ANAHEIM (CNS) - Rapper A$AP Rocky, who was cleared to return to the U.S. while awaiting a verdict in an assault case against him and two other Americans in Sweden, will perform this Sunday at the ``Real Street Festival'' in Anaheim as previously planned, organizers said today.
The 30-year-old rapper, whose birth name is Rakim Mayers, was arrested in Stockholm in early July and remained jailed until a trial that ended last Friday, when he was released pending a judge's ruling expected Aug. 14. Footage that aired on local television stations late Friday showed him arriving at Los Angeles International Airport on a private plane.
``We are elated that Rocky is finally coming home and will be taking the stage to headline our first Real Street Fest next weekend as originally planned,'' said Doc Wynter, executive vice president of urban and hip-hop at iHeartMedia.
Honda Center President and CEO Tim Ryan issued a statement saying the event ``is going to be one huge party, and we can't wait for him (A$AP Rocky) to receive a massive welcome from his fans that night.''
Other performers at the two-day festival that begins Saturday at the Honda Center include hip-hop artists such as Futurre, Cardi B, Migos, Meek Mill, Big Sean, Miguel, Rae Sremmurd and 2Chainz.
Mayers, along with David Rispers Jr. and Bladimir Corniel, are accused of beating 19-year-old Mustafa Jafari on June 30 outside a fast-food restaurant in central Stockholm. Mayers, who pleaded not guilty at the start of the three-day trial, testified that he acted in self-defense when Jafari and another man refused to leave his group alone. His bodyguard gave a similar account in his testimony, according to media reports.
The case attracted the attention of President Donald Trump, who caused a stir in U.S.-Swedish diplomatic relations after publicly offering support to the Grammy Award-nominated artist and who celebrated his temporary release with a tweet that read: ``It was a Rocky Week, get home ASAP A$AP!''
The rapper, in an Instagram post after being released, thanked his fans for supporting him during this ``very difficult and humbling experience.''