Dua Lipa has taken to social media to express her horror after a number of fans were forcefully dragged out of her concert in Shanghai on Wednesday night, allegedly for standing to dancing and waving rainbow flags.
Disturbing footage of the violent action by Chinese security guards has emerged online, with one witness telling the BBC she saw a man being reefed out of the venue in a headlock.
The footage also shows the British popstar in tears onstage after witnessing the violence, telling the crowd, “I want to create a really safe environment for us all to have fun. I want us all to dance. I want us all to sing, I want us all to just have a really good time.”
She’s since released an official statement on Twitter, declaring that what went down has left her feeling “horrified”.
“Last night, I did it [continued the show] for my fans,” she writes. “A promised show. I stood by them, sang with them and danced with them. I will stand by you all for your love and beliefs and I am proud and grateful that you felt safe enough to show your pride at my show.
“What you did takes a lot of bravery. I always want my music to bring strength, hope and unity.”
“I was horrified by what happened and I send love to all my fans involved. I would love to come back for my fans when the time is right and hopefully see a room full of rainbows. I love you Shanghai.”
The BBC also notes that, while homosexuality isn’t technically illegal in China, anti-LGBTIQ sentiment is rife.
Watch footage of the incidents at Dua Lipa’s Shanghai concert below.
Shanghai pic.twitter.com/mxLHxj2Y3y
— DUA LIPA (@DUALIPA) September 13, 2018
https://twitter.com/DuaLipaIRL/status/1040011527493967872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1040011527493967872%7Ctwgr%5E373939313b73706563696669635f73706f7274735f616374696f6e&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fjunkee.com%2Fdua-lipa-shanghai%2F175159
https://twitter.com/958353005/status/1039912655933173761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1039912655933173761%7Ctwgr%5E373939313b73706563696669635f73706f7274735f616374696f6e&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fjunkee.com%2Fdua-lipa-shanghai%2F175159
The guards took fans out of the show only because they wanted to stand up to dance with Dua Lipa during her show in Shanghai, China. And unsurprisingly the pride flag was also taken away by guards. Savage. Dua herself was sad on stage too.
— Xectoré Lee (@xectore) September 12, 2018
