State Dept. won't be sending entertainer Andrew W.K. to Bahrain

Entertainer Andrew W.K.'s big plans to represent the United States as a hard-partying diplomat has hit a wall since the State Department stopped a trip to send him to Bahrain.

At a daily press briefing Monday, State Department spokesman Victoria Nuland explained that the White House had rescinded his invitation to an event with the U.S. Embassy at the conservative Muslim kingdom after taking a closer look at his music, which includes the fist-pumping hit "Party Til You Puke."

"There may have been some preliminary conversations with him, but he is not going to be going to Bahrain on the U.S. government's dime," Nuland said.

Andrew W.K. -- a singer-songwriter, motivational speaker, music producer and self-described "party king" -- announced on his website he had been appointed as a cultural ambassador to the Middle East to promote "partying and world peace." He compared the tour to that of the Army's American Jazz Ambassadors formed in 1969, saying he would visit schools and music venues to spread the "power of positive partying."

Nuland said that a Bahraini entity had approached the U.S. Embassy about cosponsoring a visit, which was initially approved. It wasn't until senior management took a second look that they decided the State-sponsored visit would not be appropriate.

"I think the conclusion was, when they looked at the body of his work, that we didn't need to be a part of this invitation," Nuland said.

According to Andrew W.K.'s website, the trip took a year of planning and development. "I can hardly wait for this adventure!" he said in a statement before the trip was canceled.