Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin.

You can love him or you can hate him, but you can’t ignore him. I swear he’s got as many internet memes as the cats do!

But he’s not only the subject of many memes, he’s also had a number of songs made about him. Here are just a few…

First up, these guys.

You might remember this duo from another song in another music post- Russian songs so bad they’re good.

In 2014(ish?) they created what was supposedly “one of the biggest songs of the year in Russia”. Despite what some Russian youtubers think, these guys aren’t American rappers- one’s from Zimbabwe, the other from Kenya- and I’m seriously 1000% sure that this song was never a “хит лета в Америке“. Like, ever.

That last video- the interview– is in Russian and the comment thread actually has some nice things like Какой хороший русский!!!, чо-то эти “американцы” по-русски говорят лучше чем большинство Россиян), and Какие они грамотные! You know it’s a big deal when a Russian calls you грамотный 😉 There’s also a short interview in English with the rappers here.

Some lyrics:

Ahhhhh…. actually, no, sorry. I can’t do this to you. It’ll get stuck in your head soon enough. It’s all in English anyways.

This next song was written on a $300 bet. It became a chart-topper and a political  theme song- watch the PBS documentary on it here.

Some lyrics:

Мой парень снова влип в дурные дела        My boyfriend is mixed up in trouble again
Подрался, наглотался какой-то мути            Got in a fight, drank some shit
Он так меня достал и я его прогнала             I’m so sick of him and I ditched him
И я хочу теперь такого, как Путин                 And now I want a man like Putin

Такого как Путин полного сил                        A man like Putin, full of strength
Такого как Путин чтобы не пил                       A man like Putin, so he won’t drink
Такого как Путин чтоб не обижал                   A man like Putin, so he won’t hurt me
Такого как Путин чтоб не убежал                    A man like Putin, so he doesn’t run away

And this song by a Russian rapper named Сява who is mainly famous for another, more famous rap music video making fun of the ever-so-lovely гопник subculture. This particular song is about Сява wanting to go into business with his friend, a friend who looks like Putin’s twin, and how things don’t exactly work out.

Some lyrics (Volodya is a nickname for Vladimir):

Давай замутим!                                                          Let’s do business together!

Bonus round: мне плевать

Do you know the phrase “мне плевать“? It translates as a strong I don’t care…. along the lines of I don’t give a damn.  Check it out in (I promise) the final Putin meme:

Мне плевать is actually the central theme of a pretty cool song- Потому что мне плевать. This song has absolutely nothing to do with politicians or politics; it’s about laziness. Take a listen:

Some lyrics:

Я не играю в гольф, я не хожу в спортзал                      I don’t play golf, I don’t go to the gym
Сынок иди работай, мне папа мой сказал                       ‘Go find a job, son!’ my dad said to me
Свалить бы заграницу и не вернуться назад                  It would be great to run away abroad and never come back
Я развозил бы даже пиццу, потому что мне плевать     I’d even deliver pizza because I just don’t care

I leave you with this song for Russian practice and to wipe clean anything stuck in your head from the other videos. Enjoy!