Russian fake: Jared Leto, Billie Eilish 'announce concerts' in occupied Crimea

Russian propagandists have spread a deepfake video, forged Instagram stories, and fabricated ticket sale announcements

Russian Telegram channels and social media bots are circulating what appears to be a clip from an Instagram Live session featuring American actor and Thirty Seconds to Mars frontman Jared Leto. In the video, he allegedly states that he is ready to hold a "hell of a concert" in Crimea to mark the "anniversary of reunification" of the temporarily occupied Ukrainian peninsula with Russia.

Additionally, Russian propagandists have shared a screenshot of a supposed Instagram story by Billie Eilish's producer, Brandon Goodman, in which he allegedly "announces" her concert in Crimea.

To add further credibility to the fake claim, they also published a screenshot, purportedly from a ticket-selling website, stating that a "Billie Eilish concert" is scheduled for June 12, 2025.

This is false.

First, the video featuring Jared Leto is a deepfake, generated using artificial intelligence. Upon closer examination, the AI-generated clip shows unnatural facial movements, particularly in the lower part of his face. Additionally, wrinkles briefly appear on Leto's forehead and then mysteriously vanish.

Second, Brandon Goodman never posted a story promoting ticket sales for a Billie Eilish concert in Crimea. The so-called "announcement" was created using graphic editing software. In reality, Goodman is not highly active on Instagram -- his last post was on December 15, 2024, celebrating the birth of a child in his family.

Moreover, Billie Eilish does have a major European tour this year. She is scheduled to perform in Paris on June 11 and in Barcelona on June 14. However, there is no concert planned in Russian-occupied Crimea. Russian propagandists exploited a gap in her schedule to fabricate a seemingly plausible event.

Billie Eilish has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion. She has actively participated in charity projects for Ukraine and dedicated her song "Your Power" to the Ukrainian people.

These types of fakes are part of an ongoing attempt to legitimize Russia's occupation of Ukrainian territories in the eyes of the world.

Russian propaganda previously spread disinformation claiming that nearly 8,500 violations of journalistsє rights were recorded in Ukraine within a year.

Andriy Olenin