Malaysian festival sue The 1975 over Matty Healy bandmate kiss

The 1975 have been sued for $2.4 million (€2.2m) by the Good Vibes Festival in Malaysia, after singer Matty Healy kissed bandmate Ross MacDonald to protest the nation’s laws on homosexuality last year.

As reported by Variety, the damages are related to the local government’s decision to cancel the festival following the incident.

Festival organisers Future Sound Asia, who’ve reportedly filed the lawsuit in the UK’s High Court, have claimed that despite being reminded of the country’s laws numerous times, the band nonetheless decided instead to protest the rules.

These allegedly included rules against swearing, smoking, removing clothes and drinking while on stage, as well as talking about politics or religion. Other guidelines banned kissing specifically.

During the set, Healy denounced Malaysian policies.  “If you want to invite me here to do a show, you can fuck off,” he told onlookers. “I’ll take your money, you can ban me, but I’ve done this before and it doesn’t feel good, and I’m fucked off.” The set came to an abrupt end, and The 1975 cancelled shows in Jakarta and Taipei shortly afterwards.

“The band never takes the decision to cancel a show lightly and had been eagerly looking forward to playing for fans in Jakarta and Taipei but unfortunately, due to current circumstances, it is impossible to proceed with the scheduled shows,” read a statement posted at the time.