Kanye West, Beyonce Risk Backlash by Singing at Kazakhstan Wedding

Kanye West, Beyonce Risk Backlash by Singing at Kazakhstan Wedding

MOSCOW, Sept. 2 (UPI)–Kanye West and Beyonce were among the performers at a lavish wedding party for Aisultan Nazarbayev, the grandson of Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Russian pop stars and celebrities also attended Saturday’s bash at the Royal Tulip Hotel in the nation’s former capital Almaty, RIA Novosti reported.

The 23-year-old groom is Nazarbayev’s youngest grandson and a graduate of the British Army’s Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, the news agency said.

His bride is Alima Boranbayeva, a 20-year-old student at the Courtauld Institute in London and daughter of the chairman of a major Kazakhstan gas company.

TMZ said West was paid about $3 million to perform at the wedding, but the amount of Beyonce’s paycheck was not immediately known.

Some U.S. celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez have been criticized by human-rights campaigners after they performed for Central Asian leaders.

British pop singer Sting canceled a show for Nazarbayev in 2011, citing human-rights concerns following suppression of a demonstration by striking oil workers, RIA Novosti noted.

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