Pink has spoken out about how she celebrates New Zealand culture during her Carnival Tours after some fans mistakenly thought she was taking a stand about the Israel–Hamas conflict.
Pink assured fans that the blue and white flags her dancers twirl during her shows are actually 'poi flags' inspired by Māori performances.
“This post will be controversial for some. At this point, breathing is controversial. I am getting many threats because people mistakenly believe I am flying Israeli flags in my show. I am not,” she wrote to X (formerly known as Twitter).
“I have been using Poi flags since the beginning of this tour. These were used many, many years ago by the Māori people in New Zealand and because they and the Māori people are beautiful to me, we use them.”
She finally made it clear: “I do not fly flags in my show in support of anything or anyone except the rainbow flag. That will remain my position. I am a human. I believe in peace. Equality. Love. I am deeply saddened by the state of the world. I pray for all of us.”
It appears Pink has been using the “poi flags” during her tour since it first kicked off back in June.
Her dancers fly the flags connected to poi like balls on a string during her performance of ‘What About Us’.
While flags are not traditionally used in poi, it's clear Pink's time in Aotearoa has had a significant impact on her!
We look forward to having Pink back in New Zealand for her two ‘Carnival Tour’ shows at Dunedin’s Forsyth Barr Stadium on March 5th and Auckland’s Eden Park on March 8th and 9th.
