Photo: Marc Piasecki/WireImage
There’s Solar Power, and then there’s permit power. Lorde did not get that green light from police before teasing a 7 p.m. appearance at Washington Square Park on Tuesday — but that didn’t stop her from finding a way to play a new song for fans later in the night. A spokesperson for the NYPD’s deputy commissioner of public information said in a statement to Vulture that officers were alerted of an “unscheduled event” inside the park at around 6:47 p.m. “A sound and parks permit is required to have a concert in a New York City Park. This individual did not possess either,” the statement said. “Organizers of the event were informed they could not perform and they left the location.” We’re pretty confident that the internationally-renowned, Grammy-winning singer would’ve still drawn a huge crowd if she arrived completely unannounced. But hours in advance, Lorde posted a photo of the park’s fountain area on her Instagram Story and texted fans to come meet her at 7 p.m. So who can really be surprised that the place got so packed that some people were climbing trees in hopes of securing a better view? Lorde, that’s who. “Omg @thepark the cops are shutting us down,” she wrote on her Instagram Story minutes before the scheduled start. “I am truly Amazed by how many of you showed up !!! But they’re telling me you gotta disperse … I’m so sorry.”
After the pop-up event was seemingly canceled, plenty of fans stuck around in the area to sing their sorrows out together. They were first rewarded for their patience at around 8 p.m., when Lorde’s friend and collaborator Dev Hynes (also known as Blood Orange) showed up to play Lorde’s upcoming song “What Was That” on a portable speaker. Then, at around 9:30 p.m., Lorde herself showed up and began dancing to the track that will serve as her first single since 2021. “You guys are so amazing,” she told the crowd. “I love you so much.” Given how many people were still waiting two-and-a-half hours after they were told to disperse, maybe this is a good reminder for Lorde that she’s reached a level of fame where a performance in the park is probably never gonna be a walk in the park to coordinate.
🚨 Lorde at Washington Square Park playing “What Was That”!!pic.twitter.com/SnH2XOsVSB
— Lorde Updates 🧬⛓️ (@LordeUpdatesBR) April 23, 2025
Related
Sound the New-Lorde AlarmLorde’s Fourth Album? It’s Less Likely Than You Think.Lorde Shushed Y’all Once, and She’d Do it AgainWell, We Know Why Charli XCX and Lorde Have the Same Hair
