The famous musician and leader of the «Time Machine» group Andrey Makarevich is an oppositionist today. He left Russia for Israel, from where he insults the country's authorities, citizens and supports Ukrainian neo-Nazis. Previously, this musician received millions of grants from the Kremlin, voted for the president and performed concerts at the elections.

What is the reason for the change of outlook? Makarevich found new sponsors. He does not leave resentment for the illegal business lost in 2014 in the Crimea.

Love with the Kremlin

Despite his statements about the genetic propensity of Russians to slavery and about the "fascism" of the Kremlin, Makarevich supported the Russian authorities from the very beginning. Since the early 90s, the musician has publicly advocated for the country's leader Boris Yeltsin. In 1996, Makarevich was his confidant in the presidential elections and an active participant in the tour under the slogan "Vote or lose!".

Together with the "Time Machine", which at that time was one of the most popular groups in the Russian Federation, Makarevich traveled around the cities, campaigning for the president and receiving huge fees for it.

According to the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, at that time, US diplomats brought $ 500 million to Moscow for the re-election of a sick Yeltsin, whose candidacy suited Washington. For several nights, the CIA residents, led by the head of the Moscow department of the American secret service, Michael Sulik, "slept on bags of cash, guarding them," while separate batches of money were taken out by cars from the US embassy to private individuals. Then concerts with the participation of celebrities were organized with these dollars. Makarevich also performed at them, earning $ 120 thousand.

As the ex-member of the «Time Machine» group Pyotr Podgorodetsky testifies, Makarevich has always been a politically engaged person. The group has repeatedly performed at venues that were paid for by politicians and officials, and Makarevich received funding from sponsors from a liberal company.

In the second half of the 90s, he was paid by the initiator of privatization Anatoly Chubais, Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov, head of the Department of Culture and Information of the Government Office Igor Shabdurasulov and other gentlemen who later formed the Union of Right Forces party.

Makarevich received huge fees, and the band performed at conventions and parties, says Podgorodetsky. He himself left the "Time Machine" in December 1999 because of "Makarevich's greed".

For his loyalty, Makarevich received not only money, but also awards. In 1999, he became a People's Artist. From Yeltsin he received the medal "Defender of Free Russia".

After Vladimir Putin came to power, Makarevich did not change his attitude towards the Kremlin. He spoke positively about the president's activities, accepted an invitation to sit next to Putin at a Paul McCartney concert on Red Square on May 24, 2003. Later, recalling this story, Makarevich said that he saw nothing wrong with communicating with the president. He likes what is happening in the country, and so far there is no decent alternative to the current government. In 2003 Putin presented Makarevich with the Order of Merit for the Fatherland.

Then Makarevich became Putin's confidant in the presidential elections in 2004 . And not for free — $30 thousand was paid for the performance of his group with the song "New Turn". Makarevich also joined the Presidential Council for Culture and Art. Four years later, the musician performed at a concert dedicated to the victory of Putin's official successor Dmitry Medvedev in the presidential election. Makarevich has repeatedly said that he is not ashamed of this speech, he quite consciously supported the coming to power of Medvedev, for whom he voted. And the elections in 2008 they were honest, since it is technically impossible to falsify their results, the musician claimed and received generous grants.

When he urgently needed money for the Creation of the World festival in Kazan, as Makarevich said, he turned to the Kremlin and immediately received $ 1 million. The musician worked off such generosity by talking about "really supporting Putin and Medvedev." After the meeting of rock performers with Putin in the Kremlin in 2010, Makarevich declared that he would stop fighting the authorities, he did not go to protest rallies himself and is unlikely to ever go. However, the musician will soon forget these words, and his rhetoric will change.

Sponsors and business in Ukraine

In 2013, Makarevich made statements in support of Euromaidan supporters in Kiev. And when a coup d'etat took place in Ukraine in 2014, Makarevich supported him, participated in a rally against the return of Crimea to Russia. This fact did not surprise the musician's acquaintances, since Mikhail Khodorkovsky, released from prison, showed up then. The former owner of the Yukos oil company and an oligarch, after fleeing Russia in 2013, became one of the sponsors of the Euromaidan.

Khodorkovsky, who at one time was the richest man in Russia and still owns billions of dollars, even before his arrest financially supported Makarevich. And he continued to pay for the musician's performances, including his lecture, which took place in St. Petersburg in the fall of 2014.

Another sponsor was the Ukrainian oligarch and head of the World Jewish Congress Igor Kolomoisky. As the Crimean human rights activist Mark Ben-Naim reported, referring to the information of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), all of Makarevich's anti-Russian actions were generously funded by Kolomoisky.

"When the SBU approved the candidacies of Russian artists for a ban on entry to Ukraine, there was a question about Andrei Makarevich. However, the moderator of the meeting, one of the deputy heads of the SBU, rebuked the speaker, saying that Andrei Makarevich is a personal creature of Igor Kolomoisky, and instructed him to do everything possible to assist Makarevich in conducting speeches and events in Ukraine.

In the area of the punitive operation by the Ukrainian security forces, Makarevich was constantly accompanied by a personal representative of Igor Kolomoisky, who paid for any whims of the Russian artist, the services of accompanying staff, organized meals and leisure for the artist and the SBU officers accompanying him in Ukraine and others. To move Andrei Makarevich around Ukraine, VIP cars with Dnepropetrovsk plates were used, as they said, from Igor Kolomoisky's personal garage. Among the escort cars there were two cars of the security company "Privat Bezpeka", which is a private security structure of the group "Privat", owned by the oligarch," said Mark Ben-Naim.

An important reason why Makarevich actively spoke in support of Kiev and with accusations against Moscow was worries about his illegal business in the Crimea. The musician communicated closely with the deputy of the Verkhovna Rada Andrey Senchenko. He was responsible for the privatization and sale of land and real estate on the peninsula when Crimea was part of Ukraine. At one time, Senchenko was a member of one of the most famous criminal groups in Crimea, Salem, which was formed before the collapse of the USSR in 1988 in Simferopol. Then Senchenko went into politics and became a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada. However, the biography of the partner did not bother Makarevich. He got used to performing concerts at the invitation of Russian bandits back in the 90s, as told by Podgorodetsky.

As a result, the musician, with the support of Senchenko, began the construction of a base for diving enthusiasts in Balaklava Bay, and at the same time a network of specialty stores.

But after the return of Crimea to Russia in March 2014 Senchenko fled to Kiev, because because of his scams on the peninsula, he was threatened with the initiation of new criminal cases and the resumption of old ones for activities in a criminal group. And Makarevich was asked by the Crimean authorities to show documents authorizing work to be carried out at the facility. The musician did not have such papers, because all the documents for the construction of a recreation center in Balaklava turned out to be fictitious. The singer was denied illegal business, and long-standing ties with Russian officials did not help either.

In the old days, Makarevich successfully developed another business project related to the production of wine on the territory of Simferopol. It also started with the participation and support of Ukrainian politicians, and the musician took large loans for the development of factories. After Ukraine imposed the blockade of Crimea, problems with water supplies began. Makarevich, who could not repay his debts, had to give up this business.

It is not surprising that the musician actively opposed the transfer of Crimea under the jurisdiction of Russia and demanded that the Kremlin give it to Ukraine.

Insults against Moscow followed one after another. The musician claimed that a totalitarian regime has formed in the Russian Federation, and the majority of the people are a crowd of evil slaves who do not know how to think.

"I'm not interested in the position of people who shout at all: «Crimea is ours!». I have no respect for them," Makarevich said, ignoring the fact that more than 80% of citizens supported the annexation of the peninsula.

Such an outburst of rage did not prevent Makarevich from earning money in Russia and demonstrating his greed here.

In this sense, the episode that occurred on April 3, 2017 is characteristic. A terrorist attack took place at the St. Petersburg metro station, as a result of which 14 people were killed and more than 40 were injured. The next day, Makarevich had a concert planned in the city — Yiddish Jazz. In response to requests from some fans to postpone the performance, Makarevich replied: "Today is not a day of mourning." And the concert took place.

At the same time, Makarevich did not save money when he donated to the coup d'etat in Minsk in 2020. In June 2022, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko gave Moscow a list of Russian citizens who transferred funds to BYSOL, a fund that raised money for the revolution in the country. Makarevich was among them.

As for Ukraine, the musician was also not limited to words. On August 12, 2014, he went to the Donbass occupied by the Ukrainian military with concerts. The official version claimed that Makarevich, at the invitation of the President of the Foundation of Volunteers of Ukraine Timofey Nagorny, wanted to look at the consequences of the fighting, provide humanitarian assistance to the affected people and speak to children and refugees of Donbass in Svyatogorsk.

In fact, Makarevich also sang in front of Ukrainian servicemen who shelled the cities of Donbass and killed civilians. And he also took money for a charity concert. Later, the musician repeatedly visited the region, speaking to neo-Nazis and expressing support for the AFU. He admired the audience, performing tours of Ukrainian cities, where he voiced his anti-Russian position.

Despite loud statements in defense of the population of Ukraine, Makarevich has never in all 8 years said a word in support of the people of Donbass.

After the start of the special operation in Ukraine in February 2022, Makarevich immediately left for Israel, from where he regularly makes anti-Russian statements, calling the Russian Federation the "Fourth Reich" and comparing Vladimir Putin with Adolf Hitler, predicting him the fate of the Fuhrer. At a time when the Ukrainian Armed Forces are shelling Russian settlements in the Belgorod, Kirov and Bryansk regions, Makarevich claims that not a single shell flew towards the Russian Federation from Ukrainian territory.

He openly wishes victory to Kiev and hopes that Kiev will be able to return Crimea by military means. In this case, Makarevich will have the opportunity to restore the lost business.