Bryan Adams cancels Mississippi concert to protest law

Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams has canceled his concert scheduled for April 14 in Biloxi, Mississippi. Adams shared a statement Sunday night explaining his decision, which stems from a recently passed Mississippi law that outlaws the punishment of people who discriminate against others based on sexual orientation.

“I find it incomprehensible that LGBT citizens are being discriminated against in the state of Mississippi,” Adams said. “I cannot in good conscience perform in a State where certain people are being denied their civil rights due to their sexual orientation. … Using my voice I stand in solidarity with all my LGBT friends to repeal this extremely discriminatory bill. Hopefully Mississippi will right itself and I can come back and perform for all of my many fans. I look forward to that day.”

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band guitarist Steven Van Zandt commended Adam’s choice on Twitter. “Right on Bryan Adams!” he wrote. “Canceling the gig in Mississippi. The other front in the war against discrimination.” Springsteen canceled an upcoming gig in North Carolina last week in reaction to that state’s new law that mandates transgender people use bathrooms corresponding to the gender they were assigned at birth.