Getting spotted at Madison Square Garden is one thing. Allegedly getting categorized in a private database is another.
New reports claim the iconic venue maintained an internal list that labeled dozens of celebrity visitors by their sexual orientation or gender identity, including 93 people reportedly marked “LGBTQIA.” That’s one guest list nobody asked to be on.
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According to investigations by 404 Media and Wired, the alleged database didn’t just identify notable guests. It also assigned many of them a “risk” rating, creating a system that looked less like a VIP registry and more like a surveillance scorecard.
Madison Square Garden allegedly labeled LGBTQIA celebrities
The database reportedly contained 39,539 entries covering people from entertainment, politics, sports, business, technology, and media. While most names carried no special designation, 93 celebrity entries were allegedly marked “LGBTQIA.”
Among those reportedly included were Ricky Martin, Phoebe Bridgers, and Geese guitarist Emily Green, who is transgender. Rapper Ice Spice was also reportedly listed in the database and categorized as “low risk,” with the report identifying her as a bisexual attendee.
The reported system also assigned security rankings that ranged from “flag,” indicating the lowest level, to “low risk,” “medium risk,” and “high risk.” Celebrities including Edie Falco, Tracy Morgan, and Ben Stiller were reportedly labeled “low risk.” Jadakiss and Fat Joe allegedly received “medium risk” labels, while Lil Jon and DaBaby were reportedly classified as “high risk.”
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According to Wired, those ratings often appeared to reflect whether someone had publicly criticized Madison Square Garden owner and New York Knicks executive chairman James Dolan rather than whether they posed any genuine security concern.
Even Fat Joe reportedly landed in the “medium risk” category despite being considered a supporter of Dolan because of his association with Jadakiss, who criticized the executive in 2020.
“It’s a really, really paranoid, terrible system,” a source told Wired.
The database reportedly surfaced through a hack
The database was reportedly discovered by the hacker collective ShinyHunters and first reported by 404 Media. Wired later examined the records and was the first outlet to detail the extensive labeling of celebrities, including classifications tied to gender identity and sexual orientation. Madison Square Garden has denied the reporting.
In a statement to Them, an MSG spokesperson said, “Wired’s reporting is inaccurate and false. MSG is pursuing legal remedies.”
Whether the database ultimately proves accurate will likely be sorted out elsewhere. But the reports have already sparked uncomfortable questions about why a venue would allegedly catalog LGBTQ+ identities in the first place.
Previous surveillance claims add to the concern
For digital rights advocates, the alleged celebrity labels don’t exist in a vacuum.
“I’ve never met James Dolan. I don’t know the higher-up leadership at Madison Square Garden. But, like, there does seem to be a bit of a pattern here,” Evan Greer, director of the digital rights group Fight for the Future, told Wired. “They just seem overly interested in queer and trans people in their venue.”
Greer was referring to an earlier report alleging that, under Dolan’s leadership, Madison Square Garden security meticulously tracked the movements of a transgender Knicks fan throughout the arena. According to the report, the objective was to keep her separated from Knicks players even though an employee reportedly said she posed no threat.
The alleged surveillance was remarkably detailed. Security reportedly compiled an 18-page dossier documenting when she scanned her ticket, rode the elevator, hugged an usher, ordered drinks, entered the women’s bathroom, and even noting that she exited two minutes and five seconds later.
If the latest reports are accurate, the controversy isn’t simply about celebrities being labeled. It’s about the possibility that Madison Square Garden may have been quietly collecting deeply personal information that had little to do with keeping fans safe.
Because nobody expects the hottest ticket in New York to come with an alleged identity tag attached.