The mayor of the Siberian city of Novosibirsk has asked notorious Russian rock group Leningrad not to swear during their upcoming concert in the city on June 3, the TASS news agency reported Thursday.
Mayor Anatoly Lokot warned band members that they had to comply with Russian law by not cursing or 'making any extremist calls' during their performance.
Local authorities would not ban any particular songs, but would take measures if any laws were violated, Lokot said, as cited by TASS. A law against swearing in the mainstream media, including in the cinema, theater, and at concerts, has been in place in Russia since July 2014.
The band, who are known for their provocative and often foul-mouthed songs and music videos, has already responded by saying that they will not change their lyrics while performing in the city, band PR agent Dmitry Guguchkin told the Radio Baltika radio station.
Last month, a number of Orthodox activists asked Novosibirsk City Hall to stop Leningrad from performing their latest song “In St. Petersburg, You Drink” at the concert in Novosibirsk.
The song's video show several city residents, including a taxi driver, a traffic cop and a tour guide, give up everything to embark on an alcohol-fueled adventure around the city. The video sparked controversy in Russia, with some Orthodox activists claiming that the video promotes alcoholism, drug abuse, and a negative attitude towards law enforcement.
On May 23, prosecutors began an investigation into the video on charges that it could “promote alcoholism.” The move following the requests of St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly Deputy Yevgeny Marchenko and local civil groups.
At the same time the chairman of St. Petersburg's Tourism Development Committee Viktor Kononov thanked Leningrad frontman Sergey Shnurov for the song. He said that the video was good advertising for the city and would encourage people to visit.
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