Go backstage with The Music and receive FREE:

  • Exclusive members-only editorial, charts
  • Our subscriber-only newsletter
  • Members only competitions to win tickets, experiences and more
  • Access to our street press archives
  • First access to our exclusive limited edition vinyl variants

Thank you for being a part of our community! Enter your email address as verification and you'll be taken backstage right away.

Please ensure that you provide a valid email address.

Russian Rapper Suspected To Have Died By Suicide To Avoid Going To War

"I choose to remain in history forever. As a man who did not support what was happening. I am not ready to take up arms and kill my own kind.”

CONTENT WARNING: This article contains discussion of mental health. If you are suffering from any of the issues that have been discussed or need assistance, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.

A rapper from Russia, Walkie, is suspected to have taken his own life to avoid going to war against Ukraine under Valdimir Putin's orderns.

In a Telegram video he spoke directly to his fans stating that "If you are watching this video, then I am no longer alive. I can't take the sin of murder on my soul and I don't want to. I am not ready to kill for any ideals.

"I choose to remain in history forever. As a man who did not support what was happening. I am not ready to take up arms and kill my own kind.”

His body was found in Krasnodar on Friday near a high-rise building after the video was published. 

It is believed that the rapper was one of 300,000 citizens who Putin drafted in his war against Ukraine. He had previously served in the army and attempted to avoid re-enlistment on medical grounds as he had been treated in a psychiatric hospital. 

Walkie released 10 albums since his 2015, the most recent of which was released earlier this year and was titled Walk Out Boy 3.