The BBC Russian service published an article that touched on the recent popularity of music videos featuring Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has begun publishing videos in which he silently listens to music, from Zemfira to Adele, John Lennon, Vysotsky, and DDT. In October, a video shot to Zemfira’s song “ПММЛ” garnered 16 million views on Instagram and became a meme. Thousands of users have posted their own imitations on TikTok, and businesses have used it for advertising.
Pashinyan’s press secretary, Nazeli Baghdasaryan, denied reports that the New York-based Edelman, one of the world’s largest PR agencies, is behind this strategy. According to her, the idea and choice of music belong to Pashinyan, and all the work is done by the media team of the Prime Minister’s Office.
A spokesperson for the prestigious American company also denied the information to the BBC, noting that Edelman does not work for the Armenian Prime Minister and is not associated with his social networks.
The publication says that people with no connection to Armenia have subscribed to Pashinyan’s Instagram page. The video for the Kazakh song Aua Rai, which was shot during the Prime Minister’s visit to Astana, was covered more in local media than the visit’s agenda.
It is noteworthy that the videos arouse the most enthusiasm among post-Soviet youth.
The magazine writes that now Pashinyan’s task is to infect voters with optimism. Social networks serve as the leading platform for this, and he has unique experience in this area.
