Fashion emergency

Katy Perry Backs Out from Victoria’s Secret Show as She’s Banned from China Indefinitely

Performing still will be Harry Styles, who hopefully has never offended the People’s Republic.
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By Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images.

The problems are not dying down for Victoria’s Secret. On Thursday it was reported that both the media and some of the models scheduled to attend the lingerie company’s annual fashion show in Shanghai were canceling their trips after the Chinese government refused them visas. On Friday, Page Six reported that Katy Perry is now backing out of the show, as she was denied a visa by the Chinese government, and possibly for political reasons.

Sources for Page Six reported that though Perry was told she would be able to enter the country to perform during the fashion show, the Chinese government instead chose to deny her a visa after discovering that Perry wore a sunflower dress while performing in Taiwan back in 2015. The sunflower had been a symbol for Taiwanese anti-China protesters, and Perry’s choice of outfit did not go unnoticed.

“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,” the source told Page Six. “Maroon 5 was banned a few years ago because one band member wished the Dalai Lama happy birthday on Twitter.”

Gigi Hadid was scheduled to walk in the fashion show for the third year in a row, but announced on Thursday via Twitter that she was no longer attending. It was speculated that she was unable to get her visa after a video of her squinting her eyes while holding up a Buddha cookie resurfaced when she announced that she would be headed to Shanghai. Her sister, Bella, who posted the video that was later deleted, is still scheduled to be part of the show. Gigi Hadid later apologized.

Page Six also noted that Adriana Lima is also having difficulties securing her visa due to a “diplomatic problem.”

Harry Styles will be performing as planned. Hopefully no photos of Styles holding a sunflower surface in the meantime.

This article has been corrected to reflect that Harry Styles was always scheduled to perform at the show, and is not Katy Perry’s replacement.