Coronavirus be damned, the first batch of acts for this year's Fuji Rock Festival were announced Tuesday with names such as Tame Impala, The Strokes and FKA Twigs gracing the roster.
The outdoor music festival is set to take place from Aug. 21 to 23, a later date than usual due to Tokyo's hosting of the Olympic Games from July 24 to Aug. 9. The Paralympics are set to be held Aug. 25 to Sept. 6.
Among those higher up on the billing are British electronic duo Disclosure, Jamaican-American dance act Major Lazer and Mura Masa, a producer and artist hailing from the Channel Islands.
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Not on the roster? Any mention of the coronavirus, which is currently causing gig cancelations worldwide as concertgoers grapple with the concept of social distancing. However, Japan has seen relatively low numbers of reported infections as compared to other countries, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has insisted that the Summer Games will go on despite the pandemic.
If things calm down, Fuji Rock Festival '20 could provide a welcome relief for music fans, many of whom are likely to be sick of the "Happy Birthday" song by August.
Fuji Rock's first announcement was marked with its trademark range of genre with other musicians mentioned including Canadian singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, American guitarist Cory Wong, Colombian cumbia group Frente Cumbiero and psychedelic Turkish folk band Altin Gun.
With its new summer date, perhaps Fuji fans will be swapping out their raincoats for sunscreen. Let's just hope we won't be needing too much hand sanitizer.
Check our coverage of 2019's Fuji Rock Festival here.
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