Embed from Getty Images
Remember a couple months ago when Drew Carey had a transcendental, life-affirming, poetry-inducing reeeeally good time, thanks to the twin muses of jam band Phish and the Las Vegas Sphere’s LED lights? Yeah, well he wasn’t the only one rocking out on another plane of existence that night. A longtime Phish fan, known only to the universe by the handle @Acid_farts, was also in attendance at the April 20 show (pausing to let the date sink in…). Acid took a video of himself taking a big ole hit from his bong and blowing the smoke out into the audience. Then he posted the video. And tagged Sphere Las Vegas. Madison Square Garden, who owns Sphere, issued a lifetime ban to Mr. Farts from all MSG-owned venues, for violating their rule of no smoking and no glass permitted. Now MSG has done an about-face and lifted the ban. @Acid_farts lives to toke another day.
The Phish fan who received a lifetime ban from all Madison Square Garden venues for smoking weed during the band’s April 20 concert at the Sphere isn’t going out in a blaze of glory after all.
Less than a day after a Sphere Entertainment spokesperson for the venue told Entertainment Weekly that the man — who goes by the handle @Acid_farts on social media — was banned for impacting the experiences of other audience members with his drug use, the spokesperson confirmed that the ban had been reversed.
“There was a breakdown in our process due to a change in personnel, which resulted in the letter being sent inadvertently,” the spokesperson said in a statement provided to EW on Saturday. “This customer is not banned from our properties. However, it is still against our policies, which are in accordance with local laws, to smoke, bring glassware into our venues, and disrupt other fans’ enjoyment of the event.”
The fan, who has yet to reveal his legal name, made high history when he posted an Instagram Reel of himself taking a hit from a glass bong during the beloved jam band’s performance back in April. In the clip, concertgoers can be seen cheering, clapping, and engaging in a brief chant of “USA!” as he exhales a large cloud of pot smoke before the start of the concert.
“First bong hit to ever be ripped in the @spherevegas @phish,” he wrote in the caption. “Somebody call @guinessworldrecords.”
Earlier this week, @Acid_farts received a letter from Madison Square Garden Entertainment informing him that he’d been indefinitely banned from all the companies venues, including the Sphere, Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, and the Chicago Theatre. Sphere’s website states that the venue is a non-smoking facility and any violation of this policy can serve as grounds for ejection. The list of items prohibited at Sphere includes glass, cans, and aluminum bottles.
Even in the face of the ban, @Acid_farts told Rolling Stone he had “no regrets” over the stunt, though he admitted that tagging the Sphere’s verified Instagram account was “maybe a little oops.”
The almost-ban could have slowed down the West Coast resident’s efforts to add to his lifetime tally of 187 live Phish performances, as the band regularly performs a New Year’s Eve show at MSG.
“I’m really wearing it as a badge of honor,” he told Rolling Stone. On the other hand, he quipped, “I’ll never see the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall.”
Ok really, what made MSG reverse their decision with such haste? It read like they were in a panic to have the world know that stoner Phish Head was welcome back with open arms. And that line about it being a personnel shakeup error just seemed, well, fishy. Since when does new management translate into a more productive mail system?! But the star of this story, clearly, is Mr. Farts. “Even in the face of the ban, @Acid_farts told Rolling stone he had ‘no regrets’ over the stunt, though he admitted that tagging the Sphere’s verified Instagram account was ‘maybe a little oops.’” You guys, I’m dying. And totally adopting “maybe a little oops” into my vernacular. I have no doubt that if I had to deal with @Acid_farts in my own life I’d be at my wit’s end. From afar, though, the childlike simplicity of the statement, “maybe a little oops” is nothing but delightful. And the fact that when he thought he was still banned, he went on record saying, “I’ll never see the Rockettes!” Precious. But I hope Radio City realizes that he’s gonna be there in December with a holiday bong. Acid Xmas with the Rockettes!
Note by Celebitchy: This dude has a Golden Girls bong!!