Putin-critical pop star probably drowned in river
Dima Nova and his band criticized the Russian president, and one song became a protest anthem against the war. The musician drowned on Sunday.
A founding member of the Russian pop group Cream Soda drowned on Sunday at the age of 34. His band’s song “Aqua Disco” became an anthem during anti-war protests in Russia.
Dima Nova, whose real name is Dmitry Svirgunov, is said to have fallen into ice while crossing the frozen Volga River in the Yaroslav region northeast of Moscow, according to the Russian news site Peopletalk. Dima Nova is said to have been with nine other people. Five of them broke through the ice on the river.
Two people were apparently able to climb out of the water. The other three people – including the musician and his younger brother – were then considered missing. The body of the initially missing Nova has now been found. One of the two people who was able to get out of the water died in the ambulance, writes the band “Cream Soda” on Instagram.
In her song “Aqua Disco,” Cream Soda criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin’s alleged $1.3 billion mansion. The song was sung at the protests before and during the early days of the Russian war of aggression. The band became an icon of the anti-war movement, according to Newsweek.
The band announced the musician’s death on Instagram on Monday, on Tuesday they wrote: “An official identification took place today at 9 a.m. Dima and Goshi are no more.”
