Joss Stone says she was deported from Iran, causing her to fall short on her goal to perform in every country around the world.
The 32-year-old English soul singer shared in an Instagram post that authorities detained her in Iran.
Iranian law forbids women from performing concerts in public, Stone said in the post. The singer said that she was aware of this law and did not want to challenge it, but authorities did not believe her, putting her on the "black list" and deporting her from the country.
"We were aware there couldn't be a public concert as I am a woman and that is illegal in this country. Personally I don't fancy going to an Iranian prison nor am I trying to change the politics of the countries I visit nor do I wish to put other people in danger," Stone wrote.
Stone said "it seems" authorities did not believe that she wouldn't be performing a public show, so they put her and her crew on a "black list" when they came to the immigration hall.
"After long discussions with the most friendly charming and welcoming immigration people the decision was made to detain us for the night and to deport us in the morning. Of course I was gutted. So close yet so far, this moment broke a little piece of my heart," Stone wrote.
Despite being heartbroken over the news that she would be deported, Stone said she realized "the silver lining was bright."
"I told them my story and explained my mission, to bring good feeling with what I have to give and show those who want to look, the positives of our globe. All with the understanding that public performance wasn't an option in this scenario. I still have to walk forward towards that goal some way some how," the singer wrote.
Stone said the authorities treated her and the others with kindness so much at one time that she "started to question it" and wondered if it was officials "just luring" them "into a false sense of security" so they would cooperate.
She said authorities went to the embassy to try and sort out the issues, but ultimately they were refused entry.
"They said sorry all the way through this process and kept saying this till we got on the plane they were sending us away on. We were the ones that should have been apologising for not having our correct paper work," Stone wrote.
