Bloodhound Gang Banned From Russian Festival After Flag Stunt
The Bloodhound Gang has been banned from performing at a festival in Russia after some rude behavior toward the nation’s flag during a concert in Ukraine earlier this week.
According to the CNN, the “Bad Touch” band was performing in Odessa on Wednesday night when bassist Jared Hasselhoff crumpled up a Russian flag before putting it down the front of his pants and pulling it out the rear. “Don’t tell Putin,” he told the crowd. A video of the stunt made its way onto YouTube and went viral in Russia and Ukraine.
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The band had been scheduled to play at the Kubana music festival in the southern Russian territory of Krasnodar Krai this weekend, but the appearance was canceled after Russian officials took offense at the flag incident. “Talked to Krasnodar territory leadership,” Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky tweeted on Friday. “Bloodhound Gang packing suitcases. These idiots won’t perform in Kubana.”
According to the New York Times, angry locals near the concert venue in Russia pelted the band’s van with eggs and tomatoes. The band members were also attacked in an airport lounge by a group of Russian nationalists, who attempted to smother one of them with an American flag. Police eventually broke up the fight and the band was able to catch a flight out on Sunday.
Hasselhoff has publicly apologized for the incident, but Russia’s law enforcement agency threatened to press criminal charges for desecrating the national flag.