Blatnaya Pesnya

Blatnaya pesnya (Russian: Блатная песня; IPA: [blɐtˈnajə ˈpʲesʲnʲə], criminals' song) or Blatnyak (Russian: Блатняк; IPA: [blɐtʲˈnʲak]) is a genre of Russian song characterized by depictions of criminal subculture and the urban underworld which are often romanticized and have criminally-perverted humor in nature.

In the post-Soviet era, blatnaya pesnya are marketed largely under the more generalized name "Russian chanson" (Russian: Русский шансон, tr. Russkiy shanson). Coined in the 1990s, "Russian chanson" has become a marketing neologism akin to world music. These songs are sometimes termed blatnaya muzika ("criminal music"), which is also the name of a guide to criminal slang used by NKVD agents, the predecessors of the KGB. Some collections identify these songs as ulichnaia pesnia or "street songs" (Russian: уличные песни), allowing for the inclusion of pieces that do not explicitly involve references to criminal behaviour. According to Robert A. Rothstein, this terminological fluidity: "reflects the fact that what makes a song blatnaia is more a question of style and tone than of literal content."

Thematically, blatnaya pesnya focus on injustice and oppression under a political system, depictions of prison life, and celebrations of criminal life and thieves' code of honour. These themes are sometimes combined with sexual innuendo as well as elements of irony and humour. The use of fenya, an underworld slang, is characteristic of blatnaya pesnya lyrics. Also known as blatnoy language (Russian: блатной язык), fenya follows the grammatical structure of the Russian language, but borrows vocabulary from Ukrainian and Yiddish, as well as other languages, including French and Greek. In terms of structure, blatnaya pesnya generally lack choruses, instead consisting of long narratives composed strictly of verses.

...
Wikipedia