Tovaritch

Real name Yuri Mikhailov, rapper Tovaritch was born in Moscow to a Russian father and a Franco-Polish mother, and arrived in France at the age of 5, when his parents moved to the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis. He became interested in rap as a teenager, and made a name for himself in 2019 with a series of freestyles called "Bratva" (which means "brotherhood" in Russian). He never fails to pay homage to his origins, shooting the video clips for "Bratva III", "Bratva IV " and "Bratva VI" in Moscow, or placing a bear's head or a representation of the Kremlin in his logo. His first mixtape, also entitled Bratva, was released in 2020 and saw the Franco-Russian rapper collaborate with a number of foreign rappers, including the Russian group Krasnoe Derevo, Poland's Palush, Romania's Nane, Italy's OG Eastbull and Germany's Olexesh. After signing a new distribution contract with Believe in 2021, he releases a new mixtape entitled Sovietskiy. The following year, Tovaritch reached number 12 in the French charts with his album Mikhailov, featuring duets with Alberto, Samra, Enzo Dong and Krasnoe Derevo.