Subject: RE: FW: Request for Exception for Armenian Artist Xcho to Give Concert in Estonia
From: "Hannus Luure" <[email-masked]>
To: "The Oriental Tales" <[email-masked]>
Cc: "KUM min" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 3 May 2024 12:03:57 +0300

Hello

I am sorry once again – we do not give out exceptions and it is a matter of 
principle. If an artist has chosen to do business in Russia, it is Estonian 
policy that they are not welcome here until they have cut all ties with the 
Russian market. If after the concerts in Europe he is indeed blacklisted in 
Russia and you can prove it, then he is very welcome in Estonia. I see that 
his management company is also Russian (https://toomuch.agency/#contacts) 
and his artist booking is through a Russian telephone number. So as long as 
we see these kind of signs that money from the concert will flow into 
Russia, it is not possible for us to give any exceptions.

All the best

Hannus Luure

Kommunikatsiooninõunik

Osakonnajuhataja asetäitja

Kommunikatsiooni ja rahvusvahelise koostöö osakond

Kultuuriministeerium

 <mailto:[email-masked]> [email-masked]

628 2271 | 526 1431

Suur-Karja 23 |15076 Tallinn |Eesti

 <http://www.kultuuriminsiteerium.ee/> www.kul.ee

From: The Oriental Tales <[email-masked]>
Sent: Thursday, May 2, 2024 5:20 PM
To: Hannus Luure <[email-masked]>
Subject: Re: FW: Request for Exception for Armenian Artist Xcho to Give 
Concert in Estonia

Dear Hannus,

I hope this message finds you well. I wanted to follow up on my previous 
email regarding Xcho and his upcoming concerts. I kindly ask for your reply 
to that email as it is important for us to have your input on the matter.

I also wanted to share some additional information with you. The ministries 
of culture in Germany and the Czech Republic have expressed their support 
for our concerts and have allowed us to proceed with the events.

Given the progress we have made and the support we have received, I am 
asking for your approval to proceed with the concert. A lot of effort has 
been put into organizing these events, and it is crucial for us to move 
forward.

I want to assure you one more time that Xcho is against the ongoing war and 
the Russian government. He has not accepted any offers from pro-Russian 
governmental TV channels, participated in any ongoing propaganda, or 
performed at VK fest or similar governmental events. And after performing in 
Europe he will probably be blacklisted in Russia and he is willing to take 
this. We need to support him.

Xcho has never been to Europe before, and hosting him for a concert could 
help to showcase his talent and spread a positive message. I am willing to 
cover all taxes and all necessary expenses to ensure that the concert meets 
high standards and complies with all regulations.

I appreciate your consideration and look forward to your response.

Thank you.

Best regards,

Norik Grigorjan

On Thu, Apr 25, 2024 at 1:09 PM The Oriental Tales 
<[email-masked] <mailto:[email-masked]> > wrote:

Dear Hannus,

Thank you for your email and for sharing your perspective on the matter. I 
completely understand and support your stance on not inviting Russian 
artists to Estonia given the current situation. I also agree that it is 
important for artists to take a strong stance against the actions of the 
Russian government in Ukraine.

Regarding Xcho, I appreciate your concerns and I want to assure you that he 
is not taking his concerts in Russia lightly. After his concert in Estonia 
and Latvia, he has upcoming shows in Germany, Spain, and the Czech Republic 
in August and I am confident that he will stop traveling to Russia 
altogether. If he fails to make strong statements condemning the aggression 
of Russia and Belarus, we will not invite him again.

I want to emphasize that Xcho is a victim of circumstances, and he is making 
efforts to distance himself from the Russian government. His concerts are 
organized by the Armenian community with other Armenian singers, and he is 
not accepting any governmental engagements in Russia. His songs are gaining 
popularity, and he is limited in where he can perform, at the moment mostly 
Armenia, USA, Russia, UAE where are most of Armenians live.

I take full responsibility as his tour manager in Europe and assure you that 
I will ensure Xcho continues on the right path and does not engage with the 
Russian market. I believe that by allowing him to perform in Estonia and 
Europe, we can support his efforts to resist the Russian government and open 
doors for him in the future.

Thank you for considering this request, and I hope we can work together to 
support artists who are standing against Russian influence or trying to do 
so. I also promise not to attempt to bring any other artist who performs or 
to ask permission from ministry before we announce concert.

Best regards,

Norik Grigorjan

+37255994999

Чт, 25 апр. 2024 г. в 12:06, Hannus Luure <[email-masked] 
<mailto:[email-masked]> >:

Dear Mr Grigorjan,

As long as an artist supports the Russian war machine by giving concerts in 
Russia, he is not welcome in Estonia. It is as simple as that I’m afraid and 
no exception can be made here. If he has a strong stance against the Russian 
government, he does not communicate this at all. Also, actions speak louder 
than words and doing business within Russia directly supports the killing of 
Ukranians via taxes.

If we see a strong and unequivocal public condemnation of the aggression of 
Russia and Belarus in the war in Ukraine, we might reconsider this stance 
and welcome Xcho. But the prerequisite for that is not doing business in 
Russia or Belarus. We expect total distancing from Russia before we can let 
him into Estonia. I understand this seems unfair, but we must do everything 
in our power to reduce Russian influence in the world and Estonia right now. 
And making artists choose between the European and Russian market is one of 
the ways we can do it. You cannot be against the war in Ukraine and do 
business in Russia at the same time.

I hope this clears things up, let me know if you have any more questions.

All the best

Hannus

From: The Oriental Tales <[email-masked] 
<mailto:[email-masked]> >
Sent: Wednesday, April 24, 2024 4:14 PM
To: Hannus Luure <[email-masked] <mailto:[email-masked]> >
Subject: Request for Exception for Armenian Artist Xcho to Give Concert in 
Estonia

Dear Hannus Luure,

I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to request an exception 
regarding the allowance for Armenian artist Xcho to give a concert in 
Estonia. While I understand your concerns about artists performing in 
Russia, I believe Xcho should be considered for an exception due to his 
strong ties to the Armenian community and his stance against the Russian 
government.

Xcho frequently gives concerts in Russia, but it is important to note that 
he does so for the Armenian community and population residing in Russia, 
which is actually higher than the population of Armenians in Armenia itself. 
He actively supports our Armenian community in Ukraine and has made public 
statements denouncing the Russian government. He does not attend or accept 
invitations to Russian TV shows, events such as VK-fest, Golden Gramophone, 
or any other pro-Russian governmental activities.

It is evident that Xcho does not support the Russian government or the war 
in Ukraine. He understands the importance of supporting Armenians in Ukraine 
as well. Denying him the opportunity to perform in Estonia would not be fair 
to him, especially considering that this would be his first tour in Europe. 
I am confident that after experiencing Europe and seeing how we operate, 
including his planned tour in Prague, Berlin, Hamburg, and Alicante, Xcho 
will make the right decision and distance himself from Russia completely, 
like many other artists have done.

We are currently in discussions with Xcho, and he may be willing to make 
statements regarding his stance. However, he also needs cooperation from 
your end to make this possible.

I kindly request your consideration for this exception and look forward to 
hearing your thoughts on this matter. Thank you for your attention to this 
request.

Warm regards,

Norik Grigorjan

Concert Organiser

The Oriental Tales

+37255994999

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