In a candid appearance on Hands Up with Yulia Menshova, Sergei Zhukov spoke plainly about his stance on remaking the band’s songs. He admitted he opposed nearly all covers of their material, stressing that the group guarded the rights to perform their own compositions and treated licensing with care. The singer explained that the original music carried a distinct energy that could be lost in a hurried re interpretation, and he did not want fans to lose that connection with the classics.
Zhukov noted that fans themselves were wary of reperforming the hits, and the band stayed vigilant to preserve the integrity that made the songs beloved. He described a behind the scenes effort where licensing and permissions were handled with a steady hand, because the music belonged to the artists as much as to the listeners. In his words, the world could have been flooded with low quality duplicates, and he believed their cautious approach helped avoid that outcome.
He recalled the moment he received new versions for review, saying he listened with ears folded into tubes and wondered if anyone could hear more than swagger and swearing. The response, he recalled, sometimes surprised him. He added that there are moments when younger performers try their hand at remixing, and the difference between a tribute and a distortion of the original is clear. Still, he conceded that some remakes from younger creators can carry energy if done with respect and intention.
Zhukov argued that creating covers should be approached with a gentle and caring mindset, aiming to lift the material rather than squeeze it into a new mold. He cited Vyacheslav Dobry’s songs as an example, saying those covers were treated seriously and with attention. Even the original composer sometimes enjoyed the new versions, which gave him hope that other artists would adopt the same mindset. The idea, in his view, is to treat each song as a living piece of art that deserves careful handling.
Toward the end of the program he touched briefly on another public note. Earlier remarks attributed to the entertainer Dzhigurda suggested that Volochkova offered him support during his wife’s departure, underscoring how public figures navigate personal storms while continuing to create. The moment serves as a reminder that headlines and rumors rarely tell the whole story, and that art travels through many channels beyond the stage.