Last updated: September 2007
Stefani covers up

Gwen Stefani was forced to tone- down her stage show for a performance in Malaysia during the summer.

The pop star agreed to dress down after Islamic critics claimed that her raunchy costumes would corrupt the nations youth.

The National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students had called for her gig to be cancelled because of her ‘indecent dressing’ and the opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party also accused Stefani of promoting promiscuity and corrupting the country’s youth.

Speaking before the concert Stefani said that she had made a ‘major sacrifice’ by changing her stage show.

“I’ve been in the music industry for 20 years and this is the first time that I’m facing opposition from people who have misunderstood me,” she told Galaxie magazine.

Stefani is not the only performer to fall foul of censorship in the country.

Kanye West was forbidden to sing his hit single ‘Jesus Walks’ because of religious sensitivities, while a local company that organised a Pussycat Dolls concert was fined 10,000 Ringgit (£1,400) after the US girl group flouted decency regulations.
Beyonce could be the next western star to face censorship, with a concert scheduled for the Malaysian capital in November.