Hamed Sinno, the 29-year-old Lebanese rocker, showed up at Christopher Street in Manhattan looking agitated. He had gone to the wrong location of Maison Kayser, the French boulangerie, and by the time his cab got to the West Village he was an hour late. Wearing a headband and a loose black shirt, he had forgotten he had to have his photo taken, and apologized for his “bad hair.”

Rock-star problems, right? But Mr. Sinno’s are more complicated than most. As one of the only openly gay celebrities in the Arab world, he has become a de facto mouthpiece and lightning rod, becoming embroiled in international human-rights issues when all he really wants to do is play music.

His indie band, Mashrou’ Leila, has acquired a young, progressive fan base over the past few years. In the group’s home country, Lebanon, boho crowds flock to see Mr. Sinno, in sequins and muscle T-shirts, sing songs that are alternately brooding and buoyant, sensual and bitingly satirical.

But trouble seems to follow him everywhere. On Sept. 22, the group played a concert to 35,000 people in Cairo, where a few spectators waved rainbow flags. Within days, seven people were arrested for “promoting sexual deviancy,” part of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s crackdown on homosexuality. The number grew to at least 65 by the end of October.