Hilary Swank
The party she attended for the Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov included fireworks, acrobatic routines and a performance by violinist Vanessa Mae. She also had company in the form of Jean-Claude Van Damme, who sat next to her and Kadryov.
Naomi Campbell
Back in 1997, Campbell was padding around in a hotel room when the door knocked. On the other side were two men who worked Liberian strongman Charles Taylor. One had a present for Campbell on behalf of Taylor: what she later called some "dirty-looking stones." Cambell was later dragged into a human rights court as a witness against Taylor.
James Brown
In 1974, the soul king performed for Mobutu Sese Seko, the head of the Congo (formerly Zaire). The leader had been accused for years of routinely torturing dissidents.
Sean Penn
Hugo Chávez is not a dictator, OK? How do we know? Because Sean Penn says so! The Organization of American States has accused Venezuelan leader Chávez of intolerance and authoritarianism, but Penn has responded by saying that people who call Chavez a dictator should be put in jail. (Penn reportedly got the leader to facilitate the release of two jailed Americans from an Iranian prison.)
Mariah Carey
You may recall Moammar Gadhafi. You know, that fella who has since up and vanished after years as a Libyan dictator. Before all that, though, back when Gadhafi was just a guy trying to oppress the masses, he threw concerts and hired folk like Carey to sing. She later returned that fee, saying she was ashamed that she had participated. But she wasn't alone...
Nelly Furtado
She also performed for the Libyan strongman's family before reportedly returning her fee. Oh, but there were more stars who were hired by the dictator or his children, including ...
Beyoncé
She reportedly donated her fee from a Gadhafi-funded concert to charity. And oh, one more star who followed suit ...
Usher
After facing pressure for his participation in a Gadhafi concert, the pop star released this statement: "I am sincerely troubled to learn about the circumstances surrounding the St. Barts event that took place on New Year's Eve 2009. I will be donating all of my personal proceeds from that event to various human rights organizations."
Sting
In case the name Gulnara Karimova does not roll off your tongue, that is the singer-designer-diplomat daughter of Islam Karimov, the leader of Uzbekistan. Haven't heard of him either? Well, Karimov has been accused of putting thousands of children to work in cotton fields; shooting demonstrators and throwing dissidents in boiling water. Sting performed at a Karimova-arranged art festival in 2009. He later defended his decision: "I am well aware of the Uzbek president's appalling reputation in the field of human rights as well as the environment. I made the decision to play there in spite of that. I have come to believe that cultural boycotts are not only pointless gestures, they are counter-productive."
Oliver Stone
The director faced heavy criticism after spending three days with Cuba's Fidel Castro and making a documentary about the leader that wasn't exactly critical. Stone defended himself, telling the Independent: "You know, the American attitude to Castro is so caricatured. He's the guy with the beard, he's a commie, he's the guy you have to attack right away with 'How many people are in prison? When will you hold elections?' These very negative and hostile questions that set the wrong tonality. The wrong questions are being asked."