Nicki Minaj has been announced to headline Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah World Fest, leading to hypocrisy claims against the country’s restrictive government.
Minaj is known for her sex-positive, expletive-ridden lyrics, and her hit “Anaconda”, where she sings about “big fat ass b****es in the muthaf***in' club”. The Saudi Arabian government has been criticised for requiring women who attend the concert to wear a full-length robe known as the abaya.
In one video posted on Twitter, which has racked up more than 37,000 views at the time of writing, a Saudi woman wearing a headscarf protested: “She’s going to go and shake her ass and all her songs are indecent and about sex and shaking ass.
“And then you tell me to wear the abaya. What the hell?”
Others have expressed their disbelief on social media.
Saudi organisers announced Minaj would be the headline act at the Jeddah World Fest on 18 July 2019. In keeping with Saudi laws, the concert will be alcohol and drug-free and is open to people from the age of 16 upwards.
It will take place at the King Abdullah Sports stadium in the Red Sea city and will be broadcast globally and covered by MTV.
Liam Payne is also on the line-up of a festival which marks a huge change from the era when Saudi morality police would raid venues that played loud music.
