RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Rapper Nelly is to perform in Saudi Arabia next month, but his planned concert in the ultraconservative kingdom is not being welcomed by everyone.
Some Saudis on social media are pointing to the American rapper’s 2015 guilty plea for possession of marijuana. Smuggling drugs is punishable by death in Saudi Arabia and possession of drugs is also a crime.
Others say it’s disgraceful that Saudi Arabia’s new Entertainment Authority is officially sponsoring the male-only concert on Dec. 14 in light of a rape accusation against the rapper.
The Grammy-winning rapper was briefly arrested last month after a woman said he raped her on his tour bus. A week later, the woman dropped her pursuit of criminal charges. Nelly was never charged with a crime.
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