Saudi Arabia Hosts Nicki Minaj while Jordan Bans PUBG

A little too soon? Saudi users on social media have been debating Nicki Minaj's scheduled gig in Saudi Arabia later this month.

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Organizers of the Jeddah Season cultural festival announced earlier last week that Rap star Nicki Minaj will perform in the country as part of a cultural festival on July 18, 2019. If the idea of Nicki Minaj twerking to Saudi Arabian fans strikes you as a little strange, you're not the only one.

The ultraconservative Kingdom that has been trying to loosen restrictions on entertainment under the claimed social reforms of Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman for months now.

The fact that Minaj is known for her provocative performance and sexually explicit music videos and lyrics makes it hard to imagine how her upcoming concert would be in line with the social and cultural lines that have existed for decades.

A storm on social media was sparked by the news splitting opinions between criticism and praise of the decision.

Some were confused by the unexpected turn of events and beliefs in Saudi Arabia, the country where women were not allowed to drive until a year ago, but now Nicki Minaj is allowed to perform.

Meanwhile, many Saudis, mostly women, have highlighted the hypocrisy of the Saudi government for hosting Minaj to perform in the Kingdom while imposing a strict dress code for those who wish to attend the performance.

One video went viral for a Saudi young woman addressing the authorities behind the decision to bring Minaj in saying: “You can't ask me to wear the abaya and dress conservative to a concert where you're bringing Nicki Minaj”.

The video is believed to be removed later and the girl’s account was suspended.

Meanwhile in Saudi Arabia’s neighboring country, Jordan, the government announced blocking the popular Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds video game, PUBG for its “negative effects” on children and teenagers.

Jordan has not been the first country to ban PUBG. Iraq, Nepal, some provinces in India and Indonesia preceded it. However, opinions were mixed over the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority decision.

Translation: “So now everything is fine in Jordan except PUBG? Isn’t this a personal freedom?”