To kick off Super Bowl weekend in Tampa, Florida, 50 Cent hit the stage at a party held at a private location despite the ongoing pandemic. Not only was 50 himself caught on video without a mask, but it also looks like the party’s organizers didn’t enforce guidelines the CDC issued in the days leading up to the big game.
On Friday night (Feb. 5), the “Power” creator hosted an event at a private hangar at Albert Whitted Airport in St. Petersburg. Patrons paid $85 for general admission and up to $7,000 for tables located by the stage. In video footage released by TMZ, we can see Fif by the DJ booth pouring up some drinks without a mask while surrounded by his team.
Later on, we see 50 performing his new theme song for “Power III: Raising Kanan” live for a major crowd that was not practicing social distancing. In another scene, we can see 50 reach into the crowd to pass a bottle of champagne to someone. There were some people spotted in face coverings, but the majority of the crowd was maskless. While the party was supposed to have a limited capacity and a mask requirement, it’s clear that neither rule was enforced.
The video footage that surfaced eventually caught the attention of the mayor of St. Petersburg. Mayor Rick Kriseman took to Twitter to express his thoughts about 50’s party.
“This isn’t how we should be celebrating the Super Bowl,” Kriseman said. “It’s not safe or smart. It’s stupid. We’re going to take a very close look at this, and it may end up costing someone a lot more than 50 Cent.”
Fif wasn’t the only celebrity caught hosting an event that wasn’t COVID-safe. According to TMZ, other artists like Steve Aoki also hosted events that brought out huge, maskless crowds. 50 hasn’t responded to the mayor just yet, however, he does have plans to hit the stage along with Diplo on Saturday in Tampa.