Phish followers beware: Smoke a bong within the Las Vegas Sphere at your personal danger.
A Phish fan who bragged in April about taking the “first bong hit to ever be ripped” within the Sphere — and posted a viral video of him doing so — now says he’s obtained a letter from Madison Sq. Backyard Leisure’s attorneys banning him from the venue and all different MSG services.
In a picture of the purported letter posted to an Instagram account known as @acid_farts, an legal professional for MSG informed the unnamed proprietor of the account that the corporate “won’t tolerate actions that threaten the security and safety of our visitors.”
“You knowingly violated the visitor code of conduct by visibly smoking contained in the venue,” wrote Christopher Schimpf, an affiliate common counsel at MSG, within the letter dated June 3. “In mild of your conduct, you might be hereby indefinitely banned from Madison Sq. Backyard, Radio Metropolis Music Corridor … and some other MSG venue.”
The purported letter, reposted by the well-known Phish fan account known as @phunkyourface, informed the alleged bong-ripper that he was “to not enter into or stay in any of the MSG venues at any time sooner or later.” If he does so, “legislation enforcement will probably be contacted to make sure your expulsion and you can be topic to the penalties.”
A spokeswoman for MSG didn’t instantly return a request for touch upon the state of affairs.
Coming from MSG, a risk to ban somebody is not only bluster. The corporate has made headlines over the previous two years over its use of facial recognition know-how to ban sure individuals from the famed Manhattan area, together with plaintiffs’ attorneys who filed lawsuits towards the corporate. And proprietor James Dolan has beforehand issued high-profile bans towards Charles Oakley, a former New York Knicks star, in addition to towards a Knicks fan who yelled at him in 2017 to promote the staff.
The usage of such know-how for security and safety functions has grow to be widespread and is basically thought of authorized, and lawsuits from the attorneys who had been banned from MSG had been largely unsuccessful. Nevertheless it has drawn criticism from some civil liberties consultants and lawmakers, who concern that it poses privateness dangers and might be used punitively.
The Sphere, a $2.3 billion immersive live performance venue with LED screens stretching 250 ft above and across the viewers, opened in Las Vegas final fall. After a 40-show residency by U2, Phish grew to become the second band to play the state-of-the-art area with a four-concert run in April, that includes the distinctive units and trippy visuals that the Vermont jam band’s rabid fan base has come to anticipate.
On April 20, the @acid_farts Instagram account posted a clip that purported to indicate him at a kind of exhibits, taking successful from a big glass water bong to applause from close by followers. His caption: “First bong hit to ever be ripped within the @spherevegas @phish Any individual name @guinessworldrecords.” The video itself racked up 447 likes; when @phunkyourface reposted it a day later, it acquired one other 4,773 thumbs up from the Phish trustworthy.
However apparently MSG wasn’t so amused. In his June 3 letter, Schimpf famous that “you posted an Instagram video of your self smoking contained in the Sphere,” earlier than recounting the precise caption used on the put up. He warned that the person was now banned not solely from the corporate’s venues, but additionally from “the field workplace, Chase Sq. and the concierge areas” on the Manhattan area.
No person desires to be banned from MSG’s venues — the corporate additionally owns New York’s Beacon Theatre and Chicago’s Chicago Theater — however such a ruling is especially problematic for a Phish fan. Again in 2017, the band performed a well-known 13-night live performance residency at MSG dubbed “The Baker’s Dozen,” and its New 12 months’s Eve live shows on the Midtown area are an annual custom for Phish followers. In recent times, Phish frontman Trey Anastasio has additionally carried out at Radio Metropolis and The Beacon.
Following the information of the ban letter, Phish followers took to social media to joke about efforts to implement a smoking ban at Phish exhibits, that are well-known for a liberal angle towards drug use. In a single put up on X, person @MinnieFluff shared a picture of Anastasio doing a soundcheck earlier than an empty MSG: “Remaining crowd at Phish NYE 2026 after MSG Leisure makes use of facial recognition to ban anybody that has ever smoked inside their venues.”
For his half, the proprietor of the @acid_farts account appears unfazed by MSG’s threats. In a be aware under the picture of the letter, he mentioned merely: “The Sphere despatched me a plaque to commemorate what’s now formally the primary bong hit ever taken in The Sphere.”
Neither the proprietor of @acid_farts nor of @PhunkYourFace instantly returned direct messages from Billboard in search of remark.
