Hanson (Yes, That Hanson) Causes Melee, Concert Scrapped

New York officials pull plug on free concert featuring Mmmboppers and Drake as crowd gets out of control

By Josh Grossberg Jun 16, 2010 4:06 PMTags
HansonKeira-Anne Mellis

Mmm….riot?

Who would have thought a free concert by Hanson and Drake would have prompted an unruly mob, but that's about what happened Tuesday in New York as promoters were forced to pull the plug on the show.

The set kicked off at 6 p.m. at Manhattan's South Street Seaport, a popular tourist destination and outdoor concert venue at Pier 17, with an opening act and the MMMboppers and rising hip-hop star set to follow.

But it unfortunately didn't turn out that way...

Organizers had been expecting a crowd of 10,000, but were caught off guard when an estimated 20,000 people packed the area. Soon enough the masses got surly and fights broke out.

"Had to cancel the free NYC show today because of a crazy audience that was braking [sic] things at the mixing board," wrote Zac Hanson on the brothers' Twitter page.

"Hope everybody is able to stay calm and that things don't get out of hand. Again we are sorry that we could not play!" added Isaac Hanson in a follow-up tweet.

Eyewitness said that fans began throwing bottles and chairs on the roof of surrounding buildings before Drake was due to hit the stage, creating what amounted to a dangerous situation.

The rapper initially blamed New York's Finest for the shutdown, tweeting "NYPD will not let me go on stage tonight," but that claim was shot down by a police spokesman.

"I am so dissapointed. To all the devoted fans that came out I wish you could have seen what I had planned! Until next time," Drake added.

Two people were arrested for obstructing government administration and disorderly conduct, while three people sustained minor injuries.

Luckily, no one was seriously Mmbopped on the noggin in the melee and event cosponsor Paper Magazine promised via Twitter to make it up to fans.

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