The 1975 sued by Malaysian festival organizers over "intentional breach of contract"

The 1975 are looking at potential legal action from the organisers of the Malaysian festival, Good Vibes, after the band's recent protest at the festival led to its cancellation.

Last month, during the Kuala Lumpur based festival, frontman Matty Healy denounced Malaysia's anti-LGBTQ+ legislation onstage, saying he had "made a mistake" when booking shows and "didn't see the point" of inviting the 1975 to a country where the laws are so archaic. He then kissed his bandmate Ross MacDonald during a song, and the band were then forced to cut their set short. The remainder of the entire festival was soon cancelled, causing significant losses for the organisers, Future Sound Asia.

Future Sound Asia is now potentially suing the band, claiming the 1975 intentionally breached their contract. Prior to the performance, a representative from the 1975 had provided the organisers with a written assurance that the performance would adhere to all local guidelines and regulations. Healy and his band did not hold up this agreement, leading Future Sound Asia to seek damages.

The controversy has drawn a lot of attention. While some people praised Healy for standing up for the Malaysian LGBTQ+ community, others criticised his actions, calling him a 'white saviour' who was called unwanted attention to the community.

In a recent Hawaiin show, Healy finally addressed the situation publicly for the first time.

"All I’ll say is that I don’t give a fuck about any white saviour complex bullshit. What I’ll say is that doing the right thing often requires quite a lot of sacrifice and very little reward. And being seen to do the right thing requires very little sacrifice, and that’s when you get all the rewards. And me and Ross [MacDonald] nearly shaved our heads because we thought we were going to prison for being f*gs."

You can watch a video of his speech below.

@tcims

♬ original sound - [redacted]