The TNT television channel aired a performance titled Ivan Vasilyevich Changes Everything featuring the singer at the center of a licensing dispute. Reporters describe the remarks by Andrei Razin as unfair, while Razin later accused Sergei Lazarev of theft regarding Lazarev’s performance of the composition Gray Night in a feature film. The channel’s press service provided the details to socialbites.ca for confirmation.
According to the channel and its representatives, permission from Andrei Razin is not required for the use of the song Gray Night. Lazarev’s critics have framed Razin’s statements as those of someone not fully versed in copyright law. TNT indicated that Lazarev and the production team secured the rights to remix the song for inclusion in the film, emphasizing that the song is being played legally based on available copyright information and licensing records, as relayed by the network’s spokespeople.
Sergei Lazarev performed a cover of Yuri Shatunov’s classic as part of a New Year comedy project, Ivan Vasilyevich Changes Everything, which premiered on December 31, 2023. The rendition was presented to audiences as part of the film, and the version performed by Lazarev was sung in French for the production context, a choice noted by viewers and media analyses alike.
Following the broadcast, producer Andrei Razin charged Lazarev and Roman Zhukov with theft for their rendition of the group’s songs. Razin publicly contended that the artists attempted to appropriate the group’s creative heritage, describing them with strong disparaging terms and urging a closer look at the originality behind the performances.
In a legal development from November 2022, the Fifth General Judicial Court in Pyatigorsk approved a decision transferring the song copyrights of the Tender May group to Yuri Shatunov. This transfer means the rights to the group’s compositions now rest with the singer’s family, a shift Razin has continued to challenge through appeals up to higher courts in the Russian Federation, according to court records and public statements issued at the time.
Earlier, a spokesperson associated with Kobylyansky offered a quip about a public figure, joking that a European tour could be arranged for Kirkorov, a remark that drew attention for its offhand humor in a crowded entertainment environment. This comment underscored the often combustible mix of music rights, celebrity influence, and media narratives that surround the industry during high profile projects.