Several rappers, including Cardi B and Travis Scott, have been invited to perform on the southern Chinese island of Hainan following the massive success of Kanye West’s two sold-out shows in September 2024, which generated millions in visitor spending.
Tourism officials in Haikou, the provincial capital, are now targeting top-selling U.S. rappers after West’s performances at the Wuyuan River Stadium, with a second show added due to overwhelming demand.
“Haikou aims to position itself as one of the world’s premier performing arts cities, embracing a highly open and inclusive spirit,” Wang Ke, head of the city’s tourism, culture, radio, film and television bureau, said during a government meeting on Friday (January 10).
Cardi B hasn’t always been the household name she is today. Before being cast on the VH1 reality show Love & Hip Hop: New York, she had gained a small following thanks to her unfiltered personality and viral presence on social media platforms like Vine and Instagram. But in 2017, she was catapulted to superstardom with the release of “Bodak Yellow.”
The track became a cultural phenomenon, topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart and establishing her as a force in the rap world. Since then, she’s achieved remarkable success, earning Grammy Awards, multiple chart-topping singles and accolades for her albums, including her debut, Invasion of Privacy. She has yet to release a follow-up.
As for Travis Scott, he released UTOPIA in 2023, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with more than 496,000 total album-equivalent units moved in its first week. More recently, he filed a $100 million lawsuit against Show Motion Engineering, which he said failed to deliver a custom stage set for the UTOPIA tour and later exploited his name and likeness without his permission.
According to documents obtained by AllHipHop, the company failed to assemble the set for inspection, a contractual obligation required before final payment. When Scott’s team withheld further payments, Show Motion reportedly refused to release the set, rendering it unusable for the tour. The suit further alleges that Show Motion failed to deliver and profited from Scott’s brand by showcasing his name, likeness, and prior tour performances on its website.
