A quick look at TikTok star Bryce Hall‘s Instagram reads like someone at the New Yorker decided to write a fictional short story about an influencer, then got carried away. There’s Bryce flipping off the camera. Here he is closing one eye in a way he must feel favors his angles. Next, he’s sticking out his tongue. Tongue out, eye closed. Flipping bird, tongue out. Eye closed, tongue out, flipping bird (trifecta!). Beer pong. Post-boxing pic. Von Dutch hat. Von Dutch hat pulled low. Von Dutch hat pulled low and on backwards. Flipping bird. Abs.
You get the idea. Hall has a clothing line called Party Animal University. He owns an energy drink. He’s been crtisized for homophobia. Basically, he’s the Lonley Island’s “Spring Break Anthem” come to life.
Through the quarantine, Hall and the collective of internet influencers that he lives and parties with at Sway House [which has its own merch line, modeled exclusively by young white men with tongues out and one or both eyes closed (a pretty on the nose metaphor)], have insisted on throwing all out ragers. This caused them to essentially get subtweeted by Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti, when his office issued the following statement on August 4th:
“The highest-risk settings are large in-person gatherings where it is difficult for individuals to remain spaced at least 6 feet apart and where face coverings are not worn. The consequences of these large parties ripple throughout our entire community because the virus can quickly and easily spread.”
A day later, Garcetti amended his original June 1st public order related to gatherings to allow utility shutoffs at party houses. Between the fifth and the nineteenth, Hall defied that order twice in his Hollywood Hills rental and then again at a rented home in Encino, where he hosted his own birthday party on August 14th. A night that included strippers, more than 100 people, and mandatory nondisclosure agreements.
Here’s a glimpse at what that looked like:
Bryce Hall and Sway House throw massive party in Hollywood Hills with over a hundred people. The Sway boys recently moved from Bel Air to a secluded house in the Hollywood Hills. Party was broken by LAPD around 4am. This is a long thread. What are your thoughts @MayorOfLA? pic.twitter.com/FytCysK2E9
— Def Noodles (@defnoodles) August 15, 2020
Now, Hall’s rental has had the power shut off, according to Taylor Lorenz of the New York Times and confirmed by the mayor’s office. The city issued the following statement yesterday:
Despite several warnings, this house has turned into a nightclub in the hills, hosting large gatherings in flagrant violation of our public health orders. The City has now disconnected utilities at this home to stop these parties that endanger our community.
If we wish to reopen more businesses, return our kids to school, or get back to our normal lives, we must continue to wear masks, wash our hands frequently, and as we’re emphasizing today, avoid gathering with others. All of these actions save lives.
Hall was quick with a rebuttal, posting a TikTok of himself and another influencer (who, dammit, I refuse to look up), bobbing their heads to the song “Electric Love.” At the very least, it’s nice to hear that Børns will be getting some royalty money out of all this.
Bryce Hall posted a Tiktok with Blake Gray to the song “electric love” pic.twitter.com/3ALxTSXL3L
— Taylor Lorenz (@TaylorLorenz) August 19, 2020
The power shut off comes after weeks of LA-based influencers partying in direct contradiction to city ordinances. Jake Paul and another influencer mansion called the Hype House have also been critisized for throwing excessive parties.
To date, 173,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the United States.