Beyonce Sings For Gaddafi

Beyonce: money talks, principles walk

Some people will do anything for money. Think of drug addicts, politicians, business executives, and people who go on Fear Factor.

We can add Beyonce Knowles to the ranks of people whose lust for cash knows no limits.

It’s barely a week into 2010, and she’s caused our first celebrity mini-scandal thanks to her private New Year’s concert for Hannibal Gaddafi, son of infamous Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Knowles was paid $2 million the one-hour performance, which was held at the Nikki Beach club in the Caribbean vacation haven St. Barts.

Hannibal’s list of misdeeds is not as extensive as his father’s but it does include the following:

• Allegedly assaulting his wife, who was found with a broken nose on Christmas. (She claimed she fell. MMMkay…)

• Attacking Italian police in 2001.

• Taking revenge on Switzerland after they arrested him for assault in 2008. He cut off their access to Libyan oil, cancelled commercial flights between the nations, and had two Swiss businessmen arrested and incarcerated for 16 months on tax charges. His father asked the UN to abolish Switzerland.

Those are just the incidents that are public knowledge, it’s not a stretch to imagine there are many more we are not aware of.

Why would she perform for such a thug? It’s not as if she needs some emergency funds like Rick Warren. Beyonce and husband Jay-Z have an estimated combined net worth of $1 billion. Is a couple million really that crucial for them?

Is it possible that she had no idea who she was dealing with? Yes. I don’t think anyone expects her to be well-versed on international politics and current events. But that is why entertainers have advisers and other paid staff: to prevent their clients from getting into questionable situations like this. Someone definitely dropped the ball.

Considering she tried to keep the performance a secret, it’s unlikely Beyonce will give a public statement on the circumstances surrounding the show.

I’ve always thought Beyonce was overrated and overexposed. Now I know she has questionable character as well.