "discrediting" the Russian army. Loginova's case isn't the only one. Another young musician, Yevgeny Mikhailov, was recently jailed for 14 days in the city of Yekaterinburg for playing anti-Kremlin songs. He was also found guilty of "discrediting" the Russian army. This all raises questions about freedom of expression in Russia. Why are musicians being punished for playing songs that criticize the government? And why are these songs being banned in the first place?