Amid Ukraine invasion, Pink Floyd, David Gilmour remove music from streaming platforms in Russia and Belarus
Russia blocks internet sites & free media amid invasion
State Department spokesperson Ned Price says nearly 14,000 Russians have been detained for anti-war protests. Voices from within the country may be harder to hear as President Putin adds more restrictions on internet, social media sites and news agencies.
David Gilmour said he and Pink Floyd are protesting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by removing a large portion of their music catalog from streaming properties in Russia and Belarus.
"To stand with the world in strongly condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the works of Pink Floyd, from 1987 onwards, and all of David Gilmour's solo recordings are being removed from all digital music providers in Russia and Belarus from today," an announcement shared Friday to the band’s Twitter account states.
The included works that are set to be leaving Russian and Belarusian streaming platforms are Pink Floyd studio albums "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" (1987), "The Division Bell" (1994) as well as 2014’s "The Endless River."
Gilmour has released four solo studio albums in his career, the most recent being "Rattle That Lock" in 2015. His entire solo discography is also being removed from streamers.
Last week, Gilmour tweeted in support of Ukraine, writing, "Russian soldiers, stop killing your brothers. There will be no winners in this war. My daughter-in-law is Ukrainian and my granddaughters want to visit and know their beautiful country. Stop this before it is all destroyed. Putin must go."
Former Pink Floyd member Roger Waters, who left the band in 1985, also condemned Russia and President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in a Facebook post in response to what a Ukrainian fan shared on Wednesday.
"I am disgusted by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, it is a criminal mistake in my opinion, the act of a gangster, there must be an immediate ceasefire," he wrote. "I will do anything I can to help effect the end of this awful war in your country, anything that is except wave a flag to encourage the slaughter."