The pop star in question is Ms. Robyn Rihanna Fenty, more commonly referred to by her artist name of Rihanna.
She has a fan community that spans the globe and she herself is a personality that easily builds intercultural bridges by means of her music. I do not want to engage in writing about her music as such, but about the fact that music by definition has to be understood as being without borders, without prejudice and available for all, wherever they may be.
The road has not been all that easy. There were times when pop music was regarded as anarchic, as a threat to the regime. The former Soviet Union is a case in point as foreign acts found it difficult to the extreme to be allowed to give concerts behind the Iron Curtain. It was not until 1985 that Western pop music became more widespread as foreign musicians began to descend on Moscow. I myself witnessed a small part of this development when I attended a concert by West German rock legend Udo Lindenberg on the occasion of an international youth and student festival that had been held the same year. Those were the years when a pair of Levi’s jeans changed hands for a bottle of Russian vodka. Foreign records became more readily available, albeit at a rather high price.
Reactions from a number of Greek Cypriot citizens to try to stop international musicians from playing in the KKTC remind me of this backward attitude. It simultaneously underlines that a wind of change is blowing in the direction of those who simply do not understand that continued economic isolation of the northern part of the divided island is illogical and, above all, morally wrong.
I hope Ms. Rihanna’s management is more politically aware -- and politically correct, too -- than that of Ms. Lopez, as giving in to a small pressure group that confuses social networking sites with official policymaking sends the wrong signal. It would open the door to having pop stars change their tour dates according to one lobby group here and another pressure group there. All it would take are a few letters, some tweets and some more comments on a number of social networking sites and voila: one date cancelled, another postponed indefinitely and then another country added onto a “no play list.” Wrong, totally wrong.
Pop stars in particular should use their immense status and influence to create an atmosphere of tolerance and mutual understanding. Sir Elton John recently gave a concert in Morocco, without any obstruction from the government or lobby groups. Many years before that, British group Pink Floyd sang about “We don’t need no education” without being banned anywhere as no one expected “badly influenced” children to stop attending school. When I say pop stars should use their immense influence, I do not mean that music should be misunderstood or taken literally -- music inspires, music is a ventilator, music allows listeners to think, to dream, to dance and to enjoy themselves before it’s back to work, back to school or back home.
What worked once -- making a pop star change her schedule and not fly out to the KKTC -- should not work twice or three times. A series of pop concerts alone will not reunite the divided island either. What would work out much better in the interests of all parties concerned is showing support from the southern part of Cyprus, too. It would show maturity and an honest interest in helping to bring both peoples together again.
Ms. Rihanna, you are more than welcome. Most importantly, you come as a musician to delight your audience. Some lobby groups seem to be misinterpreting this detail.
