Katy Perry and Gigi Hadid axed from VS Fashion Show after being banned from China
By Joshua Haigh
Katy Perry has been banned from China ahead of a Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in which she was set to perform.
Perry, along with a host of models including Gigi Hadid, have all been banned from the country despite being booked in for the show on Monday (November 20).
Page Six reports that the ‘Swish Swish’ singer tried applying for a visa to enter China on Thursday (November 16), but was denied by Chinese officials.
While they had originally agreed to offer her a visa, the government reversed their decision after discovering a 2015 incident in which the singer wore a dress adorned with sunflowers during a concert performance in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan.
The controversial dress caused outrage as the sunflower had just been adopted by anti-China protesters a year earlier. Perry also waved a Taiwanese flag during the concert in a show of support, despite the country having been clashing with China for years over its independence.
A source told Page Six: “She was initially granted a visa to perform at the VS show in Shanghai, then Chinese officials changed their minds and yanked her visa.”
“For every artist who wants to perform in China, officials comb through their social-media and press reports to see if they have done anything deemed to be offensive to the country.”
Like Perry, Maroon 5 were banned several years ago after one band member wished the Dalai Lama a happy birthday on Twitter.
Meanwhile, several top models including Gigi Hadid have been banned from the country after allegedly making various social media posts which were deemed offensive.
Hadid was allegedly banned from the country over an Instagram video in which she held up a biscuit shaped like a Buddha and imitated him by squinting her eyes.
The video was posted by Gigi’s sister, Bella, in February but was quickly deleted after causing outrage. Other models banned from the country include Julia Belyakova, Kate Grigorieva and Irinia Sharipova.
Page Six claims that Perry is being replaced by Harry Styles in the show.
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