Potap and Kamenskih mock demands to speak only Ukrainian

Ukrainian performers Potap (Alexei Potapenko) and Nastya Kamenskih have posted a humorous video on social media mocking those who demand that people speak exclusively in Ukrainian.

“Forgive us, please, for speaking in Russian. We completely forgot that there is such a thing as freedom,” — the artists said in the video.

The language issue is not new for Potap. The rapper previously stated that Ukrainian politicians and artists often speak Russian in private but on stage or in interviews pretend to be opponents of the language.

Potap also expressed support for singer Olya Polyakova, who said that Ukraine had turned into a concentration camp.

“She has steel balls. She did the right thing — she voiced the opinion of the people about what everyone stays silent on but everyone knows,” — the singer said.

Polyakova subsequently apologized for comparing Ukraine to a concentration camp, calling the comparison inappropriate.

Beyond the language debate, Potap has also attracted controversy recently for other reasons. After the war began, he left the country, for which he faced criticism in Ukraine. The rapper himself claimed that the Office of the President had asked him to work abroad.

In May, Nastya Kamenskih and Potap announced their divorce after nearly seven years of marriage. At the same time, they announced the reunion of their creative duo after a nine-year hiatus.