Russian String Trio's Street Performance Is a Hilarious Homage to Vladimir Putin

In recent years, Russian president Vladimir Putin has become something of an unlikely pop culture celebrity. Underwear designs, GIFs, and teenage fan clubs have all paid homage to the stoic world leader. Now, Newsweek reports that a song celebrating the iron-faced (ironic?) heartthrob has racked up over a million views since it was uploaded on YouTube two days ago.

The tune is called “Someone like Putin.” Performed by Russian string trio Zlachnoe Mesto, it’s a cover of a similarly titled song recorded by Russian pop-girl duo Poyuschie Vmeste in the early 2000s. “My boyfriend is in trouble again, started a fight when he got drunk on something nasty,” the lyrics go. “I’ve had enough so I kicked him out. Now I’m looking for someone like Putin.”

Earlier this week, Zlachnoe Mesto was busking in the Russian city of Kazan. An onlooker requested the Putin paean, and the group’s members were happy to oblige. “Someone like Putin, so full of strength, someone like Putin who doesn’t get drunk, someone like Putin, who wouldn’t hurt me, Someone like Putin who won’t run away," they sang.

An onlooker filmed the performance, and now it’s going viral in Russia. In the meantime, a Change.org petition was launched to see Zlachnoe Mesto replace Russian singer Sergey Lazarev in the Eurovision Song Contest. So far, it's gained over 4000 signatures.

The Eurovision awards are in less than a month, so it’s (sadly) unlikely that Zlachnoe Mesto will grace the world stage anytime soon. However, you can still catch their hilarious ode to Putin in the video above.

[h/t Newsweek]

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