Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev reportedly paid Kanye West $3 million to perform at his grandson’s wedding over the weekend.
TMZ reported it had sources saying the controversial rapper played a gig in Almaty, Kazakhstan at the Hotel Royal Tulip on Saturday. West played many of his hits for the president’s grandson, including “Can’t Tell Me Nothing.”
According to Cinema Blend, President Nazarbayev has been accused throughout the years of human rights violations and election rigging. Sting once turned down an offer to play for the reportedly, very rich president.
Amnesty International says that “torture remains commonplace in Kazakhstan and the torturers are allowed to go free. The authorities of Kazakhstan have failed to hold the security forces accountable,” the Edmonton Examiner notes.
West is not the first one to perform in front of foreign dictators. The “Black Skinhead” rapper follows in the footsteps of musicians such as Nelly Furtado, Mariah Carey, Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez.
Kazakhstan is also known as being the birthplace of Sacha Baron Cohen’s fictional character Borat.
Here’s a short video of West:
image: Wikimedia Commons
