British indie rock band The 1975 have been forced to cancel their gigs in Indonesia and Taiwan after a festival in Malaysia was shut down due to a kiss between the band's singer and bassist.
The festival We The Fest in Jakarta and Live Nation Taiwan posted an announcement on social media stating that the band is cancelling its concerts in both countries. "The band never takes the decision to cancel concerts lightly (...) but unfortunately, due to the current circumstances, it is impossible to go ahead with the planned shows."
On Friday, The 1975's concert at the Good Vibes music festival near the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur was halted after a kiss between singer Matty Healy and bassist Ross MacDonald.
Earlier in the evening, Healy had also denounced the country's anti-LGBTQ laws – homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia and can lead to imprisonment. Human rights organisations have been warning in recent years that intolerance in the country against the rainbow community is rapidly increasing. "I don't understand why The 1975 is invited into a country to tell us afterwards who we can have sexual relations with," Healy said.
Malaysia's communications minister had called the kissing "very rude" and demanded the immediate cancellation of the festival, which was to last three days. The 1975 may also never perform in Malaysia again.
The band was due to perform at the Indonesian festival on Sunday/today and in the Taiwanese capital Taipei on Tuesday. That island, however, is a pioneer in the region when it comes to LGBTQ rights and legalised same-sex marriage in 2019. In Indonesia, homosexuality is not punishable, but there are local laws that discriminate against the LGBTQ community.
The 1975's next concert is scheduled to take place at the US festival Lollapalooza in early August.
