Rapper Mos Def, who now goes by the name Yasiin Bey, will have to stand trial for alleged violations of South Africa’s immigration laws. He later responded with a freestyle rap posted to Kanye West’s website.
Last week, Bey was arrested at the international airport in Cape Town as he tried to leave South Africa to go to Ethiopia. He gave authorities a “world passport,” which was not accepted by officials. Authorities said that he last entered the country in 2013 with a U.S. passport and had been living with a visitor’s permit since then.
After his arrest, Bey was released on bail of 5,000 rand (around $300).
Today, the AFP reported that Bey will stand trial in March.
“The major problem why he could not get on the Ethiopian flight was the document he produced at the immigration counter, the World Passport, which South Africa does not recognise,” home affairs director general Mkuseli Apleni told the press. “Immigration officers had also detected that his spouse and minor child had overstayed their visit to the Republic.”
The passport Bey, whose real name is Dante Terrell Smith, had was from the World Gobernment of World Citizens. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden have one too, but they are not recognized by governments.
The Guardian notes that Bey protested his arrest with a freestyle, which was posted on SoundCloud and KanyeWest.com.In it, he announces plans to retire from showbusiness right after his new album comes out this year.