Muse censor setlist for Malaysia gig after The 1975 stunt – and Matty Healy responds
The 1975 singer appeared to be unimpressed by the move
Muse have performed a revised setlist in Malaysia a week after The 1975’s festival show in the south-east Asian country was cut short by authorities.
The 1975‘s performance at Kuala Lumpur’s Good Vibes Festival on 21 July was pulled when singer Matty Healy criticised the country’s government for its LGBTQ+ laws and proceeded to kiss bassist Ross MacDonald on stage. The stunt angered festival organisers and the authorities alike, as well as some queer Malaysian music fans who felt that the move was ultimately unhelpful.
At the gig Healy apologised to fans for accepting Good Vibes’ invitation to play, saying that he was unaware of Malaysia’s hardline stance toward the LGBTQ+ community; same-sex relationships are outlawed in the country and punishable by prison time and caning.
Now, it’s been revealed that Muse censored their setlist for their 29 July show at the country’s Bukit Jalil National Stadium to remove their subversive song ‘We Are Fucking Fucked’.
Concert organiser Adam Ashraf told Rojak Daily [via Consequence]: “They called us shortly after [The 1975] incident went global. After discussions, they decided to pull one song out of the setlist due to the title of the song. It’s nice to know they’re eager to entertain while also respecting the guidelines.”
Muse ended up swapping ‘We Are Fucking Fucked’ from their 2022 album Will of the People for ‘Resistance’ from their 2009 album of the same name.
In response to Muse’s setlist edit, Healy posted two screenshots to his personal Instagram Stories.
The first was a repost of a Muse pre-order message that read “Join The Resistance” with Healy adding the word “sick” above it. In the next Story, he shared an article by NME covering Muse’s setlist self-censorship along with his caption saying “…oh”.
The 1975 cancelled the remainder of their Asian tour following the stunt.
Despite the scrapped Asia shows, The 1975 are booked to perform at Lollapalooza in Chicago next month along with gigs at San Francisco’s Outside Lands, Las Vegas’ Life Is Beautiful, Atlanta’s Music Midtown and Reading & Leeds festival here in the UK.
Muse, meanwhile, recently shared details of a UK and Ireland headline tour.