For some people, a big enough bag is enough to change everything. For others, their morals intervene and prevent them from even considering signing the dotted line in the first place. When it was announced that Nicki Minaj would be performing at the Jeddah World Fest in Saudia Arabia a few weeks ago, the star was forced to back out of the show because of heavy backlash. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is not exactly seen in the most positive light after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and because of their stance on important human rights' issues. The country is notoriously harsh on women and LGBTQ+ individuals, so Nicki's selection to perform over there was surprising. She eventually pulled out and was replaced by 50 Cent, Janet Jackson, Chris Brown, Future, and others that were announced just days ago. It turns out that the attendees didn't really need much advance knowledge of the performers because they still managed to sell out the 62,000-seat arena.
According to TMZ, the music festival took place last night and it was a massive success. With the lack of musical acts that visit Saudi Arabia on their yearly tour stops, the country is likely craving for a taste of entertainment every now and then so when 50 Cent, Chris Brown, Steve Aoki and others stopped by, they came through with the ticket sales.
There has been a lot of controversy surrounding the event with many people calling for a boycott of the country because of their recent actions. Despite what people said online, it all went off without a hitch and people left with smiles on their faces.