Malaysian music festival shut down by government after Matty Healy kisses male bandmate on stage
Malaysia's Good Vibes Festival was shut down after a very truncated set—and one illegal-by-local-laws kiss— by Matty Healy and The 1975
Malaysia’s Good Vibes Festival came to an abrupt, unexpected, and decidedly un-good-vibes-ish halt this weekend, after organizers shut the last two days of the festival down, apparently in response to an incident involving Matty Healy and Ross MacDonald of The 1975. Healy—who was vocally angry about being booked at the festival, after he and his bandmates were informed that homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia—gave a speech to the audience in which he said “Unfortunately, you don’t get a set of loads of uplifting songs because I’m fucking furious,” before kissing MacDonald on stage. The set was canceled shortly afterwards, with Consequence reporting that organizers also opted to cancel the entire rest of the festival—slated to run through Saturday and Sunday, with headlining performances from The Strokes and The Kid Laroi.
Festival organizers issued a statement this weekend, saying, “Prior to the festival, The 1975 management team reassured us that Healy and the band would adhere to local performance guidelines. Regrettably, Healy did not honor these assurances, despite our trust in their commitment. Healy’s actions took us by complete surprise, and we halted the show as promptly as feasible following the incident.” They also announced that they had been issued a directive to shut down from the country’s Ministry Of Communications And Digital.
Malaysia is one of the most restrictive countries on the planet in terms of LGBTQ+ rights; same-sex sexual acts can be punished with up to 20 years in prison, plus canings, fines, or deportations. Addressing the crowd on Friday, Healy stated that he and the band had “made a mistake” by agreeing to play the festival, saying, in a long-ish rant,
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. I’m sorry if that offends you, and you’re religious, and it’s part of your fucking government… I don’t care anymore. If you push, I’m gonna push back. I’m not in the fucking mood.
Unfortunately, you don’t get a set of loads of uplifting songs because I’m fucking furious. And that’s not fair on you, because you’re not representative of your government. Cause you are young people, and I’m sure a lot of you are gay and progressive. It’s ridiculous, fucking ridiculous, to tell people what they can do with that and that. If you want to invite me here to do a show, you can fuck off. I’ll take your money. You can ban me, but I’ve done this before, and it doesn’t feel good.
Healy is receiving criticism for his actions on social media; several people have accused him of adopting a “white savior” complex, and potentially inciting reprisals from conservative elements in the country’s government that will land on LGBTQ+ people living in Malaysia, rather than members of the band—who reportedly vacated the country not long after the show.