Madison Square Garden kept a running list of rappers, musicians, actors, and other celebrities, labeling them as risks and also noted their race, gender and sexuality in some cases, a new report showed. The rappers and celebrities who made the arena’s risk list is a surprising collection with even some well-known Knicks superfans being given the designation. Some of the celebrities branded as “high risk” include Freddie Gibbs, Lil Jon, DaBaby, and A Boogie Wit da Hoodie. Jadakiss and Fat Joe, vocal Knicks fans, are marked as “medium risk.” Other musicians, such as Morgan Wallen and Lily Allen and actors, like her ex-husband David Harbour, received the “medium risk” label. Anna Wintour, chief content officer of Condé Nast and global editorial director of Vogue, was slapped with the “medium risk” badge.
Celebrity Risk List
Other musicians and celebrities got tagged as “low risk” on MSG’s list. Those reported to have to be “low risk” include Ice Spice, Selena Gomez, Benson Boone, NFL player-turned-TV-host Michael Strahan, and Law & Order’s and future Emmys host Mariska Hargitay all of whom attended the wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce. Tracy Morgan, Edie Falco, and Ben Stiller, a regular on the Knicks celebrity row, also are considered “low risk.”
The list has tiers of risk, starting with “flagged” and ascending with the low, medium, and high designations, a source told WIRED. Actor Will Harrison of Daisy Jones and the Six was flagged on the list. Musician and producer Mark Ronson and actor John Turturro were also given a spot on the list. Jadakiss’ group The Lox with Styles P and Sheek Louch made the list but without any label.
Controversy Surrounding the List
The arena’s list contained a more disconcerting label. Some musicians were noted as “LGBTQIA” for reasons unknown. Ricky Martin, Phoebe Bridgers, who just performed MSG in June, and Emily Green of Geese were marked as “LGBTQIA,” according to WIRED. The list tracks 89 others as “LGBTQIA.”
The list, a “talent” database to Madison Square Garden, has almost 40,000 names, but only about 400 celebrities were given a risk designation. The roll of celebrities was leaked by hackers which stole data from the arena and ransomed it. The list also applies to The Sphere in Las Vegas, which is part of the Dolan family’s companies. The Sphere is owned by a company ran by James Dolan, chairman and CEO of Madison Square Garden.
The revelation of the risk list and tracking of celebrities sexual orientation are not the first controversies involving Madison Square Garden and it keeping tabs on people. In 2023 it was widely reported that Madison Square Garden’s parent company and other venues run by Dolan were using facial recognition to keep track of attendees and weaponized the technology to prevent lawyers from law firms that were suing the venues from attending events, which spawned a lawsuit that was eventually thrown out in the parent company’s favor.
Designations and Implications
Madison Square Garden also noted some as “not to be hosted” or “do not host,” meaning they don’t get complimentary tickets. Actress and model Julia Fox, comedian Adam Pally, and hip-hop producer Pete Rock, both who love the Knicks, won’t be getting tickets to the arena, according to the list.
Pally and Pete Rock share an odd connection that may hint at the purpose of the list and why some are designated the way they are. As addressed by WIRED, both have been critical of Dolan, who also helms the arena’s sports teams, notably the 2026 NBA Champions New York Knicks. Pally was noted by WIRED as having been critical of the Knicks’ management, while Pete Rock once called for Dolan to be boycotted. On the list Pally’s non-comp tickets designation comes with the memo “due to previous comments” “Medium risk” Jadakiss has also publicly criticized Dolan in the past.
Still others labeled with risk tags don’t seem to have any past scruples with Dolan, and some, like “medium risk” Fat Joe, have been supporters of the CEO, with the rapper performing at the Knicks’ championship celebration parade along with Jadakiss.
In conclusion, the Madison Square Garden risk list has sparked controversy and raised questions about the motivations behind it. The inclusion of LGBTQIA labels and the designation of certain celebrities as “high risk” or “medium risk” has been met with criticism and concern. As more information comes to light, it will be interesting to see how Madison Square Garden and James Dolan respond to the backlash and whether any changes will be made to the list or the arena’s policies.
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