Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen top rumored guest list for Clive Davis’ Central Park re-opening show

NYC is planning a mega concert in Central Park to celebrate reopening after COVID-19, and the rumored guest list for the August 21 show is a dazzling who’s who of A-list performers. 

In an effort to make the city an appealing vacation destination again amid a spiraling crime problem and void of tourists, Mayor Bill de Blasio enlisted the help of legendary music producer Clive Davis in bringing eight entertainers to the stage.

The 89-year-old music executive has won five Grammy Awards and is known as the founder of both Arista and J Records.

According to Showbiz411 blogger Roger Friedman, Davis should have no problem putting together a list with the likes of Simon & Garfunkel, Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen, Diana Ross, Carole King, Jennifer Hudson, Bob Dylan, Earth Wind & Fire, Carly Simon, Barry Manilow and Dionne Warwick.

Simon & Garfunkel, Diana Ross and Carole King have all had their own ‘historic CP shows,’ Friedman says.

Hudson would be a particularly timely choice as her film Respect, in which she plays Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin, is expected to open in theaters a week before the Central Park show.

No artists have been officially announced. 

Davis won one of his Grammies for executive producing Hudson’s 2008 debut self-titled album. He is also credited for re-energizing Franklin’s career after she left Atlantic Records and singed with Arista in 1980. 

The show is scheduled for August 21 and will take part on the 13-acre Great Lawn at Central Park. 

There will be sections for vaccinated people and unvaccinated people. Most of the tickets will be free but with some VIP packages for sale.  

De Blasio says the concert will kick off a week of celebrations known as ‘Homecoming Week’ for the city. 

‘This concert is going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity. It’s going to be an amazing lineup. 

‘The whole week is going to be like nothing you’ve ever seen before in New York City,’ de Blasio told The New York Times in an interview. 

While de Blasio hopes it’ll bring an end to a year of gloomy restrictions that have stamped out the city’s tourism and nightlife, it comes amid climbing crime figures that have many worried New York is turning back into the dangerous city it was in the 70s and 80s. 

Violent crimes across the board are up 30 percent from last year and NYPD unions are begging for change. 

They blame de Blasio’s bail reform and a series of budget cuts for the rise in crime. 

Figures released by Compstat reveal there were 1,754 major crimes across the city last week alone. 

There were 35 shootings, 39 rapes, 105 other sex crimes, 1,600 incidents of theft, 708 misdemeanor assaults and 14 hate crimes. In almost every category, crime is up. 

The only categories where there was a decrease were murder and burglary.   

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said last week the city was getting too dangerous and efforts to revive it after COVID-19 will be hampered. 

‘We have a major crime problem in New York City. Everything we just talked about, with the economy coming back, you know what the first step is? People have to feel safe. 

‘We’re building new projects, stimulating new business – what comes before that is public safety, otherwise none of it works. 

‘New Yorkers don’t feel safe and they don’t feel safe because the crime rate is up. 

‘It’s not that they are being neurotic or overly sensitive – they are right.’