Kremlin's sexy music video tells kids protesting corruption isn't cool
Kleptocracy is lit AF.
Political opposition? Lame, according to Russian pop singer Alisa Vox—who, according to a source who talked to Russian news site Meduza, was paid $35,000 by the Kremlin for her new music video.
The song is called "Baby Boy," and it's all about the joys of not protesting. Here's a sample of the lyrics, as translated by The Moscow Times:
Freedom, money, girls — you’ll get it all, even power. So, kid, stay out of politics, and give your brain a shower.
The rest of the song describes a student protester who holds signs with "weak hands," missing classes and getting bad grades because he's a "puppet" of opposition forces who falsely promise him "great riches."
She told a news station that she wrote the song because she thought young people were being deceived by Alexei Navalny. He's the popular opposition leader who led anti-corruption protests in March, which were attended by many high school and college students. (Shortly after, Navalny was attacked with chemicals that severely damaged vision in his right eye.)
Recently, Navalny had uncovered evidence that Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev had purchased yachts and real estate with money "donated" to fake charities by Russian oligarchs.
It's the kind of corruption we've come to expect from the Kremlin (see the New Yorker's most recent feature on Russian President Vladimir Putin's "shadow cabinet"), but it's certainly something that could never happen in the United States ... right?
"Baby Boy," possibly coming to a Jared Kushner dance party near you.
Keith Wagstaff is an assistant editor at Mashable and a terrible Settlers of Catan player. He has written for TIME, The Wall Street Journal Magazine, NBC News, The Village Voice, VICE, GQ and New York Magazine, among many other reputable and not-so-reputable publications. After nearly a decade in New York City, he now lives in his native Los Angeles.
