Katy Perry is reportedly the latest star to encounter visa difficulties ahead of next Monday's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in Shanghai.
Earlier this week, it was rumoured that Katy would join Harry Styles and Miguel to perform at the annual lingerie extravaganza (though this was never confirmed by the brand). On Thursday, a report appeared in Page Six revealing that the star had been unable to acquire the correct visa from the Chinese government - all because of a 2015 performance in Taipei, Taiwan.
The report suggested that though Katy had been initially granted permission to perform, this was rescinded when details emerged of the 2015 performance. At the show in question, the star wore a dress embellished with sunflowers, just as she had done for previous dates on her Prismatic world tour. The sunflower, however, is a contentious emblem in China, having been adopted in 2014 as the symbol of the Sunflower Student Movement, a group that opposes Chinese influence in Taiwan.
While the star had worn this dress for other dates in China, she also appeared with a Taiwanese flag at her performance in Taipei, meaning that officials saw the gesture as politically charged.
A copy of the memo outlining Katy's visa details has reportedly appeared on Chinese social media platform Weibo, featuring a guarantee that the singer would 'promise not to participate in any activities that jeopardize China’s unity and integrity.' However, it seems that permission was still not granted.
'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,' a source told Page Six.
Victoria's Secret models Julia Belyakova, Dasha Khlystum, Irina Sharipova and Kate Grigorieva have also reportedly been refused visas and will no longer be walking in the show; on Thursday, Gigi Hadid confirmed that she would not be taking part an announcement which many have linked to visa issues following a racially insensitive Snapchat post last year.
Page Six also reports that veteran Angel Adriana Lima's visa has been delayed due to an 'ongoing diplomatic problem.'
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