The rapper and singer broke the law with her profanity-laden set, prompting a court appearance and a tiny fine. It was Minaj’s first time performing in Jamaica, a country that strongly enforces anti-profanity laws at concerts. After headlining the final night at Montego Bay’s Reggae Sumfest, Minaj was reportedly approached by Jamaican police and told she had violated the Towns and Communities Act, which dates from British colonial times and penalises “obscenity in a public place”. She was issued a court summons for 28 July.
Minaj never appeared. Instead, a local lawyer entered a guilty plea on her behalf. The singer was ordered to pay a fine of 1,000 Jamaican dollars – equivalent to just £7. On Twitter, Minaj joked about the incident: “I swear I just had the time of my life,” she wrote.
In the Jamaican press, some journalists wondered whether local artists would have been shown the same leniency as Minaj. “[What] would have happened had those same expletives come from the lips of our own Jamaican performers?” asked the Jamaica Observer. Earlier in the festival, singjay I-Octane apparently told the crowd he had been warned not to perform his marijuana anthem Puff It. In a more serious incident in 2005, reggae artist Sizzla spent two weeks in prison after singing about killing gay men.
Minaj is currently touring the US in support of Britney Spears.
Rapper Nicki Minaj is the latest celebrity to deal with sex tape rumors on the Internet. The 25-year-old Queens, N.Y. bred rapper has been heralded by the New York Times as the "Cindy Sherman of Rap" and is a hot draw on radio for her hit "Knockout" with label mate Lil Wayne. Thus far, she has not commented on the rumors.
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