Lady Gaga to play second Philippines show
Lady Gaga has been given permission to stage a second show in the Philippines after officials ruled her Monday night gig complied with decency laws.
The pop star faced protests over her racy act from hardline Christian groups, who took to the streets of capital city Manila on Friday for a 'Stop the Lady Gaga concerts' rally.
Officials allowed the Monday night show in the city to go ahead, but urged the singer to obey the country's strict rules which ban onstage nudity, blasphemy, and lewd conduct.
A group of around 500 campaigners reportedly attempted to demonstrate in the area where the show was held, but police stopped them before they could reach the venue.
Gaga took to the stage wearing a full-length yellow gown inspired by Philippine national dress and told the crowd she wanted to put on the best show possible for them, saying, "Some people think that I stand for like really inappropriate things, really bad or really irresponsible.
"Listen, you don't have to boo. I'm slightly irresponsible. Let's be honest, okay? It's okay. But they are not completely right. The truth is, I want the... best for you. I want the best for every single one of you. I love you with all my heart and all my soul, I really do."
Protesters had warned Gaga not to perform her hit track Judas at the show, but she went ahead with the song anyway, declaring, "I'm not a creature of your government, Manila."
However, local authorities have now declared Gaga didn't breach the conduct code and have given the go-ahead for her second show in the city on Tuesday night.
Antonino Calixto, mayor of Pasay City, the district where the concert was held, tells AFP, "Admittedly, some of the statements and choreography were provocative but the content and presentation taken all together can be considered as part of an artist's expressions. Therefore, the city government of Pasay sees no compelling or legal reason to disallow the second concert from proceeding."
Meanwhile, Gaga is plann! ing to d itch her troupe of backing dancers and perform solo in Jakarta, Indonesia next month in a desperate bid to get around a concert ban.
The Poker Face hitmaker is faced with the prospect of axing the 3 June gig on her Born This Way Ball world tour after local police revoked her performance licence.
It came amid a storm of protest from hardline Muslim groups, who have branded the star the "devil's messenger" for her raunchy stage routines.
Concert bosses are desperately trying to overturn the ban, and Gaga has now vowed she will take to the stage alone if it helps to calm fears her gig will be too explicit.
In a series of posts on her Twitter.com page, she writes, "The Jakarta situation is 2-fold: Indonesian authorities demand I censor the show & religious extremist (groups) separately... are threatening violence. If the show does go on as scheduled, I will perform the BTWBall alone."
Gaga's comments come just hours after she was given permission to stage a second show in the Philippines since officials ruled her Monday night gig complied with decency laws.
In a reference to her prison breakout themed video for Telephone, her collaboration with Beyonce, Gaga told her Twitter fans, "Don't worry, if I get thrown in jail in Manila, Beyonce will just bail me out."
WENN.com