Pussy Riot to Receive Woody Guthrie Prize

The Pussy Riot will receive the Woody Guthrie Award in Tulsa, Oklahoma on May 6 and will perform at the city’s Cain’s Ballroom that evening. The award is given annually to an artist who “best exemplifies the spirit and work of Guthrie by speaking up for those less fortunate through music, film, literature, dance or other art forms and serving as a positive force for social change”. The ceremony is part of the Woody Guthrie Center’s 10th anniversary celebration, which runs May 5-7.

Collective members Masha Alyokhina and Nadya Tolokonnikova will accept the award and sit down for an interview, before giving the Pussy Riot multimedia piece. days of riots its US premiere at Cain’s Ballroom.

Tolokonnikova said in a press release:

“It feels appropriate to be awarded in the spirit of Woody, I think he would love the anti-fascist message of Pussy Riot. Usually when Pussy Riot gets added to the charts it’s not always a good thing, but we’re honored to be on this one. We don’t really do folk, but we don’t do punk either, we just scream and protest as loud as we can, and hopefully we can show others that they can do the same. As Woody said, any fool can complicate something, our message is clear and simple. Anyone can be Pussy Riot. Riot. Riot. Resist.

Oh, and a quick reminder to Vladimir Putin and anyone who supports his Z regime… All of you fascists are doomed to lose.”

Past Woody Guthrie Award winners include Chuck D, Bruce Springsteen, and Mavis Staples. “As artists who, like Woody Guthrie, have the courage of their convictions, there are no contemporary artists more deserving of this recognition than Pussy Riot,” said Cady Shaw, director of the Woody Guthrie Center. “They have paid a very personal price for speaking their minds on the most serious issues of our time, but they continue to fight for justice and freedom.”