The 1975 banned from country as Matty kisses bandmate to slam anti-LGBTQ+ laws
The 1975 have been banned from performing in Malaysia after frontman Matty Healy locked lips with bandmate Ross MacDonald during a performance in the country.
Matty's group were headlining the Good Vibes Festival in Kuala Lumpur on Friday when Matty made a speech and staged his protest.
The singer, who recently dated Taylor Swift, said he had "made a mistake" by agreeing to perform the gig.
Matty kissed his male bandmate to protest Malaysia's anti-LGBT+ laws, where homosexuality is illegal and punishable by 20 years in prison.
The group's set was cut short and the rest of the weekend-long festival was later cancelled, while the band have also been banned from performing in Malaysia in future.
Matty Healy angers The 1975 fans with peculiar rant seemingly 'mocking' Yungblud
In video footage shared on social media, Matty tells festival-goers: "I made a mistake. When we were booking shows, I wasn't looking into it.
"I don't see the f***** point... of inviting The 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with."
Matty then kissed the band's bassist Ross MacDonald before the band played the song I Like America & America Likes Me.
Soon after the stunt, the band announced their swift exit from the stage – as their performance was cut short.
Matty Healy locked lips with bassist Ross in protest of Malaysia's anti-LGBT+ lawsCutting short the set, Matty told festival-goers: "All right, we gotta go.
"We just got banned from Kuala Lumpur, I'll see you later."
A source close to the band told the Mirror: "Matty has a long-time record of advocating for the LGBTQ+ community and the band wanted to stand up for their LGBTQ+ fans and the community."
Following the act of protest, the festival's organisers said the group's performance was stopped over "non-compliance with local performance guidelines".
The rest of the festival was then cancelled, where The Strokes, who had been Sunday's headline act, The Kid Laroi and Ty Dollar $ign were all scheduled to perform.
In a statement to local media on Friday, the Good Vibes Festival's organisers said the performance was abruptly cancelled due to "non-compliance with local performance guidelines". But said, at the time, the festival would continue as scheduled for the rest of the weekend. However, the schedule has since been cancelled.
Rollercoaster life of Denise Welch's famous son - addiction to childhood trauma
Malaysia's Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil called the band's performance "very disrespectful".
In a statement the organisers later announced the cancellation of the rest of the festival, in a statement which said: "We deeply regret to announce that the remaining schedule of Good Vibes Festival 2023, planned for today and tomorrow has been cancelled following the controversial conduct and remarks by UK artist Matt Healy from the band The 1975.
"This decisions adheres to the immediate cancellation directive issued... by the Ministry of Communications and Digital.
"The ministry has underlined its unwavering stance against any parties that challenge, ridicule, or contravene Malaysian laws.
"We sincerely apologise to all of our ticket holders, vendors, sponsors, and partners.
"We are aware of the time, energy, and efforts you have put into making this festival a success, and we value your steadfast support.
"We will update you on refund mechanics as soon as possible.
"We appreciate your understanding and continued support during this challenging time."
Following the news, Loose Women star and proud mum Denise Welsh shared her support for her son as she re-tweeted a video of the kiss and wrote: "He’s my son" followed by a rainbow emoji.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
