Adam Sandler Reveals How He Got Adam Levine To Play At His Daughter’s Bat Mitzvah
Adam Levine played an interesting gig last weekend. The Maroon 4 frontman, who recently made headlines for his abrupt exit from NBC’s The Voice, headlined the bat mitzvah for Adam Sandler’s daughter Sadie.
Sandler told late-night host Jimmy Kimmel he was shocked that he was able to score a cameo by Levine after he reached out to him. Sandler said he texted Levine just days before the Jewish coming-of-age ceremony because he wanted to do something “special” for his 13-year-old’s milestone day, Page Six reports.
“I start texting Adam Levine, who’s a great guy. I say, ‘I’m sorry to do this to you, but my kid’s getting bat mitzvah’d Saturday night. Would you mind coming and singing a few tunes? It would be incredible.'”
Levine told Sandler he couldn’t say no to him and noted that that the bat mitzvah venue was one that he used to go to as a kid to celebrate his friends’ bar mitzvahs. The rock star ultimately returned to the familiar venue to perform three songs with Maroon 5 lead guitarist, James Valentine, at Sadie Sandler’s ceremony.
Adam Sandler said he still doesn’t know why Adam Levine agreed to show up, but he added, “it was the coolest thing.” He said his daughter Sadie hugged him “so much” after the surprise.
Adam Levine Performed at Adam Sandler’s Daughter’s Bat Mitzvah (Via @Kveller) https://t.co/YuWlSYIckh pic.twitter.com/sBOe15feEq
— JTA | Jewish news (@JTAnews) June 2, 2019
While Adam Sandler seemingly called in a favor from a friend, celebrity performances are big business at bar mitzvahs. According to The Hollywood Reporter, some celebs charge big bucks to perform at the religious event.
CNN president Jeff Zucker reportedly wanted to sign Kanye West for his son’s bar mitzvah in 2011 until he found out the rapper charges a $1 million performance fee. The celebration featured a performance by Drake instead.
While Hollywood Pop party planner Brett Galley said some musicians “don’t really like to be in that category [of bar mitzvahs],” he has booked many big names, including Jon Bon Jovi, Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj, and Fetty Wap.
As for Adam Levine, his father and maternal grandfather were both Jewish, but he has said he didn’t have a particularly strong religious upbringing. Levine told The Jewish Chronicle that his father did not try to force his religion on him and said he believes that “you have to let kids figure out what they want to do for themselves.” The singer also admitted he considers himself more spiritual than religious and said he isn’t a fan of the tradition of giving cash gifts at Jewish coming-of-age ceremonies, which is one of the reasons he declined to have one when he was a kid.
“My father did ask me whether I wanted a bar mitzvah, and I said no,” Levine said in 2011.
