Ahead of Janet Jackson's set at the Global Citizen Festival, a fallen barrier caused panic among the 60,000 attendees who reportedly thought it was the sound of gunshots.
Witnesses told the New York Times, the confusion and fear of an active shooter at the music festival nearly caused a stampede as concertgoers ran away. Chris Martin, who was on the stage at the time, tried to calm the attendees down. "What happened is a barrier I think fell down. Of course it caused people to be a bit frightened and stuff like that. But nobody is trying to hurt nobody. You are all safe," he said to cheers before handing the microphone to NYPD’s assistant chief Kathleen O’Reilly, who reassured their safety.
"Everybody relax, calm down," she said. "It was a barrier collapse. There was no shots fired. Hopefully the show is going to go on. We just have to reassess the situation and try and create a new safety lane. We’re going to have to try our best."
Global Citizen later tweeted that there were a few injuries, but the show would go on.
And it did. Janet Jackson took the stage and brought Q-Tip out as a surprise guest to perform their 1997 hit "Got 'til It's Gone." The Weeknd followed with a closing set.
