Tailgating Banned at John Mayer, 311 Shows

Posted on Apr 24th 2008 11:00AM by John D. Luerssen
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Live Nation has banned tailgating at five concerts slated for New Jersey's PNC Bank Arts Center in an effort to reduce alcohol consumption. A crack down on underage drinking, the restriction applies to shows by the likes of John Mayer, OAR, 311, WKTU's Beatstock and Linkin Park's day-long Projekt Revolution festival.

Representatives of Live Nation -- who are midway through a 20-year contract to present concerts at the state-owned amphitheater -- told the state's Senate Legislative Oversight Committee in Trenton yesterday the news. The announcement is a reaction to the deaths of 2 teenagers, which occurred at the Holmdel venue during Ozzfest on August 16, 2007. 83 others were arrested for drugs and alcohol violations.

"We need to teach kids that getting out of control in the parking lot is not cool," Live Nation New York president Kevin Morrow told a small audience at Holmdel High School last month. "We have tried to get some of the more sober musicians to do public service announcements, but they don't want to be the poster child for it."

"I have never had someone die at one of my shows," Morrow also said. "So, we decided to remove shows like Ozzfest, the Mayhem Tour and Warped Tour." During the 2007 summer concert season, the total tally of arrests was 615 over the course of 34 concerts. 437 of the arrestees were underage.