Showing posts with label Top5. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Top5. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

5 People Who Lost Their Citizenship 2024 updated

In the complex landscape of citizenship, some individuals find themselves stripped of their national identity. In this article, we delve into the stories of five people who lost their citizenship—whether due to legal proceedings, historical events, or personal choices. From wartime controversies to legal battles, their journeys illuminate the intricate threads that bind us to our countries.

Mehran Nasseri


















No one is sure just how Mehran Karimi Nasseri got stuck in the Charles De Gaulle airport — possibly, not even the man himself. This is because most of the information comes from the man himself, who is notorious for changing his account with each telling. We know that he’s originally from Iran, and possibly had a British mother. He speaks English, Farsi and French, and carries himself like a man with higher education. After that, where facts and legend start to intertwine. Sometimes, Nasseri says that he was rejected by his Iranian family. Other times, he states that he was mistreated by the shah’s secret police. He has also claimed that his mother was a Scottish aristocrat, and likes to go by the name “Sir Alfred.”

Regardless of the specifics of his story, in 1988 a series of complicated reasons that possibly involved a suitcase theft and definitely involved a plan to enter Britain with or without his papers left Nasseri stranded on the Terminal One of Charles de Gaulle International Airport. He could not leave or enter France without official documentation, and after much head-scratching, the airport officials told him to wait in the only place he was legally allowed to stay: the airport lounge. This wait took 18 years.

The man without citizenship soon attracted the attention of media, and managed to survive quite comfortably with modest interview fees, kindness of strangers and airport employees, and eventually, a hefty sum of $250,000 from Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks for the rights of his story. The ensuing movie, The Terminal, made “Sir Alfred” famous, and he seemed content to remain at the airport — even turning down several offers of citizenship, because they didn’t use his preferred name and were from countries he didn’t like. However, fate would not let Nasseri stay in his terminal haven forever. In 2006, he was hospitalized, and eventually moved to a shelter in Paris. 

Gerard Depardieu
















Famous actor Gerard Depardieu may seem as French as they come, but in reality, the man is Russian these days. In 2012, Depardieu grew tired of France’s tax policies and government, and wrote a fiery open letter where he announced that he would leave the country and renounce his citizenship. The fact that the government had previously accused him of evading taxes by moving abroad was … not entirely coincidental.

Depardieu first moved to Belgium, where taxation is rather more forgiving to the rich. However, Vladimir Putin soon sensed a PR opportunity, and offered the famous actor a chance to become a Russian citizen. Depardieu took up the offer in 2013, and by 2014, he was performing on the stages of Paris as a visiting Russian actor. It appears that Depardieu is not planning to rest in his citizenship laurels, either. In a 2018 trip to North Korea, he reportedly announced that he’s planning to apply for Turkish citizenship next.

Terry Gilliam



















Terry Gilliam is famous for directing dystopic visions such as Brazil and 12 Monkeys, and even more famous for being the only American member of the legendary comedy troupe, Monty Python. The latter part of his legacy is at least partially unfounded, though. Although Gilliam was born in Minnesota, he emigrated to Britain in the 1960s, married an English woman and held dual citizenship for three decades. For all practical intents and purposes, this makes him as English as Earl Grey tea with a slice of lemon.

In 2012, Gilliam shed his last remaining connections to the United States when he renounced his U.S. citizenship. He says that the reason for his decision was the increasingly nasty political climate of his birth country: He joked that he’s thinking of suing George W. Bush and Dick Cheney for making a less funny version of the nightmarish Brazil without his approval, and that if he’d stayed in the U.S., he’d be “throwing bombs.”

John Huston

















It’s anyone’s guess why John Huston, famous director and father of equally famous actress Anjelica Huston, decided to drop his United States citizenship in favor of an Irish one in 1964. Huston and his family had been living in the country for some time, but it has been suggested that the citizenship change had less to do with personal preference — and a lot to do with the 80-90% income tax rate he was allegedly paying at the time. Huston himself insisted that the move had absolutely nothing to do with taxation, and he merely felt that a person should be the citizen of the country he’s living in.

Whatever the real reason behind Huston’s newfound Irishness was, it’s worth pointing out that in 1969, the country’s Minister of Finance, Charles Haughey, made all artists residing in Ireland exempt from income tax. Incidentally, Haughey was also the very same man who gave Huston his citizenship papers five years earlier.


Tina Turner

Tina Turner may be an iconic American singer, but this doesn’t mean that she finds America particularly iconic. Over the decades, the artist has become more and more European: She has dated a German music producer called Erwin Bach since 1985, and they finally married in 2013. Turner has also lived in Switzerland for over two decades. She’s now fluent in German, and says that she has absolutely no connections to the United States save for some family. She also has no intention of ever moving back to her country of birth.

The only remaining step for completely ditching her roots was to take up Swiss citizenship and throw away her American one, which Turner officially did in 2013. However, she didn’t dramatically renounce her citizenship, like many other people on this list. Instead, the process she chose is called ‘relinquishment’, which is rather more like an amiable divorce: Turner took Swiss citizenship with the intent of losing her U.S. citizenship, allowing it to drift away over time instead of cutting the ties right away. Although it’s a slower process, it comes with the added bonus of avoiding the tax and other penalties that can be associated with a straight renouncement.

Thursday, February 7, 2019

5 Rappers Who Aren't As Rich As Snoop Dogg (And 10 Who Are)


One of the reasons most of us look up to rappers is the wealth they appear to have, judging by the cars they drive, the mansions they live in, the ridiculous amounts they spend on luxuries, and their bling. Most, if not all rap videos make us assume or believe that the rappers in the videos enjoy financial success, invincibility, high social status, and lack of any form of consequences for their actions.

Although we understand that what we see in their music videos and the words they use in their songs might not always be the reality, we can't help but imagine how awesome it would be to be them. Furthermore, the attention they receive in the media and on the streets always appears to be so cool, even though most of them complain about how exhausting it can get living with so much attention.

One of the most successful rappers of all time is Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr., who we usually refer to as Snoop Dogg. Unlike many rappers out there who pretend to be rich yet they're not, Snoop Dogg is genuinely rich since his net worth is in the neighborhood of $124 million. Most of this money comes from the fact that he has sold over 35 million albums worldwide, which is very impressive.

This article is about 20 rappers – 10 of who are either as rich as or even far richer than Snoop Dogg and another 10 who appear to be rich but are nowhere close to being as rich as he is.

AS RICH AS SNOOP DOGG: DR. DRE


American rapper Andre Romelie Young, commonly known as Dr. Dre, is also a DJ, producer, and entrepreneur. Though he's a rapper, he is popularly known for producing albums, occasionally contributing vocals and overseeing the careers of rappers like Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, and 50 Cent.

He is the CEO and owner of the Aftermath Entertainment record label. Owning his label, selling his famous Beats by Dre headphones, and getting royalties from produced albums have earned him a net worth of approximately $830 million. Dr. Dre is one of the richest rappers on the planet, and if he continues making good financial decisions, he's sure to hit the coveted billion-dollar mark.

NOT AS RICH: BOW WOW


Rapper, actor, and television host, Shad Gregory Moss, best known as Bow Wow, debuted his first studio album Beware of Dog at the age of 13 which went double platinum. He’s rapping career continued being successful with two gold albums, two additional platinum ones, and several hit singles.

He has sold over 10 million albums worldwide and on August 2016, he announced he would release his last album then retire from rapping. Although Bow Wow is not as rich as Snoop Dogg, at least he currently has a net worth of $1.5 million, which is really good money. He has a daughter Shai Moss with Joie Chavis who they co-parent.

AS RICH AS SNOOP DOGG: MASTER P

Percy Robert Miller, better known as Master P or by his entrepreneurial name Miller, is an American rap mogul, entrepreneur, and film producer. He is also an actor, businessperson, and record producer. He is the founder of the Record label called No limit forever records and has a current net worth of $250 million.

Interestingly, the rapper was also a basketball player and played for two NBA teams in the 90s. Percy also wrote a book in 2007 titled Guaranteed Success. Master P has also devoted his time and resources to philanthropy through the P. Miller Youth Centers and the P. Miller Food Foundation for the homeless.

NOT AS RICH: CARDI B


Belcalis Marlenis Almanzar, who goes by the name Cardi B, is a popular rapper. In 2013, Cardi B gained a lot of popularity on Instagram, which we can argue was a contributing factor to how far her career has grown today. She later appeared in the television series Love & Hip Hop: New York then later released two hit singles, which topped the Billboard.

She released her latest studio album Invasion of Privacy just this year. With a net worth of $4 million, Cardi B might not be as rich as Snoop Dogg yet but she is slowly rising to fame and fortune. Cardi is married to rapper Offset and the couple has one child.