Queen of rap Nicki Minaj has cancelled her performance in Saudi Arabia after receiving backlash for playing in a country where human rights are not the order of the day.
Human Rights Foundation’s president called on the rapper to cancel her performance, saying her decision to participate in the festival was nonsense, asking her to “refuse the regime’s money”, and use her power to raise her voice for the 10 women activists arrested in the country last March.
Nicki Minaj had recently showed her support to the LGTB community during the Pride Week and three months ago, five men were beheaded in Saudi Arabia after they confessed under torture their ‘terrible crime’: being gay.
Right after receiving the letter and many other complaints from fans on social media, Nicki decided “to no longer move forward with my scheduled concert at Jeddah World Fest”.
Even though she wants to bring her show to the fans she has in Saudi Arabia, Nicki acknowledged it is more important to her to stay true to her values and support women’s rights and the LGTB community.
Nicki’s moral values apart, other concerns about the upcoming events had to do with how she was supposed to perform in her sexy daring outfits in a country as conservative and drastic as Saudi Arabia.
Nevertheless, the kingdom has been trying to change entertainment’s restrictions and promote culture and arts, so we guess that it wouldn’t have been a problem.
However, Nicki hasn’t been the only one causing controversy for announcing a performance in Saudi Arabia. While Mariah Carey performed in the country earlier this year, refusing human rights activists petitions to cancel it, Nelly also accepted an invitation to play a concert ‘only for men’ last December.
That being said, ‘bravo’ to Nicki for your wise decision, staying true to yourself and defending your ethical values!
#Peace.Love.NickiMinaj
