In August, I saw the annual Global Citizen Festival lineup and knew I had to be there; a free concert in Central Park to start off my school year, what more could I ask for? The festival is hosted by Global Citizen, also known as Global Poverty Project, an education and advocacy organization that seeks to end poverty and promote social justice. This year, the festival’s headliners were Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ms. Lauryn Hill and Jungkook of BTS (replacing Megan Thee Stallion who bailed a few weeks prior for a feature on Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” stage in their hometown of Houston).
In order to win a pair of tickets, all you have to do is download the Global Citizen app and take quizzes, sign petitions and write messages of support, which all gain you points to enter weekly raffles. It’s easy enough to win but, of course, I wanted to attend with 11 of my closest friends. As we came close to crunch time, until we had at least six winners in the group (so all 12 of us could go), I was worried. I was scared, even!
About two weeks before the festival, everyone finally had a ticket. Then, came the next obstacle: a horrible projected weather forecast for Sept. 23, the day of the concert. Scattered rain storms and a coastal flood warning was definitely not the ideal weather we were picturing; we were meant to lay on a blanket and soak in the sun to the soundtrack of Conan Gray. As the day inched closer, poncho orders were submitted and Amazon’s next-day delivery rain boot selection was scoured, though I (stupidly) deemed none of them cute enough to actually spend money on.
The day of the show, our group trudged up Fordham Road in ponchos of varying colors, braving the heavy rain and wind. The commute was easy enough; the entrance to Global Citizen was on West 72nd Street, luckily right across the street from a subway station. Upon walking in, we were met with a long line. It took an estimated hour and 45 minutes, but I don’t know why we were shocked. We entered at 72nd Street, and the location of the stage, The Great Lawn, is at 85th Street. The water making a home out of my Converse from the moment I stepped in the gates of Central Park and missing the whole of Anitta’s set whilst in line was tough, but we persisted.
Finally, after passing through the last security tent, we ran up a hill to The Great Lawn. My friends, quite literally, jumped with joy at catching Gray’s last two songs, “Heather” and “Maniac.” Afterwards, some went to the bathroom and others decided to check out the food vendors (jam-packed with vegan options) because, again, we were in line for nearly two hours.
A few of us stayed in the crowd and heard 3RACHA for the first time, the K-Pop group Stray Kids’ rap sub-unit. Stray Kids, as a whole, was supposed to perform but couldn’t, due to an “unforeseen accident.” I’ve been to K-pop concerts before, but it was fun to see my friends’ reactions to the fans’ excitement. It hyped us all up and we rejoiced in the cheers under the rain.
Next, after several videos played on the big screen of a mix of celebrities and activists speaking, with a few of them speaking on the stage, Sofia Carson, of Disney’s “Descendants” fame, performed. She sang “Come Back Home,” a simple peaceful pop song, followed by a cover of John Lennon’s “Imagine.” It was so random, all we could do was laugh as we stood in the rain and cracked jokes about the 2020 mid-COVID-19 celebrity compiled rendition of the song, but Carson did a fine job covering the classic.
There was another long break of celebrities, such as Katie Holmes and Sophia Bush, speaking to an audience who was looking for music to move to, in order to shake the unbearable cold from our bodies (this became quite a trend, just picture me saying this over and over again in between every set). Afterwards, Jungkook of BTS took the stage. The popstar seamlessly transitioned from pop to jazz, English to Korean lyrics and his solo music to BTS’s most famous hits. He ended with his latest song, “Seven,” and a surprise appearance from its featured artist, Latto. The BTS fans were, of course, pleased, and I’d be right to say he won over the rest of the crowd as well. My friends have been sending me screenshots of them listening to “Seven” nonstop for the past week.
During D-Nice’s set, a parade of special guests came on to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, including Common, Busta Rhymes and Big Daddy Kane, which got everyone up and moving. Following the high-energy set was another anniversary celebration: Ms. Lauryn Hill took the stage to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her iconic album, “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.” The crowd loved Hill and, despite the rain, had an unmatched excitement throughout her performance. I’d be remiss not to recall the zealous reaction from the audience during “Doo Wop (That Thing)” and “Killing Me Softly,” both of which the Fugees came onstage to join Hill for. Seeing Hill live truly felt like a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I’d wait in a flood again to do so.
For an uncomfortable amount of time following Hill, we waited for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, as D-Nice decided to DJ (or possibly hit play on Spotify’s “Today’s Top Hits” playlist). Finally, Chris Rock, randomly enough, came on to introduce the band. It was at this point that I noticed the sea of classic RHCP shirts around me and was sucked into the enthusiasm of the hardcore fans. We danced around in the cold to “Scar Tissue” and swayed to “Snow (Hey Oh).” However, my friends and I tapped out 10 minutes early to avoid the crowd of people trying to leave because getting in was hard enough.
Not only did we take in the magic of some of the best entertainment, but France and Norway announced a $240 million commitment to International Fund for Agricultural Development and, Global Citizen said, “$290 million worth of total commitments were rallied for Global Citizen Festival, leading to a total of $470 million as a result of the campaign.” It’s possible to host good music and make a difference; take that, Coachella!
