You can get the Booze, but not the Tunes

A band you love is coming to play in New York. This is part of the reason you moved to the city--all the opportunities to experience culture--right? You find out which train you need to take. Pick out the perfect outfit. Convince a friend to come with you, even if they've never heard of the band. You get up to the door of the show and there is a dude standing blocking the doorway.

" Can I see your ID?"

Those are the five little words that can ruin what would have been an amazing night if you are under 21 in New York City.

I've had it happen to me many times, even when I was 'with the band'. Nobody under 21 is allowed in some of the best small music venues in the five boroughs. The fact that 21 is the legal age for drinking has nothing to do with the frustration I feel when a band I've been waiting to see live comes to the city and I am not allowed in; I want to see the music, not just get drunk.

Under 21-ers do not go to live shows with the hopes of getting wasted. They can do that in their dorm rooms without paying the cover and $6 a pint. This is a well known fact about the city; you don't need an ID to get alcohol if you know where to go. In Manhattan there are a handful of bars and corner stores that will serve you without checking up on your age, but cross the East River to Brooklyn or Queens and you are more likely to get served than carded.

This is why the issue with music venues is more ludicrous than the drinking age. College kids can still get drunk on any night of the week, but when it comes to seeing a show they are turned away. Kids flock to this city from all over the globe to attend college, and they are a huge market for these venues. By shutting their doors to those under 21 they are loosing business. Why not develop a simple system to designate those over 21 from those under 21 and gain access to a large demographic of the city residents?

I have been to bars outside of the city that give out different colored wristbands or stamps to mark which side of the cut-off you are on. Yes, this means that the staff would have to do a bit more work, but I've seen this system be successful at the most crowded of concerts. Checking IDs for alcohol consumption only, people of all ages would have the chance to experience a show they may never have the opportunity to see again.

People always say, " you are old enough to get married and old enough to fight for your country, but not old enough to drink." In New York City it has become: You are old enough to get married, you are old enough to fight for your country, and you are even able to get ahold of alcohol, but you are not old enough to see a band play live.