Queen members reportedly approved the removal of the hit song, "Fat Bottomed Girls," in the new version of their album, "Greatest Hits."
The 1981 album remains the best-selling album of all time in the U.K., selling over 25 million copies worldwide when it was released. Decades after its record-breaking arrival, a screen-free audio player for children Yoto welcomed the album to its platform.
Queen Approved "Fat Bottomed Girls" Removal From "Greatest Hits" Modified Version
The originally 17-song album omitted "Fat Bottomed Girls" as it entered Yoto this month, sparking fans' outrage for promoting "woke-ism." The term describes sensitive people's behavior and attitude toward injustices and social concerns, per Tidal Equality.
After the rage emerged, a representative for Queen surviving member, Brian May, revealed to a news outlet that he and the rest of the band approved the removal before the album was added to Yoto. They said that they would not make additional comments about the band's decision.
Yoto's version includes several of Queen's hit songs, "Another One Bites the Dust," "We Will Rock You," "Killer Queen," and "Bohemian Rhapsody."
The platform also included a disclaimer, saying, "Whilst no swear words are used parental discretion is advised when playing this content to or around younger children."
Why "Fat Bottomed Girls" Was Removed
Several news outlets cited fans' opinions regarding the "stupid" censorship of the track on the London-based audio platform after it partnered with Universal Music Group to make the albums available.
One fan wrote on X, "A 6 year old wont understand the lyrics, they'll just bob their head to it. A 14 year old will giggle and... bob their head to it. It's a nothing burger. It's stupid to censor Queen."
Meanwhile, others supported the move and said that it was the right decision to do.
"Fat Bottomed Girls has not been cut from Queen's Greatest Hits either to 'appease' nor due to 'woke cancel culture,'" one said. It's simply been left off the version on a new kid friendly streaming service for 6-14 year olds. But why let the truth get in the way of another wokeness story.
In a statement to The Independent, Yoto explained that the track was removed since the site has listeners averaging five years old. It reportedly did not feel it was appropriate for its young audience.
Despite the removal, "Fat Bottomed Girls" reappeared on iTunes U.S. Song Chart at No. 12.
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