Face (rapper)
Ivan Timofeevich Dryomin (Russian: Иван Тимофеевич Дрёмин; born 8 April 1997 in Ufa, Russia), better known by stage name Face, is a Russian rap artist[1] who made his debut in 2015 with his EP Проклятая печать (en. Cursed Print) and has been producing music since.
Face | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ivan Timofeevich Dryomin |
| Also known as | Face, Фэйс, Batei Aurora, Lil Thot |
| Born | 8 April 1997 Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia |
| Genres |
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| Occupation(s) | Rapper |
| Years active | 2015—present |
Early life
Ivan Dryomin was born on April 8, 1997 in Ufa, Russia. His father, Timofei Dryomin (born c. 1968), was a struggling businessman. Dryomin has an older brother, Bogdan (born c. 1992). Their parents divorced when the younger son was less than a year old. Both children were baptized in the Russian Orthodox Church. Their mother was devoutly religious, and was diagnosed with schizophrenia when Dryomin was in the eighth grade. As a youth, Dryomin participated in boxing at school and won medals in city competitions.
In 2013, Dryomin and his friends swore a blood brother oath to the allegiance of Adolf Hitler to lead racial holy war. However, Dryomin quickly realized the wrongfulness in such white nationalist views and has since disavowed such beliefs. He was a member of the gopnik subculture and joined "Aurora Gang", a youth street gang, and was nicknamed Batei Aurora, after the street he grew up on. This gang engaged in petty crime including underage drinking, vandalizing cars, shoplifting, and street fights. In 2014, Dryomin supported himself by growing and dealing marijuana and hashish from his rented apartment. He was caught by police and sent to live with his grandmother. It was then that he turned away from his life of hooliganism due to fear of being killed or incarcerated, and started to create music.[2]
Career
In 2015, Dryomin attended a concert by Russian rapper Pharaoh and was inspired to make his own rap songs. His stage name Face was invented with his brother and is meant to characterize his many-sidedness and constant metamorphosis in his work. He released his debut EP Проклятая печать (en. Cursed Seal) on SoundCloud on October 30, 2015. A video was released for one of its tracks, "Гоша Рубчинский" (en. "Gosha Rubchinskiy"), a homage to the fashion designer of the same name, on January 3, 2016.
Face released three EPs in 2016: Vlone, Mayhem, and Playboy. He released the EP Revenge in 2017. He released two full-length albums, Hate Love and No Love, in 2017, as well as non-album singles "Бургер" (en. "Burger") and "Я роняю запад" (en. "I'm Dropping the West"), the latter a sarcastic take on Russian patriotism with a music video that features the rapper riding a bear and standing on a burning American flag.[3]
Face's songs are often profane, sexually explicit, and contain references to drugs, which has led to socially conservative law enforcement in Russia to cancel his concerts. In response to this censorship, he released a politically-charged album, Пути неисповедимы (en. Mysterious Ways), on September 2, 2018, that criticizes the corruption and social problems in Russia,[4] which he has described as a "third world country."[5] Face had received offers from President Vladimir Putin's public relations officials to produce pro-government content for the Kremlin, but turned it down.[6]
His latest album, Slime, was released on February 1, 2019 and spawned the singles "Woof", "Мой калашников" (en. "My Kalashnikov"), and "Спасательный Круг" (en. "Lifebuoy"). He also released the titicular soundtrack song for the Mikhail Idov drama film Юморист (en. "The Humorist")
Artistry and image
Dryomin's hip hop influences include American rappers such as A$AP Rocky, Kanye West, Playboi Carti, Lil Pump and Lil Uzi Vert. Outside of rap, he also enjoys soul artist Marvin Gaye, and rock bands Best Coast, and Nirvana.[7]
Dryomin has several tattoos, including the words "Hate" and "Love" below each of his eyes, the word "Numb" on his forehead, the Playboy bunny and Vlone logos on each of his forearms, and the words "Rock" and "Star" on the back of each hand.[8]
Personal life
Dryomin has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder and experiences panic attacks. He received treatment for mental illness for two weeks at a psychiatric hospital. He references this event in his song "Burger": "I'm so fucking crazy, I was in the loony bin."[9] The video for the song was partially filmed outside a psychiatric hospital named after former Moscow mayor Nikolay Alekseyev.
Dryomin moved from Ufa to Moscow with his brother Bogdan in April 2017. He has been dating Russian YouTuber Maryana Ro since September 2017.
In 2018, Dryomin had been considered to be drafted into the Russian Armed Forces but was declared as unfit for military service because of medical reasons that include mental illness.[10]
Discography
Albums
EPs
- 2015 – Проклятая печать (en. Cursed Seal)
- 2016 – Vlone
- 2016 – Mayhem
- 2016 – Playboy
- 2017 – Revenge
Singles
- 2015 – "Веб-панк" (en. "Web Punk")
- 2015 – "Саб-Зиро (Freestyle)" (en. "Sub-Zero")
- 2015 – "Kanji"
- 2015 – "Mask" (feat. heartsnøw)
- 2015 – "Murder" (feat. DJ Smokey)
- 2015 – "All Good"
- 2015 – "Кот" (en. "Cat")
- 2016 – "Skate"
- 2016 – "Baby Face"
- 2016 – "Blazer"
- 2016 – "Megan Fox" (feat. Enique)
- 2016 – "Payback"
- 2016 – "Vans"
- 2016 – "January"
- 2016 – "Vlone"
- 2016 – "Мне похуй" (en. "I Don't Give a Fuck")
- 2016 – "Я ебанутый" (en. "I'm Crazy")
- 2016 – "Иди нахуй" (feat. Lizer) (en. "Get the Fuck Out")
- 2017 – "Бургер" (en. "Burger")
- 2017 – "Baby"
- 2017 – "Я роняю запад" (en. "I'm Dropping the West")
- 2017 – "24 на 7" (en. "24/7")
- 2018 – "ЗЕМФИРА" (en/ "ZEMFIRA)
- 2019 – "СПАСАТЕЛЬНЫЙ КРУГ" (en. "LIFEBUOY")
- 2020 – "Надежда (en. "Hope")
Videography
- 2016 – "Гоша Рубчинский" (en. "Gosha Rubchinskiy")
- 2016 – "Megan Fox" (feat. Enique)
- 2016 – "Бляяя Фэйс вот ты флексишь" (en. "Daaamn, Face, You Be Flexing")
- 2017 – "Мне похуй" (en. "I Don't Give a Fuck")
- 2017 – "Бургер" (en. "Burger")
- 2018 – "Я роняю запад" (en. "I'm Dropping the West")
- 2019 – "Woof"
- 2019 – "Мой калашников" (en. "My Kalashnikov")
- 2019 – "Юморист" (en. "Humorist")
- 2019 – "Спасательный Круг" (en. "Lifebuoy")
References
- Dazed (2018-02-26). "Meet Russia's most controversial rap star". Dazed. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
- ""Я идеальный человек-Россия": рэпер Фейс от "Бургера" до Мандельштама". 2018-09-06. Retrieved 2018-09-30.
- Fox, Kara. "'We speak of chains and sneakers' The battle inside Russia's rap scene". CNN. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- "'I Am the Enemy of the State': Russian Rapper Compares Russia to Prison Camp". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- Idov, Michael. ""Putin Riding a Bear": A Look at the State-Sponsored Russian Entertainment Industry". The Kharms Times. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- Seddon, Max. "The Russian rappers Vladimir Putin wants to befriend". Financial Times. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- "Meet the 18-Year-Old Russian Rapper Writing Songs About Gosha Rubchinskiy". 2016-03-02. Retrieved 2018-10-01.
- "Face о своих татуировках". YouTube. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- "" Face: "Люди хотят, чтобы я сдох в 27"". 2017-09-21. Retrieved 2018-09-30.
- "В военкомате Башкирии рассказали, почему рэпера Face не взяли в армию". RT. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- "Рецензия: Фейс – "Hate Love" *** (Слушать)". 2017-10-18. Retrieved 2017-10-21.
- "Двадцатилетний рэпер Фейс побил рекорд "Грибов" по популярности во "ВКонтакте". Кто это такой? – Meduza". Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved 2017-10-21.
- "Фейс выпустил новый альбом "Slime" – Afisha Daily". Afisha Daily (in Russian). 1 February 2019.