Formed in 1994 in Lviv, Океан Ельзи moved to Kyiv in 1998, where the band recorded and released their first album Там, де нас нема (Tam, de nas nem, Whenever We Aren't). Since their first concert in 1999 at the Maxidrom festival, Океан Ельзи has become one of the most famous and celebrated Ukrainian rock bands. Океан Ельзи performed at Євромайда́н (Euromaidan) in 2013, and, in 2018, attracted an audience of over 100,000 to the Національний спортивний (Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex, Olympic National Sports Complex) to celebrate the Independence Day of Ukraine. Lead singer and founding member Svyatoslav Vakarchuk joined the Ukrainian army in 2022, serving in the territorial defense battalion of the Lviv Oblast.