Melanie C cancels Polish state TV concert over “issues that do not align with the communities I support”

Singer Melanie C has pulled out of Polish state broadcaster TVP’s showpiece New Year’s Eve concert following a wave of criticism, citing “issues that do not align with the communities I support”.

The former Spice Girl is known for supporting the LGBT+ community, while TVP in recent years has been a key tool in Poland’s ruling party campaign against what it calls “LGBT ideology”.

“In light of some issues that have been brought to my attention, that do not align with the communities I support, I’m afraid I will no longer be able to perform in Poland as planned on New Year’s Eve,” the artist wrote on her social media.

In a statement published on its website, TVP  wrote “that it’s surprised by the information about the artist’s change of plans” and stressed that New Year’s Eve concert “is for everyone who wants to celebrate New Year having fun”.

TVP’s website and social media profiles have also removed the press release announcing Melanie C’s appearance at its “New Year’s Eve of Dreams” concert in the mountain resort of Zakopane.

The performance had been announced on Friday during the main edition of TVP’s news segment. The former Sporty Spice told viewers that she was “very excited to be spending New Year’s Eve… in Zakopane.”

“We will have a great time and celebrate the arrival of the new year together,” she said in the recording, as reported by Wirtualne Media.

The announcement sparked outrage among the singer’s fans, who criticised her in comments under posts on her social media for agreeing to perform for the television, which was instrumental in the Polish ruling party’s vicious campaign against the LGBT community.

The Law and Justice Party (PiS), which has been in power in Poland since 2015, used anti-LGBT rhetoric during the 2019 and 2020 election cycle to mobilise conservative voters, portraying what it called “LGBT ideology” as a foreign set of values threatening the Polish family and the state itself, “even more dangerous” than communism.

As well as presenting news coverage critical of “LGBT ideology”, TVP has also produced its own material aimed at exposing the “aims, methods and money” behind Poland’s LGBT community. Critics argue that this and other politically motivated campaigns carried out by TVP prove that it has become a “propaganda” outlet for the national-conservative ruling party.

The singer’s decision was welcomed by many fans. Jakub Kwieciński and Dawid Mycek, a prominent gay couple, said that “one of us was fired a few years ago from this regime, national TV what we believe – for being gay”.

“As much we would like to see you in Poland, we are extremally proud and happy that you refused to perform in this full of hate to LGBT national TV. Thank you for your support!”

However, some Polish outlets and commentators have also criticised the singer’s decision, noting that she had previously performed at other venues including Russia, which outlaws any form of “LGBT propaganda”, as well as Dubai, where all sexual relations outside of a heterosexual activity are criminalised.

A concert in Saint Petersburg in 2018 “took place after Russian aggression against Georgia, Ukraine, the deaths of journalists at the hands of the Kremlin regime and years of persecution of homosexuals,” right-wing news website wPolityce wrote.

The controversy is not the first such case to affect TVP’s plans. In March this year, another British singer, Sting, cancelled a planned performance at a gala organised by the broadcaster following criticism, although the official reason given was that he wanted to concentrate on other projects.

Main photo credit: ANSPressSocietyNews / flickr.com (under CC BY-ND 2.0)

Alicja Ptak

Alicja Ptak is senior editor at Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She previously worked for Reuters.