LA Medin is a Kyrgyz hip-hop/reggae/rap band. They sing mostly in Russian. Their current members are Batka (real name Batyr; Батька/Батыр) and Slim JOY (or Kyba; Куба). The band’s name refers to the cities Los Angeles and Almedina. Batka, the only member who has been with the group since the start, has said that he got interested […]

Troeraznykh (Троеразных; the name translates to “three different”) is a Kyrgyz rap collective most of whose songs are in Russian. They originally consisted of two beatmakers and one guitarist—or, as Boorsok, a Kyrgyz magazine, has put it, “three forms who don’t resemble one another even by a drop.” They aim to be a “human” group, […]

Band’Eros (Банд’Эрос) is a Russian R&B/hip-hop group that was founded in Moscow in 2005. The band’s name is a purposeful play on words – calling to mind both “banderos” – a Spanish word for an outlaw and “Band Eros” – referring to a certain sexuality within the group. The original members were Batishta (Kirill Petrov/Батишта, […]

Delfin (Дельфин, eng. Dolphin) is the stage name of Andrei Lysikov (Андрей Вячеславович Лысиков), a popular Russian musician who plays experimental electronic music. He has often been compared with Moby. Lysikov got his start in the scandalous 90s hip-hop trio Bachelor Party (Мальчишник), where he was the main songwriter. As Delfin, Lysikov has received numerous […]

Oakland is a rap group from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan—one of the few (but not the only!) major Kyrgyz rap groups. The group originally consisted of Samat Ismailov (Сэм or Sammy Colt), Dmitry Vorsin (Дима or Noma), and Sardar Zhakypbekov, though Sardar left early on. They rap mainly in Russian rather than Kyrgyz, but they feel themselves […]

Nurbek Savitakhunov (Нурбек Савитахунов) is a Kyrgyz contemporary pop/rock singer who sings mainly in Russian. Less boy-band-pop-y than, say, fellow Kyrgyz stars Mirbek Atabekov and Omar, he has a smooth, easy-to-listen-to voice that he combines with somewhat harder rock backup. He’s often grouped with indie-folk bands, but he himself considers himself more of an urban […]

5sta Family (it is the same in Russian) is a Russian R&B group. They are known for, and are understandably proud of, operating independently and writing most of their songs themselves. The group was founded in 2005 when Vasiliy Kosinskiy (V-kes; Василий Косинский) and Valeriy Yefremov (CoolB; Валерий Ефремов) met online and decided that they […]

Timati (Тимати) is the stage name of one of Russia’s biggest mainstream hip hop stars, and owner of the popular record label Black Star Inc. Born Timir Il’darovich Iunosov (Тимур Ильдарович Юнусов), Timati is of Tatar and Jewish descent. Timati raps in both Russian and English, and has recently risen to a measure of international […]

T-Killah is the stage name of Aleksandr Ivanovich Tarasov (Александр Иванович Тарасов), a Russian rapper who has gained a substantial following mostly through internet-only releases. The social networking site VKontakte is one of T-Killah’s main platforms, though he has also released two physical albums. Tarasov grew up in Moscow, studied economics, theater, and music, and […]