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In Russia, speaking out against the government is dangerous. So is singing

Nadya Tolokonnikova, a member of the Russian feminist punk group Pussy Riot, knows how dangerous it can be for women to make music, especially when the government doesn't approve.

About Nadya Tolokonnikova

Nadya Tolokonnikova is a founding member of Pussy Riot, the Russian feminist protest art collective that now counts hundreds of people among its numbers. In 2012, she was sentenced to two years in prison following "Punk Prayer," an anti-Putin performance piece. She was ultimately sent to a Siberian penal colony before being released in December 2013. Tolokonnikova was declared a "foreign agent" by Russia in 2021.

She is also a co-founder of the independent news service and media outlet Mediazona and, as co-founder of UnicornDAO, was instrumental in raising more than $7 million in Ukraine aid. She has spoken before the U.S. Congress, British Parliament and European Parliament. She is the author of Read & Riot: A Pussy Riot Guide to Activism.

Web Resources

Related TED Talk: To future generations of women, you are the roots of change

Related TED Talk: Lessons from my father, Alexey Navalny

Copyright 2026 NPR

Manoush Zomorodi
Manoush Zomorodi is the host of TED Radio Hour.
Rachel Faulkner White
Rachel Faulkner White is a producer and editor for TED Radio Hour.
Sanaz Meshkinpour