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State Department not funding rocker’s trip to Bahrain
The State Department will not be sponsoring rocker Andrew W.K.’s “positive partying” tour of Bahrain, canceling the trip that was initially approved, a spokeswoman said Monday.
“When more senior management at the embassy took a look at this, the conclusion was that this was not an appropriate use of U.S. government funds,” said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland. “I think the conclusion was when they looked at the body of his work that we didn't need to be part of this invitation.”
“In the tradition of the American Jazz Ambassadors who traveled the world in the mid-20th century as examples of American culture and spirit, Andrew has been invited by the State Department to travel to the Middle Eastern country of Bahrain and share his music and partying with the people there,” the singer’s website announced.
Despite skepticism over the news, W.K. continued to defend his trip via his Twitter feed as “not fake” and officially sponsored by the State Department through the weekend.
“I feel very privileged and humbled by the chance to represent the United States of America and show the good people of Bahrain the power of positive partying,” Andrew W.K. said in the statement.
W.K. was reportedly invited to visit by the U.S. Embassy in Manama as part of a cultural speakers program, but the program was canceled.
"I'm just blown away. After a year of planning, the US State Dept. just canceled my Middle East trip because I'm too party," W.K. wrote on his Facebook page Monday.
The initial invitation apparently resulted from a request within Bahrain, suggesting W.K. might have an existing fan base in the small island country.
Updated at 3:08 p.m.
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