Nicki Minaj Urged To Cancel Angolan Dictator Gig
Nicki Minaj is in hot water with the Human Right Foundation (HRF) after agreeing to perform a concert for a company owned by the family of the President of Angola.
Minaj, who is expected to perform in the Angolan capital of Luanda on December 19, is being urged to cancel her appearance by the human rights group in an open letter that claims her fee will be paid from “government corruption and human rights violations.”
BBC News is reporting that the concert Nicki is expected to perform at this weekend is a Christmas festival hosted by Unitel communications, a company owned by Dos Santos’ daughter, Isabel Dos Santos, who is thought to be one of the richest women in Africa after earning billions through business ventures.
According to the site, Isabel was named as one of 15 symbols of grand corruption worldwide by Transparency International earlier this year before Minaj’s gig was announced, though her company, Fidequity, has since denied using public funds.
In the open letter, HRF claims that Dos Santos’ father, who has ruled Mongolia since 1979, has “ordered the routine harassment, arrest, and execution of politicians, journalists, activists, and students who oppose the government and expose its corruption.”
“Nicki Minaj has been involved with charities such as the Get Schooled Foundation, which helps inspire young people to graduate from high school and succeed in college,” HRF president Thor Halvorssen said in a statement regarding Nicki’s upcoming appearance. “What kind of inspirational message is she sending to millions of young Angolans by performing for the dictatorship that has literally stolen their freedom and their future?”
While urging Minaj to cancel her Christmas performance in the African country, HRF encourages Nicki to instead call for the release of African rapper Luaty Beirão, who was jailed by Dos Santos earlier this month for opposing the Angolan President’s dictatorship.
“Nicki Minaj is a global artist. Millions of people look up to her for creative inspiration,” Halvorssen continued of Nicki in the recently released statement, adding that “there is no good reason for Nicki Minaj to do business with the corrupt Angolan dictatorship and endorse the ruler’s family company.”
HRF, a nonprofit organization that looks to protect human rights around the world, also called out several other celebrities in their open letter to Minaj, who it alleges have all received payment from appearances for dictators in the past.
In part, the organization called for Nicki to cancel her appearance and set herself apart from other stars, including Jennifer Lopez, Hilary Swank, Lionel Messi, and Nicki’s fellow rapper Kanye West.
Mariah Carey also became a target in the piece after Halvorssen pointed out that despite cutting ties with her former manager following the backlash from her performance President dos Santos in 2013, she in now being managed by Jermaine Dupri, who now also manages Nicki Minaj.
Though Minaj has yet to officially speak out about her upcoming gig following HRF’s very public criticism, she did take to Instagram on December 16 to confirm that her much-publicized appearance will, in fact, be going ahead.
“ANGOLA! R u ready for the show?!???! [sic]” Minaj captioned a poster promoting her appearance on the social media site, adding, “Can’t wait to see u guys! Get your tickets here!”
The latest drama comes just days after Nicki battled some legal drama of her own, which saw her post $100,000 in bail for her brother, Jelani Maraj. The Daily Mail reported earlier this week that Minaj’s brother was allegedly arrested on December 3 and charged with raping a 12-year-old on more than one occasion.
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