Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga took to social media to ask their fans to stay home and take precautions amid the rapid spread of the deadly coronavirus.
“Guys, I follow you online and I love you guys so much and need to express my concern that things aren’t being taken seriously enough right now,” the “You Need to Calm Down” singer, 30, posted on her Instagram Stories on Sunday, March 15.
“I’m seeing lots of get togethers and hangs and parties still happening,” she continued. “This is the time to cancel plans, actually truly isolate as much as you can, and don’t assume that because you don’t feel sick that you aren’t possibly passing something on to someone elderly or vulnerable to this.”
“It’s a really scary time,” Swift concluded, “but we need to make social sacrifices right now.”
Grande, 26, posted on her Instagram Stories on Sunday about her concerns that young people, who aren’t the most at-risk group, aren’t taking the pandemic seriously.
“I keep hearing from a surprising amount of people statements like ‘this isn’t a big deal’ / ‘we’ll be fine’… ‘we still have to go about our lives’ and it’s really blowing my mind,” she wrote. “I understand if that is how u felt weeks ago. but please read about what’s going on. please don’t turn a blind eye.”
“It is incredibly dangerous and selfish to take this situation that lightly,” the “God Is a Woman” singer continued. “The ‘we will be fine because we’re young’ mindset is putting people who aren’t young and / or healthy in a lot of danger. you sound stupid and privileged and you need to care more about others. like now.”
The singers’ posts came as more than 169,000 people have tested positive to the virus worldwide, with more than 6,500 deaths.
New York City’s public school system, with 1.1 million students, will shut down this week, with Mayor Bill de Blasio saying schools may remain closed till the end of the school year. Other cities and states are temporarily closing schools as well as bars and restaurants or mandating restrictions to halve the number of customers in eateries in order to enforce social distancing.
In Hollywood, several TV shows, including The Bachelorette, have temporarily paused filming and actors including Tom Cruise have been sent home from location. Music festivals like Coachella have been rescheduled and the ACM awards have been pushed to September.
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have been diagnosed with coronavirus and remain in isolation in Australia, with others including Heidi Klum and Ali Fedotwosky being tested. Several celebrities have posted on social media about social distancing and self-quarantining.
Lady Gaga also posted a message to her fans and followers on Instagram on Saturday, March 14, telling them that she was staying home.
“So I talked to some doctors and scientists. It’s not the easiest for everyone right now but the kindest/healthiest thing we can do is self-quarantine and not hang out with people over 65 and in large groups,” the “Stupid Love” singer, 33, captioned a photo of herself and her dogs.
“I wish I could see my parents and grandmas right now but it’s much safer to not so I don’t get them sick in case I have it. I’m hanging at home with my dogs. I love you world, we’ll all get through this. Trust me, I talked to God —she said we’re gonna be ok.”
