Thousands Attend Concert in Tennessee Without Wearing Masks or Social Distancing
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Tennessee held one of its first concerts since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the live music industry, with a large crowd coming out to see country artist Chase Rice on June 27.
COVID-19 infections in the United States recently hit an all-time day-to-day high, essentially erasing all progress made in the last three months. The great majority of states have seen their cases spike, including Tennessee, which recorded its highest-ever count of new infections on June 26 — 1,140.
Still, the Chase Rice show went on as scheduled, with the 10,000-capacity venue reportedly allowing a maximum of 4,000 fans to attend. Photos of the crowd show them packed in tight with nobody wearing a mask or social distancing. The only positive is that the show was held outdoors, as outdoor transmission seems to occur at much lower rates than indoor transmission.
Chase Rice shared a video of his fans attending the show on Instagram, adding the caption “We back” with a sunglasses emoji. Following online backlash for the concert, Rice deleted the video from his IG.
Chase Rice just played a concert to an enormous crowd of unmasked fans here in Tennessee. For once, I am at a loss for words. pic.twitter.com/wB47u1EaFd
— Lorie Liebig (@lorieliebig) June 28, 2020
Imagine risking your life in a pandemic to hear Chase Rice.
— Zackary Kephart (@themusicdivide) June 28, 2020
For the “why is it ok for people to protest but it’s not ok for me to shotgun Natty Ice at a Chase Rice concert” crowd: because they wore masks you dinks. https://t.co/os1iMO6DQU
— Lance Conzett (@LanceCo) June 28, 2020
Chase Rice is trash for putting on that show but also fuck his team that organised it, the venue that accepted the booking and every single person that bought a ticket and went along.
— Leigh (@Prattle_x) June 28, 2020
According to Variety, a source told the publication that around 2,800 individuals attended the show, which nearly triples the numbers Rice’s team is claiming. “I personally one saw one person wearing a mask the entire day, and that was a merch seller.” [via Vulture]
“Hospital capacity continues to remain stable statewide,” Tennessee Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey reports. “We remind Tennesseans that COVID-19 is still very much present in our state, and we strongly encourage them to be vigilant in maintaining social distancing, frequent hand-washing and utilizing face coverings.”
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