SINGAPORE — The Madonna tour group has broken its silence for the first time, since the Catholic Church and other religious organisations expressed their concerns over the American pop superstar’s concert earlier this week.

“The Rebel Heart Tour is aware of the cultural sensitivities, and Madonna is excited to share her celebration of art and music with her fans in Singapore,” a spokesperson from Madonna’s Rebel Heart Tour said on Thursday (Feb 25) in an e-mail statement to TODAY.

Earlier this week, the Catholic Church revealed its “grave concerns” about the Rebel Heart Tour concert. Archbishop William Goh had also reminded Catholic Christians of their moral obligation not to support “the ‘pseudo arts’ that promote sensuality, rebellion, disrespect, pornography, contamination of the mind of the young, abusive freedom, individualism at the expense of the common good, vulgarity, lies and half-truths”.

Other Christian and Catholic organisations contacted by TODAY, including Faith Community Baptist Church’s Pastor Lawrence Khong, also expressed support for the Catholic Church’s stand.

The Rebel Heart Tour concert, which will be held at the National Stadium on Sunday has been rated R18 for its sexual references by the MDA.

The singer, who will be performing in Singapore for the first time, has also been asked not to perform her controversial song Holy Water in her show here.

The tour is produced by Live Nation Global Touring in association with East West Best Inc, and exclusively supported by King Lun and the UMS Group.

Live Nation Lushington managing director Michael Roche said: “We just passed 25 years of bringing in major artistes to Singapore.

“We have always applied for licenses and we have always worked closely with the authorities.”