I got a last-minute ticket to an exclusive Super Bowl bash in Miami, where the CEO of Goldman Sachs was a DJ and Lil Jon and Sammy Sosa partied. Here's what it was like.
Sports Illustrated's Super Bowl party took place at the iconic Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach the night before the big game.
Tickets started at $500 and cost upwards of $20,000 for VIP Table tickets with premium bottle service.
The party was set to start at about 9:30 but I arrived half an hour early for media check-in.
It was already madness when I arrived.
The traffic on Collins Avenue where the hotel sits was at a standstill, and the hotel's arrival area was packed with cars.
The lobby of the Fontainebleau was buzzing with people.
I made my way to the entry point for the event, which was being held in the hotel's Glimmer Ballroom, according to my confirmation email.
A long line of people stretched down the hallway. Each of these people had paid a minimum of $500 to be there.
The media check-in situation was a disaster, as I was supposed to be able to check in at 8:30.
After making multiple calls to my contacts and asking several staff members, all of whom had no idea where I was supposed to be, I eventually made it into the party at about 10:30.
When I finally made it inside, I was surprised to find the party was actually being held outdoors instead of in the ballroom as I'd thought.
I immediately realized I hadn't dressed for the weather, which was a chilly (for Miami) 64 degrees and breezy.
The party was set up in the massive courtyard of the hotel, where there were several swimming pools and multiple VIP areas.
A stage had been erected for the performers that would include Marshmello, Black Eyed Peas, DJ Irie, DaBaby, and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon DJing as DJ D-Sol.
Celebrities, athletes, musicians, and YouTube stars walked the party's red carpet, which was actually a green carpet of synthetic turf.
I caught a brief glimpse of Solomon, the Goldman Sachs CEO, as he walked quickly down the carpet, offering a brief wave but not stopping for photos.
YouTuber and makeup mogul Jeffree Star wore a bright pink suit.
New York Yankees player Aaron Judge and his girlfriend, Samantha Bracksieck, kindly waited for a full minute at the end of the red carpet for me to figure out an unexpected camera glitch so I could take their picture.
Rapper Lil Jon graced the crowd with his signature "Yeah! Okay!" exclamations.
Baseball legend Sammy Sosa was there with his wife, Sonia.
After a while, I left the carpet to check out the party. There were multiple VIP areas accessible only to those who had paid at least $999 and some who paid $20,000.
Yankees player Judge entered this VIP area as I passed by.
I heard rumors that Paul McCartney was at the party, but I never managed to spot him. He was probably in an ultra-exclusive VIP section where we mere mortals weren't allowed to venture.
The general admission area had tables and seating areas, several open bars, and elevated platforms that would soon so people dancing on them.
Tequila brand Casamigos was the official sponsor of the party, so their branding and products were everywhere.
If you didn't want to stand in line at the bar, there were tables everywhere that were stocked with White Claw, beer, liquor, mixers, water, and popcorn.
Popcorn ended up being the only food I could find at the party, which was a disappointment.
There was also a Tito's vodka booth ...
... a Dewar's booth, which is a brand of blended Scotch whisky owned by Bacardi ...
... and a booth selling Sports Illustrated-branded CBD recovery cream.
Guests with general admission tickets couldn't get right up by the stage — that was a reserved VIP area. The first DJ was the Goldman Sachs CEO, spinning as DJ D-Sol.
Solomon said on an episode of the JJ Redick podcast last year that his DJing started as a Sunday afternoon hobby until a record producer invited him to play a club in New York.
He hesitantly agreed, and by midnight, the club had started to fill up "and I was hooked," Solomon said. "The ability to see the music influence people and see people respond to it, it was cool. And so I started working at it."
Solomon added, "I know it's different from what someone in my position would do, but why shouldn't I? It's a great outlet."
Thanks to my press credentials, I eventually made it into the VIP area by the stage.
Solomon, wearing a plain black t-shirt instead of the suit and tie the banker is typically pictured in, mixed modern-day hits like Cardi B's "I Like It" and "Meet Me in the Middle" by Zedd, Maren Morris, and Grey with classics like Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" and The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army."
The VIP section was more or less the same as the general admission section, except it was closer to the stage.
Like the other areas, the VIP section had plenty of white leather couches and tables, but it actually seemed more crowded.
The bathrooms for the event were set way back from the stage next to a bunch of equipment.
I left the party at about 1:00 a.m. while Marshmello was DJing.
I didn't stay for the performances by DaBaby (who I'd seen the night before) or Black Eyed Peas because frankly, I was cold and hungry.
I like a good outdoor party, but I wasn't dressed properly for being outside all night in the chilly and windy weather because the event pages I saw had said the party's location was the hotel's Glimmer Ballroom. And I wasn't even wearing a dress like most of the women there, many of whom looked liked they were freezing.
The lack of food (other than popcorn) was also a letdown. Compared to the party I'd attended the night before, Shaq's Fun House, an event hosted by retired NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal that's described as "part music festival, part carnival, part circus" and included tons of food along with its open bar, the Sports Illustrated party was relatively tame.
Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that it was the night before the big game, so people didn't want to quite quite as hard as they did on Friday night. Or maybe it was the cold, which definitely put a damper on my mood.
Whatever the reason, while plenty of people seemed to be having a blast at the Sports Illustrated party, the cold, lack of food, and the inevitable comparison to Shaq's party kept me from enjoying myself to the fullest.
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