LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) — A string of cancelled Chinese for the band Maroon 5 tourdates have sparked speculation that a tweet by one of the band's members may have aroused the ire of Chinese authorities.
On July 4th, Maroon 5's keyboardist Jesse Carmichael tweeted "Happy Birthday America (and The Dalai Lama too) sang happy birthday to his holiness today," after he reportedly attended a birthday party in Los Angeles for the Tibetan religious leader.
Since then, the band's planned shows in Shanghai and Beijing have been cancelled, with Billboard reporting that Time Out Beijing wrote the following about a Maroon 5 tour date in its city: “We hear musings about Maroon 5 being prevented from performing by our political friends up above.”
The Dalai Lama is considered to be a controversial figure by the Chinese government due to his advocacy of Tibetan independence. He was exiled from China in 1959 in the wake of a failed Tibetan uprising. Other artists who have run into touring trouble through their association with the Dalai Lama include Bjork and Oasis. – Staff Writers
