The implementation of new legislation regarding the promotion of narcotics in works of art and on music platforms has been delayed by six months. Initially, it was anticipated that from September 1st of the current year, all public content containing inappropriate references to drugs – whether in films, musical compositions, or books – would either need to be removed, modified, or clearly marked if such references were justified by artistic intent.
According to the original version of the law, which was to take effect on September 1st, the mention of narcotic substances in creative works was permissible only if it constituted an “integral part of the artistic concept, justified by the genre.” Creators and distributors of such content would have been required to provide warnings about the harm and illegality of drugs. These warnings could be textual or auditory and were also to accompany live performances. Unjustified mentions of drugs are prohibited.
However, these provisions will now only come into force on March 1, 2026. The reasons for this postponement are not specified in the Ministry of Culture`s official order. Nevertheless, according to statements from the ministry`s press service, the delay is linked to a change in the effective date of the underlying law itself. Interestingly, the State Duma was unaware of this decision. Elena Drapeko, First Deputy Head of the State Duma Committee on Culture, emphasized: “This did not pass through the State Duma; it was solely a ministerial decision. We had no documents regarding this matter.”
Thus, the deadlines have simply been shifted. If we focus solely on the music industry (where drug mentions are likely more prevalent than in cinema or literature), well-known hits containing such references can still be easily found on streaming platforms. This grants platforms, labels, and artists additional time for adaptation.
Nevertheless, many artists have already begun preparing for the upcoming changes: some have re-recorded their songs, replacing controversial text fragments, while others are using censorship (“beeping out”). It is likely that some tracks will be completely removed. Music critic Oleg Karmunin notes that Roskomnadzor is already actively monitoring content:
“Musicians understood that they need to remove any mention of drugs from their songs. They are doing this before September 1st. It doesn`t matter – they need to do it as quickly as possible. And many have already done so. In essence, Roskomnadzor is blocking tracks. For example, Guf`s track has already been blocked. It cannot be listened to on Yandex or VK. On the `Gorod Dorog` album page, it simply shows that the track is unavailable. And today is August 28th; it`s not September 1st yet. Do you understand? And the track is already blocked. This is the most obvious signal – the postponement of deadlines doesn`t matter if Roskomnadzor is already going through music catalogs and blocking content.”
The new rules affect not only major labels and streaming services. Lawyers warn that even an ordinary user who posts a song mentioning drugs in open access on their social media page (e.g., VK) could be deemed a distributor of such content. Fines for violating the law vary: for individuals, they range from 2,000 to 4,000 rubles, and for legal entities, from 300,000 to 600,000 rubles.
Rupert Blackwood 
Clement Ashworth