US rapper’s fans demand a Swedish boycott

Fans of American rapper A$AP Rocky are mad, really mad.

So mad, in fact, that they want you to start avoiding those Swedish meatball binges at Ikea!

Yes, the administration of President Donald Trump just got weirder. Just when you thought it had already broken all barriers.

The rapper’s fans have issued a call to arms, in protest of moves to put him on trial for assault, Channel News Asia (CNA) reported.

Rocky, 30, a platinum-selling artist whose real name is Rakim Mayers and is best known for his song Praise the Lord, has been in custody since July 3.

Swedish authorities are investigating a fight he was allegedly involved in on June 30 before his appearance at the Smash hip-hop festival.

With Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lofven rebuffing President Donald Trump’s entreaties to intervene in the case, fans took to Twitter to call for boycotts of the country and its global commercial icons — first and foremost the do-it-yourself home furnishing mart Ikea.

Many appeared inspired by a Trump tweet that declared: “We do so much for Sweden but it doesn’t seem to work the other way around.”

That sparked a rash of retweets with the #boycottsweden hashtag, singling out Swedish brands from Absolut Vodka and Volvo to Spotify.

“I think @realDonaldTrump you need to encourage folks to boycott #ikea until A$AP Rocky is freed. Though having said that I am sure if Rocky’s jail cell is anything like my bookcase he could bust out #A$AP. #boycottikea #boycottsweden,” tweeted triathlon coach John Bryan.

A Swedish court ordered Rocky put on trial for assault after his arrest.

One video of the incident suggests that Rocky, 30, and his bodyguards were harassed by two local men for some time before fighting erupted, and the rapper said it was self-defense, the CNA report said.

That has stoked an outpouring of anger from fans, but also the occasional pithy comment from wags wondering if Rocky might have to assemble his own furniture in his Swedish cell.

“All Rocky need to do to get out is find the ikea instructions,” wrote @buckestcowboy.

Others called him lucky to have the chance to eat Ikea’s famous meatballs.

“Asap rocky is prolly okay. they got Ikea furniture in those jail suites… im sure they got swedish meatballs and swedish fish up in the joint there too,” said @coolboy3000_net.

Canadian rapper Justin Bieber was sympathetic, but called on Trump to help the children held in detention camps along the border.

“I want my friend out … I appreciate you trying to help him. But while your at it @realDonaldTrump can you also let those kids out of cages?”

Sweden wasn’t immediately facing any significant economic fallout from the calls for boycotts, however. None of those urging a moratorium on Swedish goods had substantial followings or were major public figures, CNA reported.

And as popular as it is, most people who shop at Ikea go only once in several months.

Meanwhile, Sweden has hit back at Trump over the A$AP Rocky affair, insisting its independent judicial system must do its work, The Guardian reported.

“The rule of the law applies to everyone equally and is exercised by an independent judiciary,” tweeted former prime minister Carl Bildt. “That’s the way it is in the US, and that’s certainly the way it is in Sweden. Political interference in the process is distinctly off limits. Clear?”