Country singer Chase Rice returned to the stage for a concert in Petros, Tennessee, and is facing backlash after thousands of fans were seen not wearing face masks or practicing social distancing amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
On Saturday, June 27, Rice shared footage from the concert to his Instagram Stories of fans singing along to “Eyes on You” and wrote, “We back.” From the looks of the videos, people in the crowd did not appear to be wearing masks.
According to TMZ, the 34-year-old singer held his first show in months at a former prison-turned-event center called the Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Tennessee, adding that the venue can hold up to 10,000 concert goers.
This afternoon, the Brushy Mountain Group told E! News that “all local requirements were abided by for the recent concert and numerous precautions were taken.”
They added that they “drastically reduced” the maximum venue capacity of 10,000 to 4,000 maximum capacity, which they said was “lower than the state’s advisement of 50%.” The night of the concert saw “less than 1,000 in attendance Saturday night providing ample space in the outdoor lawn area for fans to spread out to their own comfort level,” said the Brushy Mountain Group in the statement.
Ultimately, fans weren’t too happy on social media about Rice’s decision to host a concert amid the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. On Twitter, one user said, “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.”
