Why Masks-Required Concerts Still Sell Out in the Bay Area

It’s a little after 7 p.m. on a cool January night in Oakland. At Wyldflowr Arts, an inviting new arts space with cozy thrifted sofas, everyone in the 40-person audience has a signature look — a favorite respirator mask, that is. A white 3M Aura N95 with a decorative chain draped over the front. A neon orange KF94. A black Moldex Airwave N95 that resembles an armadillo.

On a table by the door, Mask 4 Mask Bay Area displays free harm reduction supplies, including rapid antigen tests and more respirators, many equipped with airtight valves so concert-goers can consume bar drinks through a straw without unmasking. Around the room, four air purifiers quietly whirr.

The performers, some of whom unmask to sing or play wind instruments, have all taken a molecular test for COVID-19. That includes the opener, multigenre chanteuse Angel Adedokun, and members of the headlining jazz fusion band Rebirth Canal, with Camille Mai on vocals and piano and her partner, Daniel Riera, on EWI (electronic wind instrument) and flute. Mai proudly notes she connected with drummer Shawn Myers and bassist Kevin Goldberg through the so-called COVID-cautious community, one of several terms for a loose, varied conglomerate of people who regularly mask and take other precautions against the spread of COVID and other airborne illnesses.

Rebirth Canal and Adedokun will return to Wyldflower Arts for another COVID-conscious concert on April 27. Their sold-out January performance attracted a wide array of fans. One attendee traveled from Davis for the show, while a couple living a few blocks away was able to attend due to the venue’s proximity to their home, even though one of them is otherwise mostly housebound due to disabilities. Another Oakland couple, who introduced themselves as Cal and Grant, are both high school teachers who mask and run air purifiers in their classrooms. They studied jazz and miss shows where they aren’t the only masked attendees.

“If I make a connection here and we want to try to be friends, I know we’re working from the same reality,” Cal explains while Grant sips his bottled Modelo through a straw, using the valve installed in his mask.

Camille Mai has long been open about her chronic pain. She also endured two difficult COVID infections that each left her in recovery for about three months. Mai’s soulful performances include subtle adaptations for her disabilities, such as beautiful piano solos between singing so she can catch her breath.

“I resigned myself to only playing outdoor shows until they invent PrEP for COVID,” she says, referencing the HIV-prevention drug.

Although COVID transmission occurs outdoors, better airflow and wind can lower the risk. But outdoor venues aren’t always an option, so at indoor shows it’s up to the audience to protect performers by masking. “For a while, I didn’t have any community on the same page with me,” Mai adds.

Slowly, though, like-minded musicians are finding one another. Noticing that Adedokun popped on a mask every time she rehearsed with Mai’s partner Riera, Mai asked her to join the bill for this latest show. Adedokun, whose soul-driven set featured Prince covers and original songs, says testing and masking is basic consideration of others’ safety. “Even if you may not care about COVID and how it affects your body, many people still do,” she explains.

Mai started more actively seeking out other COVID-informed musicians after a sold-out 2024 Halloween show with Jiinto Daybreak, an indie band that formed in early 2020, shortly before stay-at-home orders went into effect in San Francisco. Nao Luka, Jiinto Daybreak’s frontwoman, wasn’t sure if or how her band would ever perform publicly. She says it’s difficult as it is to be an independent musician, without these additional safety considerations. But after years of managing her own health conditions, she realized protecting her health is crucial for the longevity of her career.

“It’s really sad to hear about so many performers no longer being able to perform because of long COVID or other health issues that they developed after having COVID, as well as canceled shows and tours,” Luka explains. “I think most non-COVID-cautious musicians think about COVID precautions only being for the sake of disabled and immunocompromised folks, and don’t realize that these are real issues that the musicians themselves can be impacted by and are all at risk for.”

While small collectives like the DIY Museum and large institutions like the Berkeley Repertory Theatre offer mask-required events, musicians have little to no institutional support. In the past year, local COVID-aware acts have assembled their own lineups for outdoor venues like The New Farm and organized backyard and house shows that typically sold out within days. Last summer, on a short nationwide tour, singer-songwriter Zoe Boekbinder booked COVID-safer venues and required masks. They played three nights at Bay Area venues, including an East Oakland private yard and in an alley behind a San Mateo music school run by a vocal coach who requires masks.

Boekbinder’s success was built in part on another masks-required tour by Seattle math rock band Glass Beach. When Glass Beach performed at San Francisco’s The Independent in April 2024, the band’s mask request was supported by a local mask bloc, a type of mutual aid group that distributes free high-filtration masks. (Full disclosure: the reporter is part of local groups that distributes free masks, which supported the Glass Beach concert.)

Observing the unwavering demand for safer shows, Mai is pondering a bigger series, potentially featuring performers who might not take everyday precautions against airborne viruses but would be willing to take a molecular test to perform maskless for a wider audience. “There are world-class musicians whose shows aren’t accessible to us,” she says. “I’d love to bring them to this community.”

Rebirth Canal and Angel Adedokun return to Wyldflower Arts in Oakland for a COVID-cautious concert on April 27. Details and tickets here.