St. Petersburg, Florida, Mayor Rips 50 Cent for ‘Stupid’ Maskless Super Bowl Bash

The mayor of St. Petersburg, Florida, Rick Kriseman, slammed rapper 50 Cent for hosting a “stupid” maskless Super Bowl party on Saturday. World famous DJs Diplo and Steve Aoki also headlined large events, drawing crowds of hundreds of revelers, in Florida over the weekend.

“This isn’t how we should be celebrating the Super Bowl,” tweeted Kriseman. “It’s not safe or smart. It’s stupid. We’re going to take a very close look at this, and it may end up costing someone a lot more than 50 cent.”

DJ Diplo had also drawn a large crowd — of around a reported 2,000 people — later in the evening at the same venue, Godfrey Waterfront Hotel’s WTR Tampa Pool, ahead of the Super Bowl, according to a report by TMZ.

The report added that the party looked very “pre-pandemic,” with music, a dance floor, bars, and hardly any social distancing or masks.

“Social distancing procedures will be strictly enforced, face masks will be required for all staff & guests, wellness and temperature checks will be mandatory for entrance, sanitizing stations will be placed throughout the venue, and continued cleaning protocols will provide regular sanitizing,” insisted the event organizers.

But the Tampa Police Department was not pleased.

“Scenes from WTR last night and a few other clubs were incredibly disappointing,” said the Tampa PD, according to TMZ. “The city spent the better part of a year educating residents on precautions due to the pandemic and have recently put a mask order in place for both the entertainment and event zones to ensure the safety of our residents and visitors to our great city.”

The night before, DJ Steve Aoki headlined another party, which was also reportedly a “super spreader” event.

More than 53,000 people have died due to the coronavirus during President Joe Biden’s first two weeks in office, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) projecting that the United States may see the nationwide number of coronavirus deaths exceed 500,000 by February 20.

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.