Kanye West and 4 other pop stars who performed for dictators

West isn't the only celeb to sing for leaders with questionable human rights records

Beyonce
(Image credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Pop stars don't make all of their money from record sales, which would explain why Britney Spears once appeared in a Pepsi commercial with former Sen. Bob Dole, as well as why Flavor Flav spends all of his time filming VH1 reality shows.

And sometimes, like a downtrodden small-town DJ, they shlep to a wedding or bar mitzvah for some extra cash. The difference, though, is that those footing the bill are usually foreign strongmen with a terrible record on human rights.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us

Keith Wagstaff is a staff writer at TheWeek.com covering politics and current events. He has previously written for such publications as TIME, Details, VICE, and the Village Voice.