Backstreet Boys – “I Want It That Way”
Believe it or not, the song most of us used to love back in the day, “I Want It That Way,” was banned by the Chinese government in 2011. Why? Well, twelve years after the song was released, the Chinese government felt like it was too vulgar.
Backstreet Boys soon became too hot to handle in China, even though we, Americans, have a totally different opinion about them. The lyric that apparently offended the Chinese government is the well-known “You are my fire / My one desire,” which we can all agree, it’s not vulgar at all.
However, at that time, China’s Ministry of Culture banned all the songs that seemed even a little bit obscene. Therefore, a few of Lady Gaga and Katy Perry’s songs were also banned in the process. While it’s true that those songs could be considered vulgar, it’s still unclear what “I Want It That Way” did to deserve to be banned in China.
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