Media Barred from Lady Gaga DNC Concert

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

On Thursday afternoon, thousands of Democratic National Committee delegates and other dignitaries and VIPs will descend upon BB&T Pavilion in Camden (formerly known as the Susquehanna Bank Center, Tweeter Center, et cetera) to be entertained by the likes of Lady Gaga, Lenny Kravitz, and hometown hero DJ Jazzy Jeff. But if you’re looking for media accounts of this invite-only DNC concert, the pickings might be slim.

Organizers have banned press outlets — except one — from attending the concert, making the 7,500 tickets available only to delegates and other invitees, who include Hillary and Bill Clinton, the Obamas, and the Bidens, though we’re pretty sure it’s still generally against the rules for the president and vice president to be hanging out together at concerts. But we’ll see.

The DNC concert has been titled “Camden Rising,” and is supposed to show what an awesome place Camden is becoming.

“With the Philadelphia skyline in the background, it is a perfect time to shine a light on Camden’s history and promise,” said DNC member, New Jersey political powerhouse, and concert co-host George Norcross in a statement. “The transformation of Camden highlights the hard work of many, including the building and trade craftsmen who are committed to rebuilding urban areas throughout America.”

Speaking of George Norcross, it’s perhaps no coincidence that the solitary media outlet allowed to have a presence at the DNC concert is the one run by his daughter, Lexie Norcross — her Philly Voice is the official media sponsor.

A spokesperson for the concert claimed to Philly.com that the media blackout came at the request of Lady Gaga and other performers. If that’s true, it could make the DNC concert the first and only time that the fame-craving Lady Gaga didn’t want the media surrounding her. Presumably, the Philly Voice is excluded from the supposed contractual ban.

“If it makes you feel any better, I’m not sure if I can get in either!” said an official from Live Nation — which owns the venue — when we inquired. Hopefully they’ve done a bit of cleaning since last night’s Slipknot-Marilyn Manson double bill.

The Democratic Party is supposedly a champion of transparency, but given the DNC concert media ban, the whole DWS fiasco, and the many unanswered — and, for now, seemingly unanswerable — questions surrounding DNC finances, the only thing transparent today might be Lady Gaga’s dress.