Superstar band Mayday cancels concert after single person in Taiwan contracts COVID-19

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      Taiwan has set the global standard for the world in controlling the spread of COVID-19.

      Because of its success on the health front, people have been living normal lives for much of 2020, attending outdoor baseball games and indoor movie theatres.

      There's been a resurgence in local film production in Taiwan, which has filled the void caused by reduced movie-making in the West.

      I've been fortunate to receive regular updates about this from the managing director of the Vancouver-based Asian-Canadian Special Events Association, Charlie Wu, who's in Taiwan.

      He just informed me that he was planning to attend an outdoor rock concert today. It was going to be headlined by the country's most popular band, Mayday.

      Consider Mayday the Taiwanese equivalent of Coldplay or U2 in its appeal in their home country. All the members—Monster, Ashin, Stone, Masa, and Guan-you/Ming—are household names across Taiwan.

      But according to Wu, Mayday cancelled today's show after there was one confirmed case of locally spread COVID-19 in Taipei. Just one.

      It was the first such case since April, ending a 255-day streak of no local coronavirus transmissions.

      Wu told me that the government didn't even ask the band not to perform. Mayday postponed the concert until January 9 simply to protect its fans.

      "This is why Taiwan is doing remarkably well since day one," Wu explained. "No one wants to take a chance and no one is letting their guards down even though the country is doing well."

      Video: Check out the video for Mayday's "Here, After, Us".

      Earlier, Mayday gave 6,000 tickets to medical personnel. It planned five dates at Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium until January 2 and then five more shows in February at Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium.

      Taiwan is a democratic, independent country across Taiwan Strait from China. Slightly larger than Vancouver Island, it's home to about 23 million residents.

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