I am a Ghost
January 7, 2010, 11:52 AM
Singer criticised over $2m Caribbean concert for dictator's son
By Guy Adams in Los Angeles
She calls herself an "independent woman" and her most famous songs dispense egalitarian lifestyle advice to female fans. Little wonder, then, that Beyoncé Knowles is facing criticism for headlining a private concert for a man whose name has recently featured in allegations of spousal abuse.
The all-American R&B star is at the centre of escalating controversy after it was reported that she spent New Year's Eve performing at a party hosted by Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's 33-year-old son, Moutassim, who often uses the first name Hannibal.
Reports of the event, which took place at Nikki Beach, a nightclub on the Caribbean island of St Barts, suggest Beyoncé was paid $2m [£1,250,000] to strut her stuff before an audience which contained Gaddafi junior, her husband, Jay-Z, fellow singer Usher, and the Hollywood actress Lindsay Lohan.
Footage taken on a mobile telephone, which has since emerged on YouTube, shows the singer dressed in a figure-hugging black leotard, performing five songs for Mr Gaddafi during an hour-long set.
The revelation sparked controversy for several reasons. Firstly, because Mr Gaddafi has a record of alleged violence towards women; secondly because while Beyoncé is one of Barack Obama's top celebrity supporters, Gaddafi's father has a provocative history of hostility towards the US; and thirdly because it comes after the controversy over Libya's reaction to the release of Lockerbie bomber, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi.
On Christmas Day officers were called to Mr Gaddafi junior's suite at Claridge's Hotel in London after staff there heard a scream. Three of his security guards were arrested and later released for obstructing police, while his 29-year-old wife, Aline Skaf, was taken to hospital with a broken nose.
In July 2008, Mr Gaddafi was arrested for allegedly mistreating servants in a Geneva hotel (charges were dropped after they received compensation). In 2005, he was arrested at a Paris hotel for punching a woman, for which he received a four-month suspended prison sentence and a £350 fine for the assault.
A spokesman for both Ms Knowles and the Nikki Beach club, which is part of a chain founded in Miami, have so far refused to comment on either the New Year's Eve bash or their relationship with Mr Gaddafi. But the scandal is starting to spark fierce criticism on the airwaves.
On CNN, Marc Lamont Hill, who is a Columbia University media professor said: "Beyoncé's handlers usually make really good decisions about where she's going to perform... So it seems to me that someone was asleep at the wheel, or the money was so overwhelming that they said, 'Screw the public image, we're going to take the cash'."
By Guy Adams in Los Angeles
She calls herself an "independent woman" and her most famous songs dispense egalitarian lifestyle advice to female fans. Little wonder, then, that Beyoncé Knowles is facing criticism for headlining a private concert for a man whose name has recently featured in allegations of spousal abuse.
The all-American R&B star is at the centre of escalating controversy after it was reported that she spent New Year's Eve performing at a party hosted by Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's 33-year-old son, Moutassim, who often uses the first name Hannibal.
Reports of the event, which took place at Nikki Beach, a nightclub on the Caribbean island of St Barts, suggest Beyoncé was paid $2m [£1,250,000] to strut her stuff before an audience which contained Gaddafi junior, her husband, Jay-Z, fellow singer Usher, and the Hollywood actress Lindsay Lohan.
Footage taken on a mobile telephone, which has since emerged on YouTube, shows the singer dressed in a figure-hugging black leotard, performing five songs for Mr Gaddafi during an hour-long set.
The revelation sparked controversy for several reasons. Firstly, because Mr Gaddafi has a record of alleged violence towards women; secondly because while Beyoncé is one of Barack Obama's top celebrity supporters, Gaddafi's father has a provocative history of hostility towards the US; and thirdly because it comes after the controversy over Libya's reaction to the release of Lockerbie bomber, Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi.
On Christmas Day officers were called to Mr Gaddafi junior's suite at Claridge's Hotel in London after staff there heard a scream. Three of his security guards were arrested and later released for obstructing police, while his 29-year-old wife, Aline Skaf, was taken to hospital with a broken nose.
In July 2008, Mr Gaddafi was arrested for allegedly mistreating servants in a Geneva hotel (charges were dropped after they received compensation). In 2005, he was arrested at a Paris hotel for punching a woman, for which he received a four-month suspended prison sentence and a £350 fine for the assault.
A spokesman for both Ms Knowles and the Nikki Beach club, which is part of a chain founded in Miami, have so far refused to comment on either the New Year's Eve bash or their relationship with Mr Gaddafi. But the scandal is starting to spark fierce criticism on the airwaves.
On CNN, Marc Lamont Hill, who is a Columbia University media professor said: "Beyoncé's handlers usually make really good decisions about where she's going to perform... So it seems to me that someone was asleep at the wheel, or the money was so overwhelming that they said, 'Screw the public image, we're going to take the cash'."