A London judge has ruled that the members of The 1975 can’t be held personally and individually liable for the financial losses of the 2023 Good Vibes festival in Malaysia, after frontman Matt Healy and bassist Ross Macdonald shared a kiss onstage.

The ruling comes during a court battle between the band and the festival’s organiser, Future Sound Asia (FSA), who are demanding that the rockers are held liable for the losses when the festival was shut down after their onstage kiss.

Judge William Hansen says that the FSA’s demands that The 1975’s members are held responsible for the losses are “bad as a matter of law and that there is no good reason why the matter should go to trial”.

Hansen has allowed the case to proceed between The 1975’s company, The 1975 Productions LLP (rather than as individuals), and FSA, who he also ordered to pay £100,000 in legal costs.

Last week, an argument for the 1975 to be cleared of individual liability was heard by the Malaysian High Court. Earlier this month, the band’s representative Edmund Cullen branded the FSA’s attempt to “pin liability on individuals” as “illegitimate, artificial and incoherent” and “quite bizarre”.

Last summer, it was reported that the band were being sued for over $2million (£1.9 million) by Future Sound Asia. The organizers claimed that 1975 Productions LLP breached their contract and that the four band members were in breach of a duty of care.

It all started at The 1975’s headlining set in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for the Good Vibes Festival in 2023. Frontman Matty Healy and bassist Ross MacDonald shared a kiss onstage. Healy also gave a speech against the Malaysian government for its discrimination and criminalisation of LGBTQ citizens. The singer said: “I do not see the point of inviting The 1975 to a country and then telling us who we can have sex with,”

“I am sorry if that offends you and you’re religious and it’s part of your fucking government, but your government are a bunch of fucking r*****s and I don’t care anymore. If you push, I am going to push back.”

After the kiss and Healy’s condemnation, the remainder of the festival was axed and The 1975 were banned from performing in Malaysia. They’ve pulled a similar stunt previously in Dubai in 2019, with Healy sharing a kiss with a male fan.

Malaysia is a conservative, religious country with strict laws against LGBTQ citizens. There, homosexuality is a crime that is punishable by 20 years in prison. The government has banned any homosexual, bisexual or transexual people from appearing in state-controlled media.

In 2010, the Film Censorship Board of Malaysia announced it would only allow the featuring of homosexual characters in films if they “repent” or “go straight” in the end. In November 2024, the Kelantan state of East Malaysia banned entertainment activities that promote or support LGBTQ behaviour.

In August of last year, Malaysia’s Home Ministry banned and seized Swatch products that supposedly contained LGBT elements in their rainbow colouring, ruling that anyone possessing the watches could be fined or imprisoned. A Malaysian court then ordered the government to return the watches, deeming their seizure unlawful.

After Healy’s onstage kiss and protest, opinions were divided. While many locals appreciated his intent, others labelled it as “performative activism” that could do more harm to their LGBTQ community than good.

@lbc The Malaysian government cancelled a festival due to “remarks made by UK artist Matt Healy from the band The 1975”. Matt Healy kissed his bandmate Ross MacDonald on stage in Kuala after protesting against the country’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws. #lbc #sangitamyska #matthealy #1975 #festival #lgbtqia #gayrights ♬ original sound – LBC

It was reported recently that The 1975 were one of the most successful bands in the UK, making millions in profit through touring over the past few years. You can read our article on that here.