John Mayer stops first concert since pandemic to help unconscious fan
John Mayer briefly stopped his first live show since the beginning of the pandemic to help a fan with a medical emergency.
On Wednesday night, February 9, the 44-year-old musician performed the "John Mayer Small Stage Series Concert" for SiriusXM and Pandora in Los Angeles. After noticing one female concertgoer falling unconscious, he didn't hesitate to stop the show. The 'New Light' singer is one of the artists who prioritize fans' safety during concerts in the wake of the Astroworld Festival tragedy.
RELATED ARTICLES
John Mayer gives shoutout to Blackpink's Rose's cover of ‘Slow Dancing In A Burning Room’
'WWHL': Is John Mayer circumcised? Singer says his 'father is a Jewish man'
"Stop the show. Are they conscious? Give me thumbs up if they're alert," John asked the crowd. Though at first it seemed like someone in the crowd was giving him the go-ahead, he later said, "You need an AED [automated external defibrillator]? Well, that's not somebody who's alert!"
John Mayer paused the show more than halfway through when someone in the audience passed out, requiring medical attention. He cut music and helped out, eventually leaving stage briefly (maybe 2 mins) and came back to announce the woman was okay and gave a 👍🏼 pic.twitter.com/dEQJD721qk
— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) February 10, 2022
After a brief pause, Mayer announced, "I'm going to step off stage for a second," as the crowd cheered the decision. The female fan was treated and taken out of the venue in a wheelchair, while Mayer and his band left the stage for several minutes.
The 'Slow Dancing in a Burning Room' singer later noted that the woman was okay. "Anyone in the crowd who's worried, I'm told that she's up and waved goodbye, so she's okay," he said. "The system works, thank you very much."
Then, the musician and his band returned to the stage, they played "Waiting on the World to Change". His SiriusXM-Pandora show setlist included six tracks from his latest album "Sob Rock". Mayer kicked off the show with "Last Train Home", after being introduced on stage by his close friend and "Watch What Happens Live" host Andy Cohen. The pop star also debuted "All I Want Is to Be With You" during an encore and closed the show with his hit "New Light".
There has been increased pressure on artists to be mindful of fan safety during concerts in the wake of the Astroworld Festival tragedy last November. Ten concertgoers died of compression asphyxia during Travis Scott's headlining set. John Mayer has not done a live show in two years, this was his first since the pandemic, so the excitement was there but keeping in mind the Astroworld tragedy, fan safety is a priority now.
Earlier this month, Billie Eilish also paused her show at Atlanta's State Farm Arena to give an asthma inhaler to a fan. In the middle of her performance, the 'Happier Than Ever' singer spotted a female concertgoer caught in a pit near the front of the stage's catwalk. After making sure the fan got the inhaler and reminding the audience not to crowd the female fan, she said, "I wait for people to be okay until I keep going." While she didn't name Travis, fans, believed she was referencing the Astroworld tragedy.