Just in case you weren’t sure, Vanilla Ice wants you to know that “we didn’t have coronavirus in the 90s.”
To which my reply would be, “Well you haven’t had a hit since the 90s.” But for real, that’s a thing Vanilla Ice said earlier this week, justifying his plans to hold a concert in the city of Austin on July 3rd. The Iceman intends to put on a party for thousands at a restaurant in Texas that doubles as an outdoor concert venue, called Emerald Point Bar & Grill.
The official capacity is around 5,000, but Emerald Point is only trying to sell 2,500 tickets. Currently, VIP tickets are sold out, but people on social media couldn’t help but wonder who would want to go see Ice, of all people, perform in the middle of a pandemic.
Craziest thing about 2020 is that Vanilla Ice is getting gigs
— Dave Weasel (@DaveWeasel) July 2, 2020
If you’re old enough to remember Vanilla Ice, you’re in an elevated risk group. If you’re willing to pay to see Vanilla Ice, you may have dementia.
— Sanho Tree (@SanhoTree) July 2, 2020
The vanilla ice concert may sound dangerous, but how much Covid exposure could reality get during one song?
— Brian Santa Maria (@briansantamaria) July 2, 2020
But it’s not only randoms on Twitter who aren’t so sure it’s a good idea to go see Vanilla Ice perform his one song. The Travis County, Texas Health Department (where the show will take place), also issued a statement, saying “This is not wise regardless of who is performing at any gathering right now. The best way to be nostalgic is by protecting your parents and grandparents and staying home.”
The part about nostalgia appears to be a jab at Vanilla’s Instagram post, promoting the event. Read the caption:
Ironic that he would throw shade at Fortnite, when the video game has put on more successful concerts than him in the past few years – all without a single case of COVID, because they were online!
So, will the risky Vanilla Ice show continue? The 90s rapper certainly thinks so.
I take the coronavirus serious. But we can’t live in a bubble.
I think at this point we all understand the severity of it. practice social distancing and wear a mask. This is an outside venue, Fourth of July on the lake with fireworks. Plenty of room for distancing.— Vanilla Ice (@vanillaice) July 2, 2020