Phone-Free Experiment Causes Long Queues at Ghost Concert in Birmingham
Fans attending Ghost‘s concert on April 20th at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham experienced significant delays upon entry, with some reporting waits stretching to 90 minutes. This occurred as the band kicked off their “phone-free experience” tour, a policy requiring all attendees to secure their smartphones in Yondr pouches for the duration of the show.
Local reports and numerous frustrated posts on X indicated that the lines extended for considerable distances, reaching towards the Library of Birmingham in one direction and along the canal in the other. Many concertgoers speculated that these unusually long queues were a direct consequence of the new security measures implemented to enforce the phone ban. One fan on X described the situation as an “absolute sh*t show,” questioning the planning for an event with 16,000 attendees.
Neither the Utilita Arena nor Ghost have officially commented on the reasons behind the extensive delays. However, the band did reportedly delay their set time to accommodate the large number of fans still waiting to enter the venue.
The decision to implement a “phone-free experience” stems from the vision of Ghost‘s leader, Tobias Forge. In a recent interview with Audacy, Forge explained that this initiative is an “experiment” driven by his observation of an increasing disconnect at live shows due to widespread phone usage. “If you have 10,000 people at a concert and 8,000 of them are holding a phone, there’s something deeply disconnected,” he stated. He likened it to “having an intimate moment with someone and that person would just take out the phone like that. ‘Oh, hold on. I’m just gonna take a photo.’ I know some people do that.”
Forge acknowledged the promotional benefits of fans filming and sharing concert footage on social media, recognizing that “Part of our success is obviously from social media… We started on MySpace. That was the root cause for our success at the time. I don’t know if we would ever become anything if it weren’t for MySpace. And, obviously, our TikTok has played a huge part.”
However, his priority for the live show experience is the connection between the band and the audience. “My calling, my reason for being there is the connection between myself and everybody that I brought with me that are working in tandem to give you an experience, that experience is completely decocked if everybody’s just filming. Am I wrong? Am I right? I don’t know. That’s how I, and we, felt.”
Forge further elaborated on his reasoning in an interview with Planet Rock, citing the positive impact of a phone ban during the filming of the band’s movie, “Rite Here Rite Now.” He emphasized that the ban is not about copyright control or preventing fans from monetizing their own content. “‘Rite Here Rite Now‘, the film, the essence of messaging in that film was exactly that… We filmed two shows in L.A. in front of audiences where they had to put their phones into pockets… what ended up happening was that we had such an engaged crowd that seemed joyous in a way that… I had to go back years and in time since I last saw a fully engaged crowd where everybody’s actually watching the show. They don’t have to watch me, but they’re watching the band.”
Forge hopes this phone-free approach will allow fans, especially younger attendees, to have a more immersive and memorable concert experience, similar to what he recalls from past shows where memories were created in the moment rather than through a screen. “Some of the best shows I’ve ever been to, I have maybe not even seen a picture from that because they all live here in my head. They live in my core. That’s the memory I have of that. And that is an experience I wish for…”
The phone-free policy utilizes Yondr pouches, which securely store phones and remain locked until attendees leave the designated phone-restricted areas or visit unlocking stations within the venue.
Despite the initial hiccup in Birmingham, Ghost‘s “phone-free experience” tour continues across Europe and North America. Their new album, Skeletá, is set to be released on April 25th.
The “phone-free experience” tour continues with the following scheduled stops:
- Europe:
- April 22: Antwerp, Belgium at Sportpaleis
- April 23: Frankfurt, Germany at Festhalle Frankfurt
- April 24: Munich, Germany at Olympiahalle
- April 26: Lyon, France at LDLC Arena
- April 27: Toulouse, France at Zénith Toulouse Métropole
- April 29: Lisbon, Portugal at MEO Arena
- April 30: Madrid, Spain at Palacio Vistalegre
- May 3: Zürich, Switzerland at Hallenstadion Zürich
- May 4: Milan, Italy at Unipol Forum
- May 7: Berlin, Germany at Uber Arena
- May 8: Amsterdam, Netherlands at Ziggo Dome
- May 10: Lodz, Poland at Atlas Arena
- May 11: Prague, Czechia at O2 Arena
- May 13: Paris, France at Accor Arena
- May 14: Oberhausen, Germany at Rudolf Weber-ARENA
- May 15: Hannover, Germany at ZAG Arena
- May 17: Copenhagen, Denmark at Royal Arena
- May 20: Tampere, Finland at Nokia Arena
- May 22: Linköping, Sweden at Saab Arena
- May 23: Sandviken, Sweden at Göransson Arena
- May 24: Oslo, Norway at Oslo Spektrum
- North America:
- July 9: Baltimore, MD at CFG Bank Arena
- July 11: Atlanta, GA at State Farm Arena
- July 12: Tampa, FL at Amalie Arena
- July 13: Miami, FL at Kaseya Center
- July 15: Raleigh, NC at Lenovo Center
- July 17: Cleveland, OH at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
- July 18: Pittsburgh, PA at PPG Paints Arena
- July 19: Philadelphia, PA at Wells Fargo Center
- July 21: Boston, MA at TD Garden
- July 22: New York, NY at Madison Square Garden
- July 24: Detroit, MI at Little Caesars Arena
- July 25: Louisville, KY at KFC Yum! Center
- July 26: Nashville, TN at Bridgestone Arena
- July 28: Grand Rapids, MI at Van Andel Arena
- July 29: Milwaukee, WI at Fiserv Forum
- July 30: St. Louis, MO at Enterprise Center
- August 1: Rosemont, IL at Allstate Arena
- August 2: Saint Paul, MN at Xcel Energy Center
- August 3: Omaha, NE at CHI Health Center
- August 5: Kansas City, MO at T-Mobile Center
- August 7: Denver, CO at Ball Arena
- August 9: Las Vegas, NV at MGM Grand Garden Arena
- August 10: San Diego, CA at Viejas Arena
- August 11: Phoenix, AZ at Footprint Center
- August 14: Austin, TX at Moody Center
- August 15: Fort Worth, TX at Dickies Arena
- August 16: Houston, TX at Toyota Center
- Mexico:
- September 24: Mexico City at Palacio de los Deportes
Ogorthul: Immersed in the bone-shattering world of death metal and beyond. I’m here to excavate the latest news, reviews, and interviews from the extreme metal scene for you.
