Hey, Mr D.J.--get back to work!
Everyone knows that party can't get started until the DJ shows up.
Weddings, private parties, holiday bashes, you need somebody to spin records, get people dancing and to make sure that nobody's car is blocking the driveway.
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Just think of some the legendary DJs, such as Grandmaster Flash, Frankie Knuckles, David Guetta, and, of course, DJ D-Sol.
Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Casamigos
Wait, what? Who was that last guy?
Proceeds go to charities
DJ D-Sol is the nom de disc of David Solomon, whose day job is chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs (GS) -).
Solomon, 61, has performed a variety of high-profile gigs in recent years, including a performance last summer at the Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago.
However, the top executive has changed his tune and pulled the plug on his musical side hustle, according to the Financial Times.
His hobby reportedly hit a sour note in some circles within the company, who felt that his DJ schtick created a distraction from his work leading the Wall Street firm, the publication reported, citing people with knowledge of the decision.
Some folks were uneasy about his decision in 2019 to perform at Tomorrowland, a Belgian music festival known for heavy drug taking.
Solomon, who was named chief executive in 2018, also apologized to Goldman’s board in 2020 after he DJed at a 2020 event in the Hamptons resort area of New York that was criticized for blowing off social distancing rules during the Covid-19 pandemic.
His interest in DJing started more than a decade ago when he was working on a financing deal for a Las Vegas casino. He has said that proceeds from his performance have gone towards charities combating addiction.
'Music not a distraction'
Few colleagues remarked on his hobby before he became CEO, but his decision to keep it up after taking over the top spot was controversial for some employees who felt it brought unwelcome attention.
Amid all this, Solomon has been under fire from some investors over the bank's lackluster profits.
In the second quarter, Goldman posted its lowest quarterly profit in three years, as a costly retreat from consumer banking was compounded by the industry-wide slowdown in deals and trading
The investment bank posted better-than-expected third quarter earnings on Oct. 17, but booked more than $800 million in write downs linked to its real estate and home improvement lending divisions.
Goldman Sachs maintains that any controversy about Solomon's deejaying is just so much chin music.
"This is not news," spokesman Tony Fratto told the Financial Times. "David hasn’t publicly DJed an event in well over a year, which we have confirmed multiple times in the past."
"Music was not a distraction from David’s work," Fratto added. "The media attention became a distraction."
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