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Organisers of AJ Tracey Manchester gig fined £10,000

The organisers of a surprise AJ Tracey gig have been fined £10,000 after huge crowds gathered in a park in Manchester to see the rapper perform.

In a video posted on Twitter afterwards, the British rapper said that he hadn’t expected so many people to turn up to Platt Fields in south Manchester yesterday (18 April) afternoon.

Photos and video footage show hundreds of people standing around basketball courts inside the park, with police appearing to monitor the situation.

Greater Manchester police have now confirmed a £10,000 fixed penalty notice has been issued to the organiser for breaching coronavirus legislation, the Manchester Evening News reported.

AJ Tracey in the building – showing love to Manchester! 🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾

Big up ✅✅ 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

Posted by Kemoy Walker on Sunday, April 18, 2021

 

The British rapper was reportedly in Birmingham beforehand and had planned to visit Bristol afterwards but has now cancelled the mini tour.

“Big love Manny [Manchester] and Brum [Birmingham], thank you for coming out. […] It’s not going to be safe for me to come to Bristol. I didn’t expect that many people to turn up in Manny and genuinely, yeah man, this is not okay for me to go ahead. I’m gonna head home to London,” AJ Tracey said in the video.

It is not known whether AJ Tracey performed in Birmingham, but he was spotted signing CDs of his new album Flu Game at record shop HMV.

 

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Brazilian singer arrested after unlicensed show

A popular Brazilian singer has been arrested after playing an unlicensed, non-socially distanced concert in a school last week.

Samba star Marcelo Pires Vieira, known as Belo (‘Beautiful’), was apprehended by Brazil’s Civil Police yesterday (17 February) following the 12 February show, described by news agency EFE as a “massive concert” at a state school in Parque Uniao, a favela in the north of the city.

According to police, the show took place both without authorisation and without any preventative measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, including mask wearing.

All Carnival events, parties and concerts are banned this year to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in Rio de Janeiro.

The show “could only have taken place with the authorisation of the head of the gang which controls drug trafficking”

In addition to the obvious breaches of coronavirus restrictions, officers suspect the concert, held on the first night of the Rio Carnival, was organised and financed by drug traffickers operating out of the favela (slum) where it took place.

Footage from the concert, filmed by both attendees and news helicopters, was broadcast on Brazilian television, showing a large crowd at the school.

Gustavo de Mello de Castro, head of the Civil Police’s drug commissariat, ordered the arrest of four people, including Belo. According to a police statement, the show “could only have taken place with the authorisation of the head of the gang which controls drug trafficking in the region,” Luiz Moura Bargosa, who is also subject to an arrest warrant.

A statement from Belo’s publicist says the singer was hired by a production company which had promised to fulfil all health and safety protocols and secure permission to hold the event.

 

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UK braces for long weekend of illegal events

Police, local authorities and industry associations have warned would-be party promoters against organising illegal gatherings in the UK this long weekend, after the government announced tougher fines for those found to be facilitating “the most serious breaches of social distancing restrictions”.

Britain’s home secretary, Priti Patel, announced earlier this week that anyone who organises an illegal rave, unlicensed music event or any other “unlawful” gathering of more than 30 people could be liable for a fine of £10,000.

Those who attend said events could also be punished with a fine of £100 for each violation, Patel (pictured) said.

“To the organisers of this sort of activity, I strongly advise that you seriously consider the risks you’re creating for everyone in attendance and the wider community,” says Commander Ade Adelekan, the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s lead for unlicensed music events.

Illegal raves have been on the increase in the UK in recent months amid the continuing shutdown of live entertainment, with unlicensed events also reported in France and elsewhere in continental Europe.

In London alone, the Metropolitan Police has responded to more than 1,000 unlicensed events since the end of June, receiving information on more than 200 events across the city in a single weekend, according to the Home Office.

“The government must consider safe options to allow the night-time economy and events sector to reopen”

There are fears the three-day weekend (Monday 31 August is a public holiday in the UK) could see an escalation in the number of illicit events, with councils across the country warning people against organising or attending illegal mass gatherings.

Michael Kill, CEO of the Night-Time Industries Association, says a spike in unlicensed parties over the bank holiday weekend will “escalate an already increasing number of unregulated and unsafe events placing young people at risk”.

“Small house parties and raves have been bubbling under the surface of society for many years now – but lockdown has intensified this, with young people searching for alternatives to late-night venues as they struggle to cope with continuing restrictions on their lives due to the pandemic,” he comments.

“Bank holidays present a particular challenge, but given the imminent reintroduction of student communities to university cities, and restrictions on the reopening of nightclubs and venues, we are concerned that the freshers’ period will result in an eruption of illegal house parties and gatherings. This will create challenging times for police forces up and down the country.”

He continues: “As the night-time economy and events sector is unable to reopen to provide safe spaces for young people to express themselves, DIY alternatives are being organised which are unregulated and may compromise young people’s safety. Previous illegal events have resulted in several serious incidents, but have continued to grow in popularity over the last few months.

“Thousands of businesses remain closed and struggle to survive and protect the livelihoods of their staff while unsafe illegal events continue. The government must consider safe options to allow the night-time economy and events sector to reopen to help combat the rise in illegal parties and raves across the country.”+

 

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Organisers sought after 10,000 attend illegal rave

Police are searching for the organisers of an illegal rave that drew thousands of partygoers to a national park in central France last weekend.

Up to 10,000 people are believed to have attended the festival, held on the edge of the Cévennes National Park, in the département of Lozère, from Saturday 8 August. According to local media, officers of the Mobile Gendarmery were sent in to lock down the gathering on Sunday (9 August) afternoon.

Events of more than 5,000 attendees are banned in France until at least 30 August. Further implicating organisers, the event was held in a protected area (the park is a Unesco world heritage site), while photos captured by the AFP news agency show unmasked attendees failing to observe social distancing.

According to Midi Libre, the party finally came to a close yesterday (12 August) afternoon, with police impounding sound equipment, generators, a trailer and a 3.5-tonne van.

“This massive influx of people who flout all the rules has shocked us profoundly”

Gendarmes had previously been guarding the festival site, preventing vehicles from leaving, to prevent the spread of Covid-19, local authorities tell AFP.

Valerie Hatsch, state representative (prefect) for Lozère, says locals were outraged by the influx of revellers into the region, which has escaped the worst of the coronavirus crisis. “People from Lozère take Covid very seriously,” she said on Sunday. “They have respected the social distancing measures and this massive influx of people who flout all the rules has shocked them profoundly.”

There has been increasing concern in France about illegal outdoor parties during the hot summer season, according to The Local.

In the UK, illegal raves have also been on the increase, with illicit parties in Waltham Forest, the Forest of Dean and Harborough, Leicestershire, among the latest to have sparked anxiety among local authorities.

 

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Live Nation pre-sues fake Coldplay merch sellers

Live Nation’s merchandising division has filed lawsuits in Boston against unnamed companies and individuals it believes will infringe on Coldplay’s trademarks when the band perform at the Gillette Stadium this Friday.

The litigation is an attempt by Live Nation Merchandise to persuade those who counterfeit and sell band t-shirts, posters and other merch to refrain from doing so at the 4 August gig in the city.

“This complaint will be amended when their true names and capacities are ascertained.”

The corporation has filed papers against John Does 1-100, Jane Does 1-100 and XYZ Company, stating that the true names of those who infringe on the band’s rights will become public knowledge once they are identified in the vicinity of the concert. Those accused of hawking the fake goods are being sued “under fictitious names because their true names and capacities are unknown at this time,” states the company in court papers. “This complaint will be amended when their true names and capacities are ascertained.”

Live Nation is seeking monetary damages as well as the destruction of all infringing merchandise, according to the lawsuit. It notes that as the promoter of the band’s A Head Full of Dreams tour, it has the exclusive right to use Coldplay’s trademarks “in the vicinity of the group’s concerts on the group’s present North American concert tour,” hinting that similar court papers could be filed across the continent as the 23-date stadium tour rolls out over the next ten weeks.

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Landowner fined after illegal ‘bush doof’ death

An Australian landowner has been fined A$3,000 after a man died on his property at an illegal music festival.

Twenty four-year-old David Gallagher died from a suspected drug overdose on Sunday at Omega Festival in remote Newton Boyd, New South Wales (NSW), which continued until Monday afternoon even after Gallagher was found dead in his car. Detective inspector Darren Jameson of Coffs-Clarence police told APP: “In my 26 years in the force I’ve never seen such a strong disregard for human life than to continue an event when someone has died in front of you.”

“I’ve never seen such a strong disregard for human life than to continue an event when someone has died in front of you”

An estimated 2,500 people attended the three-day ‘bush doof’, which went ahead without the landowner’s permission, says New South Wales police. The event – a joint venture between festival Zero db, record label Mada Beats and promoter Prog Stomp Productions – was originally planned for an aboriginal reserve in Tabulam but moved at the last minute following objections from the local council.

Witness reports suggest Gallagher lay dead in his car for up to 12 hours just 200 yards from the main stage. Following his death, Omega’s organisers refused to cooperate with the police, reports the Australian Daily Telegraph, forcing authorities to seek a warrant in order to enter the property.

 

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