The upcoming Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in Shanghai appears to have lost another big name. After it was revealed that Gigi Hadid had pulled out of the show, prompting speculation that her visa had been denied, Page Six is now reporting that Katy Perry has been axed from the gig as well.
Perry was rumoured to be performing at the fashion show, but according to Page Six’s source, had her visa yanked at the last minute. It also seems, according to them, that she’s been banned from the country indefinitely – all over a sunflower dress she wore back in 2015.
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. Maroon 5 was banned a few years ago because one band member wished the Dalai Lama happy birthday on Twitter.
In Perry’s case, the offending article from her past was the sunflower dress in the lead image above, worn during a show in Taipei, Taiwan two years ago. At the time, the sunflower had just been adopted by anti-China protesters as a symbol; this, apparently, is enough to prompt officials to ban her from the country for life.
Confirmed: Katy Perry won’t come to VSFS this year.
— Katy Perry China (@KatyPerryChina) November 17, 2017
Omg wtf Katy Perry was supposed to perform at the Victoria’s secret fashion show but the Chinese government BLOCKEDt her from coming now bc she wore a Taiwanese dress like 2 years ago?????? WHAT?
— Ricky (@RickyPorter) November 17, 2017
Hadid copped a visa denial allegedly for her offensive imitation of Buddha, which she posted on her social media channels. Perry and Hadid join a long list of celebs banned from China, including Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford, Sharon Stone, Oasis and Bjork.
While Perry has yet to address the situation, she’ll reportedly be replaced at the show by Harry Styles.
