Kazan will host the New Wave

The festival program will feature a project by Dimash Kudaibergen and Igor Krutoy, as well as a concert dedicated to the 90th anniversary of Raymond Pauls

Kazan will become the musical capital of Russia for the second time: this year, the city has once again been chosen as the host city for the New Wave competition for young pop singers. The Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin announced this at a staff meeting.

“The government, with the support of the Rais of Tatarstan, decided to hold the New Wave festival in Kazan. This is a very significant event for us, and for the second year in a row, our city is entrusted to become the musical capital of our country and host a global event for our pop scene. Kazan is happy to welcome guests and once again prove that our city is a place where stars are born. I would like to express my gratitude to Igor Yakovlevich Krutoy, who supports our cultural initiatives,”- said Ilsur Metshin.

One of the days of the festival will be dedicated to a collaboration of Dimash Kudaibergen and Igor Krutoy. The program will also include a concert dedicated to the 90th anniversary of composer Raymond Pauls. “He is a long-time partner of Igor Krutoy, his music is in the hearts of people of different generations – from grandparents to young people. The participants will definitely introduce the audience to this amazing creative legacy. Igor Yakovlevich will present a detailed program later,”- Ilsur Metshin said.

Last year, the festival demonstrated a great significance for the development of the city. The TV coverage of the New Wave amounted to 17.5 million people, and the publications in media and social networks exceeded 1,500. “Our goal is to reach the milestone of 7 million tourists per year. The federal coverage of the festival during the week is a significant contribution to the tourist image of Kazan. Such large–scale cultural events give a powerful impetus to the development of the entire infrastructure of the city,”- Ilsur Metshin emphasized.

For reference, Kazan hosted the International Competition of Young pop singers “New Wave” for the first time last summer. Alex Lim (Alexander Lim) became the winner of the contest.

The competition received more than 6,000 applications. As many as 54 talented musicians aged 16 to 35 from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Nigeria and Russia took part in the semi-finals.

Photo report

Business Monday, 13.04.2026

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13.04.2026 11:33

The New Wave will takes place in Kazan this year