New York health authorities are said to be investigating a charity concert in the Hamptons, which included performances by the Goldman Sachs chief, David Solomon, and the Chainsmokers, over what Governor Andrew Cuomo called “egregious” social distancing violations.
The drive-in event, Safe & Sound, had space for about 600 cars and was held in Southampton village on Saturday (July 25, 2020). It was the first in a series of concerts planned for the US, according to the organizers' website.
Tickets cost up to $25,000, according to Billboard.
In footage that appeared to have been filmed by the Chainsmokers themselves on social media, hundreds of fans were shown standing in close proximity to each other.
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Southampton’s mayor, Jesse Warren, hosted the event. Solomon, who goes by the DJ name D-Sol, performed for an hour at a 100-acre sculpture park. “The group that put this together did an incredible job in a difficult environment,” he told Bloomberg News.
However, the New York governor condemned the gig.
“Videos from a concert held in Southampton on Saturday show egregious social distancing violations,” Cuomo tweeted. “I am appalled.”
Some of the reported 2,000 attendees also spoke with BuzzFeed News and said they felt safe during the concert, that there were dividers separating sections and that people were social distancing properly.
In a blistering letter addressed to the supervisor of the town of Southampton, where the concert was held, New York’s health commissioner, Howard A. Zucker, wrote that he was “greatly disturbed” by reports that showed thousands of people standing close together and “generally not adhering to social-distancing guidance.”
“I am at a loss as to how the Town of Southampton could have issued a permit for such an event, how they believed it was legal and not an obvious public health threat,” Dr. Zucker wrote.
In happier Chainsmoker news, band member Drew Taggert is reportedly dating Chantel Jeffries.
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