Astronomer CEO Andy Byron Put on Leave After Coldplay Concert Video
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron has been removed from his post following his viral moment at a Coldplay concert.
After he was seen dodging cameras when a jumbotron at the band's recent Massachusetts concert showed him closely hugging a woman, leading frontman Chris Martin to joke that the pair were "having an affair," Astronomer announced its decision to place Byron on leave.
"Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy is currently serving as interim CEO," Astronomer shared in a July 18 statement posted on LinkedIn. "We will share more details as appropriate in the coming days."
The company also said that a formal investigation has been launched regarding Byron.
"Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding," the firm said in a separate statement. "Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability."
Astronomer also clarified that another company staffer was not with Byron and the woman at the show, saying that "no other employees were in the video."
"Andy Byron has not put out any statement," the organization added, "reports saying otherwise are all incorrect."
Martin has also not publicly spoken out about the buzz surrounding Byron, though he did express remorse in unintentionally calling attention to the tech entrepreneur during his July 15 concert.
"Oh s--t," he quipped to the audience after seeing Byron and the woman duck out of frame. "I hope we didn't do something bad."
And when the camera panned to another man and woman in the audience, Martin asked in reference to his earlier onstage gaffe, "Are you two a legitimate couple?"
But that wasn't Martin's only slip-up that night. Elsewhere in the show, the 48-year-old accidentally thought he was still in Canada, where he and his band toured in early July.
"Oh no, we're not in Canada," he told the crowd. "I'm so sorry. We're in America, where it's slightly more complicated."
For more viral concert moments, keep reading...
The Jonas Brothers member had to send out an S.O.S and ask fans to stop throwing things on stage after two bracelets almost hit him at a California stop on the group's tour in 2023.
In case it wasn't clear, Cardi B does not like it like that. When a front row patron splashed their drink on the performer mid-set at Drai's Beachclub in Las Vegas July 2023, she responded by throwing her microphone.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement that an unidentified woman reported a battery case the day after the concert, but noted no arrest or citations have been issued. In August 2023, Cardi's lawyers told TMZ that police informed them no chargers would be filed against the singer.
Baby, Bebe Rexha is gonna have the best f--kin' night of her life no matter what happens. Struck in the face when a man at her June 2023 show in NYC threw a phone, she later posted a photo of her injured eye, writing, "Im good."
Todd A Spodek, a lawyer for Nicolas Malvagna, who was arrested and charged with assault, told TMZ, "As a fan, Mr. Malvagna's sole intention was to have Ms. Rexha take photos with his phone, and return it as a keepsake. It was never his intention to injure Ms. Rehxa."
Kelsea Ballerini didn't find it all that charming when someone tossed jewelry up on stage during a June 2023 performance in Idaho. "Someone threw a bracelet, it hit me in the eyes," she wrote on Instagram Stories days later, "and it more so just scared me than hurt me."
Listen, she's not that sweet. Ava Max had words for the man who assaulted her during an L.A. performance in June 2023. "He slapped me so hard that he scratched the inside of my eye," the "Sweet but Psycho" singer wrote on Twitter. "He's never coming to a show again."
Pink thought the fan who randomly passed her a wheel of Brie while she was singing at at London's British Summer Time Festival in 2023 was kinda grate. "What the f--k," the musician said, as she reached for the dairy. "I wanna kiss you on the mouth."
But just give us a reason for why another fan tossed a bag of ashes the very next day. "This is your mom?" the "What About Us" singer asked. "I don't know how to feel about this."
A sign of the times? Harry Styles had to get away from numerous flying objects during his Love on Tour, including, inexplicably, a handful of Skittles at a 2022 show in Los Angeles. A rep for the taste the rainbow brand later tweeted, "Didn't think I needed to say this: Please don't throw Skittles."
What a boob. As Billie Eilish sang "Lost Cause" at a February 2022 show, one fan tossed a set of false boobs at her. But proving that she's, uh, breast under pressure, the seven-time Grammy winner flung them back into the crowd and kept going.
Uh, guys, he warned you. Moments after Kid Cudi told the crowd at his 2022 Rolling Loud set, "Yo, I'm going to walk off this stage, if y'all throw one more f--king thing up here, I will leave," he was pegged with yet another object. So he left.
Arianators were left feeling sour after Ariana Grande was beaned with a lemon while headlining Coachella in 2019. And though the singer was definitely not so into it, into it, into it, she brushed off the fruit, telling the crowd, "One of ya'll threw a lemon at me, s--t."
eonline
