He did it.
On Saturday (July 11), Pitbull set the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of people wearing bald caps during his headlining show at the BST Festival in London’s Hyde Park.
According to Guinness, the official count came to 22,141 people in bald caps and is now credited to the Cuba-American rapper (real name Armando Christian Perez).
Despite the 30-degree heat, thousands wore the latex-plastic caps, along with his signature white shirt, black tie and aviator sunglasses.
After accepting the honour, Pitbull said, “I’m speechless. Who would have thought a first-generation Cuban would be record-breaking and record-making?”
The Guardian reports that in order for Mr. Worldwide to be counted, Will Munford, an official adjudicator for Guinness, said he too had “to wear a bald cap to be in the record number,” which he did.
Munford added that 400 volunteers were required “to individually check people” at the entrance and on the festival grounds. The count was also assisted by drone footage featuring “42 counters backstage.”
The attempt to break the record was so popular in London that some fans that attended the concert told The Guardian many shops around the city had sold out of the novelty item.
Setting the record was the brainchild of BBC Radio 1 Breakfast host Greg James, who thought of it live on air as soon as the concert was announced. James immediately reached out to Pitbull, who was obviously on board to take the challenge and work with BST Hyde Park to make it happen.
However, the idea is said to have come from podcaster Jack Remmington, who originally suggested the idea due to the number of fans who often cosplay as Pitbull at his concerts.
Munford argues that the record is “not novelty,” despite the silliness, because it took so many people to volunteer and make it happen. He views it is an example of “record-breaking that wouldn’t have had the chance to in the past.”