By Amanda Moses
Global Citizen is perhaps one of the most anticipated festivals in New York City with a noble cause behind it: Climate Justice. The event sends a clear message to global leaders that the citizens of the world demand greener solutions and disinvestment in fossil fuels by encouraging individuals to stand up and take action. In doing so, those who act by sharing tweets, signing petitions, or sending emails through the Global Citizen app are rewarded with an incentive: they are entered into a raffle to win tickets to the Global Citizen concert in Central Park’s Great Lawn on September 23rd.
For those who were not able to earn their tickets, there are also three options to purchase one: Ultimate VIP (difficult to come by), Citi VIP (about $275 when it was first announced and shot up to $500 later on) and Global VIP ($100-$300).
While I did apply for media credentials, it appears that Global Citizen seldom provides credentials to smaller outlets “due to limited access.” As a New York City-based festival, this is something that is shortsighted and provides a disadvantage to outlets that reach communities of color, especially one that provides its service for free like the Spring Creek Sun. In addition, the Spring Creek Towers’ residents have a storied history battling against the Pennsylvania Avenue landfill (opened in 1956 and was closed in 1980), and pushing for it to be capped and transformed into 407-acres of state parkland: Shirley Chisholm State Park (thanks to groups like Friends of Penn and Fountain Park).
For those who were given credentials, it has been shared with me that this festival is probably one of the most difficult to cover due to it’s lack of respect bestowed upon the press. It’s my opinion, that although Global Citizen stands for a great cause, instead of allowing this to speak for itself through a journalistic lens, the narrative is somewhat micromanaged by only allowing Getty Images and a select few other high-profile outlets to report on the red carpet, and even to be allowed in the Media Pen.
Sources shared that press photographers are placed inside of a pen about 300-400 feet away from the stage and are not allowed to move for the remainder of the six-hour performances unless they wish to leave the site (only Global Citizen’s photographers/media team can roam around). So, unless you have a camera with a 500-600 telephoto lens, you are not going to capture anything clearly, leaving you to rely on whatever Global Citizen provides, which again allows them to control the narrative of what they send you.
Due to the limited media access, I purchased a Global VIP ticket so that I can cover the event from a fan’s perspective, yet this did not fare much better. For an event promoting sustainability, organizers only allowed fans to enter with a physical, printed ticket—something that they were forced to hold onto in the torrential rain without an umbrella (since umbrellas and big bags were not allowed).
Despite Global VIP members purchasing their ticket, they remained at least 400 to 500 feet away from the stage, so far that even when trying use zoom on the best of phone cameras (long lens cameras were also banned) performers were a blur and the large television screens showcasing the stage were obscured by speakers. Fans who purchased these tickets were outraged after waiting since 6am to arrive at the venue so far away from the stage, and there were no representatives to be found that would provide any sort of aid or remedy.
Overall, the event saw thousands of fans brave the torrential downpour in ponchos where they learned that across the world 3.3 million actions were taken to call for equity, for the planet, for food and for jobs, to end extreme poverty. So, despite the ire for over-paying for their tickets in such a horrendous viewing space, in the end it went to a good cause with excellent performances by Anitta, Conan Gray, 3RACHA (the rap-line from Stray Kids), Jung Kook, Lauren Hill, a 50 Years of Hip Hop tribute with Common, Busta Rhymes and more.
Fans of K-Pop stars 3RARCHA of Stray Kids and Jung Kook of BTS were heavily present, donning purple ponchos to represent Army (BTS’s fanbase) and waving their plushie toy characters representing their favorite singers (such as a pink rabbit for Jung Kook and a wolf for Bang Chan). Attendees even brought friendship bracelets and photo cards of the K-Pop singers to share with one another for free, further building upon the comradery and friendship showcased at Global Citizen.
The love for the artists and the cause saw hundreds dance in the rain with their hands in the air until 10pm.
It was announced this month that after having thousands trample on Central Park’s Great Lawn for over six hours during torrential rain, the grass has been heavily damaged. According to the Central Park Conservancy the Great Lawn sustained damage from the heavy equipment and intense foot traffic in saturated conditions fully destroying a third of the grass area and must be re-seeded and hopefully restored in April 2024. Global Citizen reportedly said they will pay for any repair costs, something that they have been doing since the festival’s inception in 2012.
Photos by Amanda Moses
