David Guetta, the French DJ, producer, and songwriter, hosted "United at Home," a two-hour DJ set last Saturday, April 18, in Miami.
The purpose of the show was to gather funds for non-profit organizations that are in the thick of supporting families affected by the COVID-19 crisis. The show was performed from the rooftop of the Icon Brickell in Downtown Miami. It was organized with the help of the Miami Downtown Development Authority.
The show went live at 6 pm ET/3 pm PT with 8,000 residents watching and dancing from their respective balconies. It was also live-streamed that attracted nine million viewers on Facebook and close to two million views on YouTube, according to a press release.
Guetta staged the one-of-a-kind DJ show for the beneficiaries: the World Health Organization, Feeding America, Feeding South Florida, and the French Fondation Hôpitaux de Paris. According to his tweet on April 20, funds that were raised reached $700,000. The French DJ matched all donations for Feeding South Florida "dollar-for-dollar." For every single dollar of donation, it is equivalent to 14 meals that would be given to hungry families. An estimate of 1.7 million meals will be distributed in the region.
In an interview with Forbes, Guetta shared that this would be the first time he will play without a crowd close to him. It was a new one for him, having to perform for people in their balconies with him in the middle of the towers. He went on to say that with the different set-up, it is "still giving me the feel of playing for a crowd."
He supported social distancing as imposed by the authorities and was appalled at the images of spring breakers partying at Miami beach. He was in the area at that time. Guetta said that with the lockdown, there is no crowd gathering anymore. People no longer went to the beach.
Guetta admitted that he had seen artists go online to entertain fans staying at homes. He was particularly impressed at Chris Martin's (Coldplay) stream on IG. Guetta, for his part, wanted not just to share his talents virtually. More than that, he was motivated to take action to give money and to seek donations. He foresees the present terrible situation will get worse. He went on to say that it is "important to help those in need."
The "Titanium" composer admitted he had less exposure on the radio last year. His time was more spent underground, more of doing DJ projects with a little darker theme. But with the current pandemic, he realized that people needed to feel good to lift their spirits. He was quoted as saying that he wanted to do "fun, pop records" again. He is trying to "make that feel-good record."
Crowds dispersed during the show.
According to reports from the Associated Press, the Miami police had to disperse crowds who violated the social distancing guidelines during David Guetta's gig.
The authorities broke up groups on the sidewalks, which were watching the DJ play. There were no arrests executed, though. Florida is not allowing gatherings with more than 10 people during the pandemic.
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