Braty Hadiukiny become a national legend: Kuzminskyi's award was presented posthumously

This year the annual award National Legend of Ukraine also went to musicians. Among the laureates is Serhiy Kuzminskyi, leader of the band Braty Hadiukiny; the award was presented posthumously.

The ceremony is reported by UP.Kultura citing Interfax-Ukraine.

Kuzminskyi's award was handed to band member Ihor Melnychuk. The musicians of Hadiukiny themselves also received awards — Pavlo Krakhmalov, Mykhailo Lundin and Ihor Melnychuk.

Why this is about music

Braty Hadiukiny are that rare case of a band from the nineties that never became a museum piece. Their songs are still sung by people born much later, and the band's language and humour proved more durable than most of the pop of that time.

It is also telling that a rock band and a classical composer ended up on the same list. For the first time in a long while the state is speaking about music through contribution rather than genre.

Who else received it

The award was presented by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and First Lady Olena Zelenska. Besides artists, the laureates include soldiers, medics, athletes and volunteers: senior lieutenant Oleksandr Dziuba, colonel Rostyslav Lazarenko, medical battalion commanders Antin Roshchin and Asan Charukhov, and Azov senior nurse Nadiya Yarish.

Also World Central Kitchen founder José Andrés, footballer Ihor Belanov, sculptor Anatoliy Kushch and presenter Alla Mazur. Posthumous awards were accepted by relatives and representatives of the laureates.

As ONE//FM wrote earlier, Ukrainian music took thirty-five years to reach its present standing — and the nineties were the point where it all began.