The rapper is currently detained in Sweden on an assault charge.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, there’s a pretty big pop culture story that has taken on strange new life in recent days.
Earlier this month, rapper A$AP Rocky was scheduled to headline the first night of Dublin’s Longitude festival.
This didn’t happen, due to his arrest on suspicion of assault following a public altercation in Sweden just days before the Marlay Park event.
In the end, the 30-year-old had to miss out on Longitude and other high profile gig commitments as Swedish authorities opted to detain him.
Many of his contemporaries have asked for his release, and a petition has surfaced, with some critics outright accusing the relevant authorities of racism and human rights violations.
On Friday, US President Donald Trump weighed in, noting that he had spoken with Kanye West regarding A$AP Rocky’s situation and that he would personally be contacting the “very talented” Prime Minister of Sweden Stefan Lövfen to try and resolve the issue.
That same day, Justin Bieber made a statement of his own:
I want my friend out.. I appreciate you trying to help him. But while your at it @realDonaldTrump can you also let those kids out of cages?
— Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) July 20, 2019
So quite the clash of music and politics all-round, really.
The latest is that Rocky is still in custody and won’t be receiving preferential treatment of any kind.
A report in the New York Times confirms that the phone call between Trump and Lövfen did indeed take place, lasting for approximately 20 minutes.
Press Secretary Toni Eriksson said that the exchange was “friendly and respectful”, which Trump himself backed up on Twitter:
….Our teams will be talking further, and we agreed to speak again in the next 48 hours!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 20, 2019
Eriksson’s statement noted that the Swedish Prime Minister “underlined that in Sweden everyone is equal before the law and that the government cannot and will not attempt to influence the legal proceedings” and thus the law will apply to Rocky – real name Rakim Mayers – as it would to any individual.
A hearing is set for Thursday 25 July to determine if he will be detained further.
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