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Over the weekend, Malaysians were shocked to hear about the cancellation of Good Vibes Festival – an annual music festival that has been held annually since 2013 without any problems.
Festival organisers Future Sound Asia took every necessary step in setting up an event of this scale each year to ensure it was smooth sailing and pleasurable for every festival goer.
However, no thanks to one band, The 1975, they had to face a great financial blowback due to the lead singer’s very controversial performance on stage.
Matty Healy’s onstage kiss wasn’t the only behaviour Malaysians took issue with
While videos of Matty Healy, The 1975’s lead vocalist, kissing his bassist on stage went viral, that’s unfortunately not the only thing that happened.
Prior to that, according to eyewitness accounts, he:
- Smoked and spat on stage
- Was drinking onstage
- Stomped on a drone worth RM8,000 commissioned to capture official videos for the Good Vibes Festival.
Watch the video here:
@mikkelkam #gvf2023 #the1975 #the1975kualalumpur #goodvibesfestival2023 ♬ original sound – Mikkel
He then dissed our Malaysian government saying, “It’s f***ing ridiculous to tell people who they can have sex with!” (*points to groin area and points to mouth*).
After disrespecting the rules and culture we have, he did the most unthinkable: passionately kiss his bassist on stage.
So how did his selfish rant and misconduct affect our already struggling events industry?
The remaining 2-day event was immediately canceled. The millions of ringgit put into event setup, equipment, artist bookings, and ticket refunds can never be recovered.
Image: Part of GVF team’s official statement on the incident.
Each small food vendor hoping for their big break spent approximately RM15,000 on food stocks alone which couldn’t be sold.
Kesian GVF vendors ? credit to @SausageSizzleMY pic.twitter.com/auP34p9YwW
— Pia (@_epiphiany) July 22, 2023
Local artists missed their opportunity to perform and boost the local music industry, while losing money and time to prepare.
Images: Screenshot of Malaysian media personality Luqman Podolski’s alleged Instagram direct message to Matty Healy
Image: Malaysian singer Talitha Tan expresses her sorrow over GVF’s cancellation
International news portals which covered the event took a tone that would have the effect of scaring off international artists from ever stepping foot in our country in future. Ultimately, this means millions of Ringgit worth of spending for concerts will flow out overseas to other countries, such as Singapore.
Germany’s coverage of the GVF fiasco | Translation: “Malaysia cancels festival after male-on-male kiss”
“Matty Healy ultimately caused millions of Ringgit of losses and irreparable reputational damage for future artists wanting to perform in Malaysia.”
Because of the selfish action of ONE individual, a whole country’s struggling event industry just got worse.
Following this fiasco, the band canceled their shows in Indonesia and Taipei
This decision by the band actually speaks to Matty Healy’s pettiness and immaturity, because he decided to punish other countries that have tight LGBTQ+ laws by cancelling their show.
At least one beautiful thing came out of this: Malaysia and other countries like Indonesia stand together and see the absurdity he has wreaked on each of our countries.
Read the comments section of The 1975’s official Instagram account below:
For a firsthand account of the events that occurred at Good Vibes Festival 2023, read:
I Was At Good Vibes Festival 2023, Here’s What Really Happened
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