Goldman Sachs’ CEO David Solomon is set to appear as a DJ at the Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago this summer alongside artists like Metallica, Machine Gun Kelly, and Doja Cat.
It’s not the first high-profile appearance for the investment bank CEO, who used to go by “DJ D Sol” on stage (he uses his real name now), but it’s definitely a step up.
Lollapalooza has featured some of the most popular musicians since its inception in 1991, with artists like Paul McCartney and Ariana Grande gracing the stage. And last year the four-day event attracted over 380,000 attendees, according to local Chicago news reports.
Solomon was outed as “DJ D Sol” by the New York Times in 2017, nearly a year before taking the reins of Goldman Sachs. Since then, he has continued to perform at increasingly high-profile concerts across the country.
Solomon’s side-hustle as a DJ has seen him featured at events like Sports Illustrated’sSuper Bowl party in February with artists like Kygo and Jack Harlow, and the BottleRock music festival in Napa, Calif. In September 2021.
The CEO has said that he faced criticism at Goldman for his double-life as a DJ, but he believes it “helps him relax.”
“You can’t do that…it’ll hurt your career professionally,” Solomon said on the podcast “The Sound of Success with Nic Harcourt” in December. “I thought about it and I said, ‘I enjoy this, I’m not doing anything wrong.’ I’m having fun…it makes me feel good.”
Solomon has also landed himself in hot water with some of his performances as a DJ. After the CEO opened for The Chainsmokers at a Hamptons charity event in 2020, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he was appalled by “egregious social distancing violations,” and the New York Department of Health opened an investigation.
Solomon’s antics as “DJ D Sol” haven’t always been greeted with cheers from Goldman Sachs’ employees either. “I guess the pandemic is over according to David Solomon,” one Goldman employee sneered after Solomon’s 2020 Hampton’s appearance, the New York Post reported.
Solomon also turned a few heads when he released a single titled “Learn to Love Me”, after calling all of Goldman’s employees back to the investment bank’s lower Manhattan offices five days a week in his continued crusade against hybrid work. The 60-year-old believes in-person interactions are critical to the bank’s culture, but apparently, so is letting loose.
Some Goldman employees see his DJ habit as an example that employees should feel free to find pursuits outside the office, the New York Post reported.
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