French Montana stirs controversy by inviting Andrew Tate on stage

Karim Kharbouch, known by the pseudonym French Montana, is an American rapper of Moroccan descent. Born and raised in Morocco, he emigrated with his family to the United States at the age of 13. He started his musical career in 2002, releasing many underground tracks. His career took off after he signed a record deal with Puff Daddy's Bad Boy Records and Rick Ross's Maybach Music Group in 2012.

On July 13, during a concert at the Beach Please! Festival in Romania, the rapper managed to surprise the audience. He invited Andrew Tate on stage. Tate is famous for his extremely misogynistic views and is awaiting trial in Romania, where he is accused of sexual assault and human trafficking.

French Montana's fans were not thrilled with the surprise. The musician also boasted about it in an Instagram post, which he captioned: "The first rapper to stream with Top G and the first to bring Top G on stage." Top G is short for "Top Gangster." Tate has long used this term for himself, perhaps quite fittingly.

Montana's fans do not share his enthusiasm. The most popular comment on Instagram accurately captures the situation: "How embarrassing, lol". Other fans expressed their feelings more broadly: "French, why are you bringing the Tate brothers on stage? Why are you associating with them? These are sleazy guys. I am disappointed."

Romania is one country where Tate can listen to live music. In June 2023, he and his brother Tristan were officially charged with rape, human trafficking, and establishing a criminal gang for the sexual exploitation of women. In April this year, the court in Romania ruled that their trial may proceed. The United States-born Andrew Tate appealed this decision and, while awaiting a ruling on the matter, was banned from leaving Romania, a member of the EU.

At the beginning of July, the Romanian tribunal lifted this restriction, granting the suspects freedom to move within the EU. The Romanian organized crime agency DIICOT challenged this ruling, and the Bucharest Appeal Court overturned it on July 16. The Tate brothers cannot leave Romania. It is not publicly known when their trial will start.

It is known, however, that once the Romanian legal system deals with the Tate brothers, they will be extradited to the United Kingdom. The Bedfordshire Police secured a European arrest warrant for both men regarding additional allegations of rape and human trafficking from 2012-2015. When this will take place depends on whether they are found guilty and what penalties are imposed by the court in Romania.