Tiger King’s Carole Baskin criticises ‘lurid’ Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion video for glamorising big cat ownership
Tiger King subject Carole Baskin has condemned the use of big cats in Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion‘s music video for “WAP”.
The newly released single was described by the Big Cat Rescue CEO as “lurid” for its glamorisation of exotic animal ownership.
In the video, the artists are seen dancing alongside cheetah and tigers, although Baskin notes that green screen CGI was seemingly used to stage the scenes.
A statement from Baskin provided to Billboard read: “It can’t happen in sanctuaries like ours where cats have plenty of room to avoid a green screen (or would shred it if offered access and could die from ingesting it).
“That tells me they probably dealt with one of the big cat pimps, who makes a living from beating, shocking and starving cats to make them stand on cue in front of a green screen in a studio. That’s never good for the cat.”
Released on Netflix earlier this year, seven-part docuseries Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness has proved one of the year’s surprise hits, with more than 60 milion households reportedly following the story of Baskin and her conflict with felonious zoo owner Joe Exotic.
Baskin also worried that the “lurid” video would “glamorise” keeping big cats as pets.
“That makes every ignorant follower want to imitate by doing the same,” she wrote. ”After tigers are too old for pay-to-play sessions by people like Joe Exotic, Bhagavan Antle, Marc McCarthy, Mario Tabraue and others, they become a liability instead of an asset.
“While I think most are destroyed behind closed gates at that point, some end up being given away to people who want to have a tiger to show off. That never works out and the cats either die or end up dumped in sanctuaries or, worse yet, breeding mills. Either way, it’s always abusive to the cat.”
The circumstances under which the "WAP" video was filmed have not been confirmed.
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