The 25-Year Career of Zemfira

Anyone who wants to present Russian music cannot ignore Zemfira. Popular and mainstream – millions of records sold – but also distinctly idiosyncratic. The music is usually accessible (we categorize it under Pop), but the attitude is rock.

We start with music, for a change from old to (very) new.

25 Years

Zemfira Talgatovna Ramazanova (1976, in Tatar: Земфира Тәлгать кызы Рамазанова) made her debut in the last century (1999), under not overly creative but perhaps strategic title Zemfira.

“The group enjoyed popularity from the start,” tells us Wikipedia, “in part because of heavy rotation on radio and television, and in part because a female rocker is* a fairly rare and unusual concept for the Russian music scene.”

A single titled СПИД (AIDS), with Aриведерчи (below) and Ракеты, was also fairly rare and unusual in Russia at that time. Zemfira’s name was instantly a known one.

Aриведерчи (1999)

Lyrics

PMML

The real breakthrough came the following year (2000), with successor PMML/ПММЛ (Прости Меня Моя Любовь). Highlights like Искала, Хочешь?, Не отпускай (below) and Прости Меня, Моя Любовь can all be found on this one album.

Не отпускай (2000)

Lyrics

Borderline

From those first two records to the latest work, it could only be done with giant steps that don’t do justice to artist and work. Links below for compensation.

The latest full album– soundtracks to Северный ветер (2021) and Cactus (2023) excluded – is бордерлайн (borderline) from 2021 (deluxe edition 2022). From this record пальто, with lyrics on screen, also here.

пальто (2021)

Singles

After that, new Zemfira’s were relased as singles, like Мяco (2022) and PODNHA (2023). The most recent one (and only one from 2024) is Colette, of which no video was made. A promising new channel named Music in Russian came to the rescue.

Colette (2024)

Lyrics

More Zemfira

(from new to old)

• Когда же Вы наконец поймёте? / When will you ever learn? (2022)
• Злой человек (2021)
• Северный ветер (2021)
• остин (2021)
• Мечтой (2016)
• Жить в твоей голове (2013)
• Снег начнётся (2008)
• Возьми меня (2007)
• Мы разбиваемся (2007), also check Земфира. О съёмках клипа of that time, and the brand new version by Live Russian
• Итоги (2006)
• Самолёт (2005)
• Блюз (2005)
• Прогулка (2004)
• Мачо (2002)
• Сказки (2002)
• Бесконечность (2002)
• Лондон / Небо Лондона (2000)
• Почему (1999)

Playlists

• Top Songs (61)
• All the best (26)

Zemfira Foreign Agent

Support for Ukraine and criticism of the СВО (special military operation, or war) landed Zemfira on the list of foreign agents (see: Russian foreign agent law.)
A decision she contested, without success. See Земфира против войны: почему певица прервала молчание и за что ее признали «иноагентом» (TV Rain, 2023, 14 m) and Земфиру признали иноагентом (SUNSET, 2023, 1 m); read (EN/RU)

• Zemfira filed a lawsuit against Russia’s Justice Ministry (Eastern Herald, 12-05-2024)
• Popular Singer Zemfira Among Several Russians Declared Foreign Agents (rferl.org, 11-02-2023)
• Popular Russian singer Zemfira declared foreign agent by government (Reuters, 10-02-2023)
• Russian Rock Star Zemfira Releases Anti-War Music Video (The Moscow Times, 21-03-2022)
• Земфира обжаловала в Верховном суде отказ исключить её из реестра иноагентов (RT, 15-09-2024)
• Земфиру внесли в список иноагентов (Boom.ms, 13-02-2023)
• Минюст включил в список иноагентов Земфиру и Дмитрия Гудкова (rtvi.com, 10-02-2023)

Zemfira Tour 2024

What doesn’t happen often, is happening now: Zemfira on tour. With stops in Berlin (November 1st), Amsterdam (November 4), Zürich (November 7), London (November 12) and Paris (November 17), Zemfira’s current city of residence.

Buy tickets here – and no, prices are not in rubles.
The author of this piece will attend in Amsterdam, and will report back.

YouTube offers impressions of previous stops:

• Riga (13-10)
• Tbilisi (18-09)
• Limasol (Cyprus) (15-09)
• Belgrado (13-09)
• Barcelona (04-05)

The Последний концерт в России (last/latest concert in Russia) is of February 26, 2022.

BIO


PORTRAIT

• Как Земфира пришла и победила (БРОКЕН ДЭНС, 2023, 14 mins)
• 
Земфира – Как Живет Рок-Легенда и Самая Таинственная Певица России (MixShow, 2022, 27 mins)
• To love Zemfira: Земфира, начало, 1999-2009. часть 1 (1999, 9 mins) – also see part 3, part 4, part 5; drop a mail if you find part 2
• Земфира “До 16 и старше” часть1 – also see part 2, part 3 (or here) and part 4

INTERVIEW

• Вечерний Ургант В гостях у Ивана (2016, 17 mins)

• Земфира VK Live Chat (2015, 57 mins)
• Земфира – Интервью с Ренатой Литвиновой (2008, 7 mins)
• Земфира – «Детали» на СТС | Интервью (СТС, 2007, 26 mins)
• Земфира – «Школа Злословия» | Интервью (2005, 45 mins)
• Земфира – Намедни (интервью в машине) (2001, 4 mins)
• Земфира | Программа «А» (1999, 9 mins)

Website

Most of the music here is also in this R1 playlist on YouTube (in order of publication).
Don’t miss Best Russian Music and Russian Song Lyrics.
More music on Music in Russian. More Russia on Rad Russia. 

Last updated December 17, 2025