Western ray of sunshine Bob Dylan has axed a series of dates in east Asia after being refused entry to perform in China.
The veteran folk God had lined up dates in Shanghai, Beijing, Taiwan, South Korea and Hong Kong this month after finishing a string of dates in Japan.
However, the dates have been kiboshed by the Chinese government, forcing Dylan to scrap the rest of his tour.
“China’s Ministry Of Culture did not give us permission to stage concerts in Beijing and Shanghai, so we had no alternative to scrap plans for a South East Asian tour,” Jeffrey Wu, the promoter’s head of operations, told the South China Morning Post.
“The chance to play in China was the main attraction for him. When that fell through, everything else was called off.”
Wu said officials became more cautious after Bjork caused a stir when she performed ‘Declare Independence In Shanghai’ two years ago. Which, to be fair, they would. She should have gone for something a bit less literal. A cover of ‘Everybody’s Free’ by Rozalla, perhaps.
Oasis were also banned from performing in China last year after the band’s links with the ‘Free Tibet’ campaign caused the Chinese government to revoke their licence. Well, that’s what they said. It was probably due to someone at the Ministry having heard Don’t Believe the Truth.
It’s becoming increasingly difficult for Western artists to justify dates in China in the first place. A country rife with human rights abuses, they sort of put the tin lid on any argument by refusing access to all performers who may have even the merest whiff of rock’n'roll anarchy about them, and Oasis. Simply put, the ‘bringing music to the masses’ argument didn’t work in apartheid-era South Africa, and it doesn’t work now either.
Filed under: General Stuff Tagged: | bjork, bob dylan, China, Human Rights, kit kats, Oasis
