Singer will entertain global elite at glitzy event to celebrate success of Alisher Usmanov

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Robbie Williams has been hired to perform at a party to celebrate the business success of the Uzbek-born Russian billionaire and Arsenal shareholder Alisher Usmanov.



Williams, who released a 2016 track titled Party Like a Russian, is headlining an event this week to celebrate 25 years of MegaFon, a Russian mobile phone company largely owned and controlled by Usmanov, according to Bloomberg.

The glitzy event is billed as the star afterparty ticket at Russia’s version of the World Economic Forum. The three-day St Petersburg International Economic Forum, which kicks off on Thursday, is as known for its champagne-fuelled celebrity parties as its business networking.

The forum, which is this year celebrating “Building a Trust Economy”, will be chaired by the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and attended by many of the country’s leading businessmen.

Williams’ spokesperson said: “No comment.”

MegaFon representatives did not respond to requests for comment.

Usmanov is the eighth richest person with a residence in the UK, with a £10.5bn fortune, according to the Sunday Times rich list.

He lives in a £48m mansion in north London and owns a Tudor manor house, Sutton Place in Surrey.

Usmanov made most of his fortune in steel and iron ore before investing it in technology businesses including Facebook, Alibaba, Airbnb and Spotify. He owns a 30% stake in Arsenal FC.

Party Like a Russian was criticised in Russia for repeating offensive stereotypes and accused of being borderline xenophobic. Williams was warned he might not be able to perform in the country.

The song, from his 2016 album The Heavy Entertainment Show, includes the lyrics: “Party like a Russian, oh / Have it like an oligarch / I’ve got Stoli and Bolly and molly, so I’m jolly /And I’m always off my trolley, so I never say sorry.”



In the video for the track, Williams sings about a leader who “alleviates the cash from a whole entire nation, takes loose change and builds his own space station”, and adds: “Ain’t no refutin’ or disputin’ – I’m a modern Rasputin”, while women dressed as ballerinas dance around him.

Several heads of state are also signed up to attend the St Petersberg summit including the French president, Emmanuel Macron, the Japanese prime minister, Shinzō Abe, and Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund.



The organisers boasted that business deals worth $2tn (£1.5tn) were signed during last year’s event, which brought together more than 14,000 participants from 143 countries.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Alisher Usmanov who reportedly has a £10.5bn fortune. Photograph: Getty

In an address to delegates in a specially produced forum magazine, Putin said: “During open discussions at the forum, leading Russian and foreign politicians, academics, experts, corporate executives and business association leaders, and representatives from the media and civil society will discuss key questions on the global agenda, and the current state and future prospects of the world economy.

“Together, they will consider how to steer the world economy towards steady growth. By harnessing the wealth of scientific and technological potential which is rapidly expanding in digital and other areas today, we can improve quality of life and boost stable and harmonious development in all nations and across the world as a whole.”

The forum has arranged special “business dialogue” sessions to discuss Russian relations with several countries and regions, including Africa, the US, India, France and Sweden. There is no event for Russian-UK relations.