Beyonce Cancels Malaysia Concert
Monday, October 01, 2007
Beyonce has cancelled an upcoming concert in Malaysia, opting to perform in Indonesia instead.
This decision is almost certainly because of Malaysia’s strict guidelines surrounding the dress code and behavior of female performers, though the performer said the change in venue was due to a “scheduling conflict”.
Malaysia is well known for its strict controls on how female performers dress and behave. The Pussycat Dolls got in trouble last year for failing to adhere to the guidelines.
Female performers are expected to stay covered from the top of the chest to the knees; and are not allowed to jump, shout, or hug members of the audience.
In August, Gwen Stefani reluctantly agreed to tone down her raunchy style for her performance in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia following complaints by a Muslim students’ group.
The 10,000-member National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students voiced its opposition to the Malaysian leg of Gwen Stefani’s ‘Sweet Escape’ tour, saying it clashed with Islamic values.
At the time, Stefani told Britain’s The Star newspaper: “I’ve made a lot of changes to my concert just for Malaysia. It’s a major sacrifice that I have made as an artiste. But I’m willing to do it because I want my fans in this country to see me perform here.”
However, Malaysia’s Beyonce fans will not see her perform there and other female acts could cancel performances there in the future.
Beyonce’s Malaysia promoter Razlan Ahmad Razali expressed extreme disappointment at the change of venue to Indonesia, which is also predominately Muslim but has much laxer guidelines on performances by female artists.
