Lorde fans stampeded through the streets of Lower Manhattan as news spread like wildfire that the notoriously elusive musician would offer a one-time pop-up concert.
As fans flocked to Washington Square Park, the small quadrant that serves as the center of New York University’s campus life, the pop star’s unreleased single “What Was That” blared from speakers.
The April 22 event, which was so mobbed that New York police eventually broke up the crowd, was announced via text − a new, more intimate form of communication Lorde has opted for with fans.
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“In the park,” she texted a few hours before the performance, which police later said was unscheduled.
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“A sound and parks permit is required to have a concert in a New York City Park. This individual did not possess either. Organizers of the event were informed they could not perform and they left the location,” a spokesperson for the New York Police Department’s Office of the Deputy Commissioner of Public Information wrote in a statement to Rolling Stone.
“Omg @thepark the cops are shutting us down,” the Grammy-winning artist wrote on her Instagram stories in response, according to Pitchfork and Rolling Stone. “I am truly Amazed by how many of you showed up !!! But they’re telling me you gotta disperse … I’m so sorry.”
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This was all before she had even arrived. The loyal throngs of fans that stuck around, even as the crowd dwindled, were duly rewarded when, a few hours later, Lorde arrived in the flesh to perform.
Singing “What Was That,” out now, Lorde offered loyal listeners a sneak peek at her upcoming album. The moody track mimics the tone of her most popular album, “Melodrama,” blending heavy synth and bass with confessional lyrics.
Lorde danced above the crowd as fans sang along. In a white button-down with a bikini top underneath and baggy jeans, the singer punched the air and swayed as listeners lifted their phones to capture the moment, flashes lighting up the darkened park.
