'These idiots will not perform in Kuban,' says culture minister after band's bassist puts Russian flag down his pants
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Bloodhound Gang were this weekend banned from playing a Russian festival after their bassist shoved the country's flag down his underpants during a gig.
According to the CNN, the band were performing a gig in Odessa on Wednesday night when bassist Jared Hasselhoff took a Russian flag and put it down the front of his trousers, before pulling it out the back: "Don't tell Putin," he told the crowd prior to the stunt. The above YouTube video of the incident went viral in Russia and Ukraine.
In a Twitter post, Russian culture minister Vladimir Medinsky confirmed that the band would from now on be banned from playing Russia. He wrote: "Bloodhound Gang is packing its bags. These idiots will not perform in Kuban."
According to Associated Press, Moscow reacted angrily to the stunt and as the members of Bloodhound Gang drove to Anapa airport on Saturday, activists from a pro-Kremlin youth group threw eggs and tomatoes at their vehicle. They were also ejected from their afternoon flight to Moscow after they had already boarded the plane, but following an interview by transport police took a later flight, Russian news agencies reported.
While Hasselhoff was quoted as saying that it was band tradition for everything thrown on stage to be passed through his pants, he has publicly apologised for the incident. However, Russia's law enforcement agency threatened to press criminal charges for desecrating the national flag.
The stunt comes amid a rise in tension between the US and Russia over whistle-blower Edward Snowden, who was given temporary asylum in Russia at the end of July to help him evade prosecution in the US. It also follows new concerns for western artists performing in Russia after Lady Gaga and Madonna were last week accused of breaking Russian visa rules.
