Lady Gaga's father, a New York City restauranteur, is taking some serious social media heat after asking the public to donate money so that he can pay his employees.
Joe Germanotta, who owns Joanne Trattoria, started a GoFundMe campaign on Friday in hopes of raising $50,000 to cover staff wages after the restaurant was forced to temporarily close due to the spread of coronavirus and the "stay at home" order in the state.
"I'm doing the best I can but we had to close Joanne for the month. Our staff needs some help financial," he wrote in a since-deleted tweet, according to Newsweek. "Any help for our employees will be appreciated."
The Twitter world was not having it.
"You are wealthy and your daughter is beyond wealthy. This is just so disgusting that you would ask this of others!," one Twitter user said. Another added, "Why don't you ask your rich daughter to help you pay your employees? Just saying. The rest of us are struggling to make ends meet just like your staff."
Other comments were far nastier.
Amid the backlash, the GoFundMe page has since been deactivated and is no longer taking donations. Prior to the deactivation, the page raised only $541.
During the short time the page was active, the description read, "As our doors remain closed longer than anticipated, our staff is finding it increasingly difficult to finance the daily necessities to keep them healthy, like groceries and insurance costs — to say nothing of rent, utilities, and other recurring bills."
It continued, "Our goal of $50,000 would cover our typical payroll for approximately 2 weeks, and 100% of the profits would go to our hourly workers to provide those necessary items like food, childcare, and medical expenses."
According to Forbes, Gaga made $39.5 million last year and her net worth is said to be around $300 million. In 2011, the New York Post reported that she gives half of her earnings to her dad.