British band The 1975 have been banned in Malaysia and the entire music festival they were performing at cancelled after lead singer Matty Healy spoke out against the country’s laws against homosexuality.

Healy slammed the countries laws against homosexuality during an appearance at the Good Vibes Festival. After he kissed bass payer Ross MacDonald their performance was stopped, and authorities then forced the entire three-day festival to close down.

Homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia and there have been reports of growing intolerance of LGBTIQA+ people.

Speaking to the crows during their performance Healy said he wished the band hadn’t accepted the invitation to perform in Malaysia.

“I made a mistake. When we were booking shows, I wasn’t looking into it. I don’t see the fucking point, right, I do not see the point of inviting the 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with.” he said.

Healy didn’t hold back on what he thought of the Malaysian government, before voicing his frustration about social media sharing that he’d recently seen a TikTok video that questioned a video of him with a friend’s young son.

“So we’re just casually accusing people of being pedophile’s now for entertainment.” Healy said.

The singer said he was sure a lot of the audience were gay and progressive, and finished off his statement by kissing his bandmate. The band’s next song was cut short, and Healy told the crowd the 1975 “just got banned from Kuala Lumpur.”

In a statement the Good Vibes Festival said, “We deeply regret to announce that the remaining schedule of the Good Vibes Festival 2023, planned for today and tomorrow has been cancelled following the controversial conduct and remarks made by UK artist Matty Healy from the band The 1975.”

Organisers said the festival had been cancelled by the government and their unwavering stance against any parties that challenge, ridicule, or contravene Malaysian laws.

“”Healy’s unprofessional behaviour and overt defiance of Malaysian laws and regulations are disturbing. Healy chose to utilise his performance as a platform to express his personal views, rather than delivering the quality show that his Malaysian fans were eagerly anticipating. This act is deeply unfair to his fans who were looking forward to enjoying a memorable music experience.” the company behind the festival said.

In 2019 Healy kissed a male fan during a concert in Dubai to highlight that country’s anti-gay laws.

OIP Staff

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