Blackpink star Lisa removed from Chinese social media after cabaret show

Lisa, whose full name is Lalisa Manobal, disappeared from Weibo this week, with her personal page replaced by an error message saying her account was "not viewable due to being reported for violating laws (and) regulations".

Blackpink star Lisa removed from Chinese social media after cabaret show, photo: twitter.com

Also banned from posting was Hong Kong actress Angelababy, whose real name is Angela Yeung, due to "violations of relevant laws and regulations", a message on her official Weibo account says.

The platform gave no further explanation for the bans. Lisa's management agency YG Entertainment told AFP that it had no official statement to offer.

But Weibo users and Chinese entertainment sites speculated that the two had been censored after reports in late September that Angelababy had attended a burlesque show by Lisa at the Parisian cabaret Crazy Horse.

Lisa "set the Crazy Horse Paris stage alight on September 28, 29 and 30, 2023 with five exclusive performances that left an indelible impression on both the audience and her fans all over the world", the venue's website said.

Lisa posted photos of herself in cabaret attire on her official Instagram in October, quipping, "Such an amazing experience at (Crazy Horse)... Call me whenever you need someone to fill a spot."

Chinese censors are quick to block content considered politically sensitive or going against the ruling Communist Party's socially conservative values, with stars targeted in the past for tattoos and "effeminate" fashion.

The blocking of the two stars comes after President Xi Jinping called on women to help in "promoting traditional Chinese virtues and sound family values".

Weibo users complained that censorship had gone overboard, sharing a screenshot of a state media report from 2012 -- the year Xi came to power -- that praised the Crazy Horse cabaret for highlighting Parisian fashion designers.

"There's nothing to say at all about this, if this issue came up in the 2000s, who would care, let alone block you?" one Weibo user wrote.

"Now the level of social tolerance in our country is lower than low," they complained.

But others were supportive of the blocking, condemning Lisa's performance as inappropriate for its revealing outfits.

"There's a cultural difference between China and other countries," another Weibo user wrote.

"When my sister said she wanted to see Crazy Horse I wanted to strangle her," they added.

Blackpink to take the stage as planned in Hanoi “Blackpink World Tour 2023” – a show featuring the Republic of Korea’s girl group phenomenon will go ahead as planned in Hanoi's My Dinh stadium for two nights on July 29 and 30, the Hanoi People’s Committee announced on July 25.

BLACKPINK takes Hanoi by storm on first Born Pink night The most anticipated moment for the BLACKPINK fans in Vietnam officially took place at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi on July 29 evening, with the K-pop girl group stepping onto the stage to thunderous cheers.

Over 3,000 int'l visitors come to Hanoi for BlackPink concert The Hanoi Department of Tourism on August 5 announced that out of 70,000 peopple flocking to Korean girl band Blackpink’s concert at the Hanoi-based My Dinh National Stadium on July 29 and 30, over 3,000 ones are international visitors.

Hanoi generates $26 million from BlackPink concert Hanoi is expected to continue to become a destination for international cultural, sports and tourism events after the success of the two Born Pink shows by world-famous K-pop girl group BlackPink on July 29-30.

Opportunities to stimulate tourism from music events The success of recent international music events in Vietnam has brought significant benefits in terms of cultural promotion and tourism value.