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Photos: Thousands Wait Outside The Wiltern For Rapper J. Cole's $1 Concert
Massive lines snaked around the Wiltern in Koreatown today after rapper J. Cole announced on Twitter that there would be $1 wristbands handed out at the venue for a surprise concert tonight.
The crowd was so huge that NBC's Andrew Blankstein tweeted that it "clogged Mid-Wilshire" and LAPD officers were "on scene for major crowd control." NBC Los Angeles reported that thousands were outside the Wiltern this afternoon in hopes of snagging a ticket. The venue has a 1,850-person capacity.
This is the tweet that started it all:
Wiltern Theatre. 3790 WILSHIRE BLVD. LOS ANGELES. $1. Line shutting down once all wristbands are given out. Be safe and be careful.
— J. Cole (@JColeNC) June 26, 2015
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Just an hour after the announcement, J. Cole tweeted, "LA show is at capacity. Sold out."
This impromptu concert is part of J. Cole's "Dollar And A Dream Tour." It's the third year in a row that the rapper has offered fans tickets that cost just a buck, each time revealing the venue the day of the show. He announced this four-city tour through his record label, Dreamville Records, last week. The dollar tour also went through Dallas, New York City and Atlanta.
He'll then go on a summer tour throughout the country supporting his 2014 Forest Hills Drive album with big-name artists like Big Sean, YG and Jeremih on the same bill. Earlier this month, YG was shot in a Studio City recording studio, though he seems to be fine as he told Billboard this week that he went back to recording the day after he got shot, and says, "I'm hard to kill." They'll be performing at the Staples Center on July 19. While tickets aren't currently available, AXS, which is selling the tickets says on its website that the show isn't officially sold out, and more tickets may become available. Though, they definitely won't be as cheap as a dollar.
Here are some photos and video of the scene outside the Wiltern:
wow they lined up about 4 blocks down for Cole $1 show at the Wiltern, maybe the longest line I've seen. #coleworld pic.twitter.com/fdDzkfp5Es
— jay dubcnn (@jaydubcnn) June 26, 2015
@abbinskiee shit is hella packed it's at The Wiltern the line is crazy like around the whole block crazy haha. pic.twitter.com/O5iM74B0qW
— abuelo (@Ed_grrr22) June 26, 2015
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