‘Back then I was silent’: After suffering years of harassment in Russia’s entertainment industry, former pop star Zhenya Ogurtsova decided to speak out

In the late 2000s, Ranetki was one of the most popular pop-rock groups in Russia. Their concerts drew thousands of fans and an eponymous series based on their lives had a prime-time slot on the television network STS. But as their popularity gradually faded, Ranetki fell apart. In June 2021, one of the girl group's original members, Zhenya Ogurtsova, published a memoir titled "Ranetki: A Winning Ticket to Hell." In her book, Ogurtsova talks about the psychological pressure and harassment that she and her bandmates (who were minors at the time) were subjected to at the hands of various producers and other people from their "management team." Other former Ranetki members have also confirmed that they suffered emotional and sexual abuse during that time. Meduza spoke with Zhenya Ogurtsova about the harassment the group members faced and why she decided to finally speak out about it. Original Article: https://meduza.io/en/feature/2021/07/16/back-then-i-was-silent