Taiwanese host Butterfly breaks silence to thank fans for birthday support, over a year after Show Lo scandal

A scandal breaks, a celebrity apologises, then he/she lies low for the next few months (or a year) before resurfacing quietly for a comeback.

It's all in the (figurative) handbook on how to handle a public relations crisis for famous people.

And so Taiwanese host-actress Linda Chien — better known by her nickname Butterfly — has broken out of her cocoon post-scandal to thank her fans for the overwhelming support they showed for her 38th birthday today (Sept 22).

According to reports, Butterfly's fan club planned a birthday project for the star titled Stand By You, where they pooled funds together to buy a bus advertisement and rent a huge LED screen in the Xinyi district of Taiwan to wish the star a happy birthday.

They also donated 216 cans of dog food to charity in her name.

The project was planned months in advance by her fan club and at that time, they commented: "Although we don't know what is happening with Kaile (Butterfly's Chinese name) recently, remember to take good care of yourself. We hope to see you soon. We love you."

Butterfly was touched by her fans and she surfaced on social media to thank them.

She said: "This is too touching, but don't spend too much money. I love you all."

Went dark after being called out by Show Lo's ex

It's been almost a year and a half since Butterfly was embroiled in a public scandal last April when Taiwanese singer-host Show Lo was exposed by his ex Grace Chow for his philandering ways.

Apart from calling him out, she also subtly identified Butterfly as one of Show's sex partners.

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After Grace's shocking exposé on Weibo, a netizen advised the 31-year-old Chinese influencer on an Instagram post to get tested for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Grace revealed that she immediately did so after the break-up, and was cleared.

Grace also wrote that Butterfly should also get tested, tagging her in the conversation thread.

Butterfly then published a curt apology on her Instagram addressed to Grace. It simply read: "I want to sincerely apologise to Grace and all those who love me."

She went dark on social media subsequently, emerging only on Sept 16 last year to pay respect to the late Taiwanese host Alien Huang. She also hasn't performed since the scandal. 

bryanlim@asiaone.com