Registan.net, WA
May 19 2007

The Pop Star & The President’s Daughter

Across the former Soviet Union, pop stars are made wealthy
individuals in or close to government. It’s not always a bad
investment. Onnik Krikorian, for example, reported that pop stars
were a big part of political rallies during Armenia’s recent
parliamentary election campaign. (One can find a few posts mentioning
this .) Uzbek pop star Rayhon Ganiev says that Gulnora Karimova is
using the pop star’s image to make herself look better. And why might
she do that? Rayhon says it’s about the upcoming presidential
election.
In an interview to GNN the singer said one has to have a huge amount
of money to earn respect in Uzbekistan. Rayhon is widely believed to
be promoted by the Forum of Culture and Art of Uzbekistan Foundation
that is invovled in promoting the peculiarities of Uzbek traditions
and cultural values. `I think She(Gulnara) is using my face and
creativity to promote her own positive image before the nation just
on the eve of elections’, Rayhona said.
Other musicians also complained about corruption and the need for
connections to succeed in the world of Uzbek pop music. One, Iroda
Dilroz, said she likes what she described as the state’s support.
Maybe she’s angling for the Mustaqillik Kuni concert.

imova-and-uzbekistans-music-industry/