Mikhail Kozyrev in Paris 8 December 2023

Mute rock and roll

Mikhail Kozyrev is a man who played one of the key roles in the formation and development of the rock scene in the post-Soviet space. Music journalist, TV presenter, media manager, producer - these are not all the incarnations thanks to which he became one of the most influential people in the musical environment. Kozyrev was at the origins of the creation of the cult radio stations Maximum and Ultra, “Our Radio”, the Maxidrom, “Invasion” and “Chart’s Dozen” festivals. Thanks to him, the soundtrack to the film “Brother 2” appeared, which became an important phenomenon for a whole generation of young people who lived through the nineties. Mikhail has been the host and producer of the music broadcast of the Dozhd TV channel since its founding.

Largely at his instigation, BI-2, Zemfira, Spleen, Night Snipers, Agatha Christie, Chicherina, The King and the Jester, Okean Elzy, Brainstorm and dozens of other artists appeared on the musical horizon and became big stars who found themselves in different positions after February 24, 2022. sides of the ideological barricades.

In his original program “Mute Rock and Roll”, Mikhail Kozyrev is looking for an answer to the main question. How did it happen that the rock and roll spirit of freedom for some was replaced by obsequious support for the authorities and the war that they unleashed?

Mikhail, like no one else, knows the industry from the inside and reflects with the viewer on the topic of how we came to the point that rock music has turned into an accompaniment to dictatorship. How the authorities “fed” rock musicians for years, trying to influence the audience through them, and some succumbed to the changing world, while others did not succumb and were forced to leave the country.