Artists enjoying in questionable locales and for doubtful people is nothing new, however a current spat between System of a Down vocalist Serj Tankian and the band Think about Dragons is highlighting the form of sticky geopolitical issues that may crop up from such performances.

In his most current Instagram publish, Tankian made public a request he made to the pop-rock band and their illustration, asking them to cancel their upcoming live performance in Azerbaijan on September 2. In his publish, the singer mentioned he’d warned that such an look might probably “whitewash” what’s being described as an ongoing genocide within the disputed area of Nagorno-Karabakh, the place individuals there are being systematically starved by what Tankian calls a “petro-oligarchic dictatorial regime.”

Although he mentioned he was initially reticent about making his request public, he says a scarcity of response has pressured his hand:

“Now it needs to be mentioned.

Just a few months in the past, it got here to my consideration that @imaginedragons had deliberate a present on Sept 2nd in Baku Azerbaijan. I used to be certain they had been unaware that Azerbaijan’s petro-oligarchic dictatorial regime was ravenous 120k individuals in Nagorno-Karabagh which is now being known as a Genocide by the previous prosecutor of the Worldwide Prison Court docket, Luis Moreno Ocampo. So by representatives, I despatched them a sort letter urging them to rethink enjoying their present in Azerbaijan as it could assist whitewash the dictatorial regime’s picture there. I included numerous articles together with one by Amnesty Int’l who I used to be instructed they’ve labored with prior to now. There was no response. No reply, no response. Because the humanitarian disaster worsens in Nagorno-Karabagh with hunger already being recorded I’m pressured to publicize this letter and their disregard for this humanitarian disaster. Perhaps they felt they’d a authorized legal responsibility to play the present, possibly they only don’t care. My entire life I’ve been an advocate for genocide recognition and have all the time mentioned there needs to be a value to pay for Genocidal regimes or deniers. One other genocide is looming by Azerbaijan and whereas this occurs they get to get pleasure from an American band from LV. Fuck that!

That’s not proper.

Go to my profile to signal a petition to the band on change.org should you care to signal and you may see my letter to the band on my Fb web page. Thanks for studying. Serj.”

As he mentioned in his publish, Tankian additionally shared his full letter on his Fb web page, the place he apparently tried to enchantment to Think about Dragons’ previous stances on “human rights points and social causes,” in addition to their work with Amnesty Worldwide.

Tankian is requesting that anybody occupied with urging Think about Dragons to cancel their present as a stand towards the human disaster taking place there to signal a Change.org petition calling for such.