Beyoncé has finally agreed to perform in Malaysia, said Josh Grossberg in E! Online, "two years after scrapping a concert there due to anger by Islamic activists over her gyrating stage antics and titillating costumes." The R&B superstar will take her "I Am" world tour to Kuala Lumpur on Oct. 25 despite the Malaysian government's "strict dress code and code of conduct that includes no jumping, shouting, hugging or kissing onstage."
"She won't be allowed to wear her asymmetrical black leotard from her 'Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)' video," that's for sure, said Sarah Marie Pittman in Pollstar. But she obviously feels strongly about performing in Kuala Lumpur, and she's not the first artist to compromise in order to do so: "Rihanna, Avril Lavigne, and Gwen Stefani have all modified their costumes to show a little less skin when performing in Malaysia."
Which is ridiculous, said Tan Poh Kheng in the Sin Chew Daily. "Come on! It's just a concert!" Instead, the "self-proclaimed moral fighters" in the Malaysian government find it necessary to mandate "the moral values of the society." We go through this every time foreign artists perform in Malaysia—and that's why "our country's image gets crucified on the news pages of international media!"
http://www.theweek.com/article/index/100806/Beyoncs_Malaysia_decision
