Getting into Studio B

June 7, 2008 3:04 PM

How can an older-than-he-looks 20 year-old guy get into a 21+ music event in Studio B?

I'd like to hear some music in Studio B in Brooklyn, but the event is listed as 21+ . I'm 20, but I look older (it's the goatee, I think) - I have no problems getting beers in restaurants and such. Am I likely to get in to Studio B? How can I improve my chances? Or, am I likely to get ID'ed at the door, and refused entry? Any tips? Also, anything else I should know? (I've never been there before).

posted by bkudria to human relations (23 comments total)

If it's a 21+ show you're going to get carded at the door. The only way you're going to get in is if the show falls after your next birthday; sorry.
posted by kate blank at 3:13 PM on June 7, 2008

Just general NYC experience, not anything specific to this place.

At any music venue I would expect to be ID'ed as a matter of course. If you don't have a fake, you're probably out of luck. There's the slight chance you'd have some luck if you slipped the bouncer a significant amount of cash (with an ID for him to pretend to check,) but you might just lose some cash - I personally wouldn't try in your situation, especially depending on how many other employees may be around to see him.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 3:16 PM on June 7, 2008

Also, even if you did have a fake, I would expect music venues to be much more likely to care that it's fake than some random bar.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 3:17 PM on June 7, 2008

More than anything, you're rolling the dice on the attendant's level of attention. If there's someone at the door collecting covers, you don't have a great shot at getting in, I'm afraid.

That said, here's what worked for me back in the day. Dress conservatively and tuck in your shirt. Use whatever misdirection is available - for instance, when I would try and buy beer when I was 19, I would pretend to have a battle of wills over whether or not I was gonna buy cigarettes. This would get a conversation going that sometimes would make the clerk forget to card me. If you can approach the door in a big knot of people or at some really hectic point of the doorman's night, you might be able to slip in while he's hustling to thin out the crowd.

Above all, don't act guilty or nervous. Behave as if there's no reason why you shouldn't be there or have your suit granted. If you're going w/ over-21 friends, try and make them your vanguard and get lost in the shuffle of a group entrance.

This really is a longshot if there's someone at the door. Good luck, regardless.
posted by EatTheWeak at 3:18 PM on June 7, 2008

Hmm, there is a cover charge, I'm going alone, and I don't have a fake ID (unfortunately). Dressing nice, but if my chances are slim-to-none I don't even want to attempt it/risk looking like a fool.
posted by bkudria at 3:26 PM on June 7, 2008

If you're from NY and have a NY State ID (license, for example), you can use colored pencils (a white, red and a regular pencil) to, um, alter the date on the ID to magically gain a year of age (it'll erase right off with a rubber eraser afterward). Make sure you change the number in the corner of the card, too, if you do this (the first two digits are the year of your birth).
posted by cosmic osmo at 3:41 PM on June 7, 2008

Bring a camera. Say you're photographing the show for X newspaper/music web site, etc. If you want to kind of be legit about that kind of move, you could even call/e-mail a local music web site or paper or whatever and ask if they'd be interested in having photos of the show. Ask them if they can hook you up with a press pass.
posted by emelenjr at 3:44 PM on June 7, 2008

Bouncers who care or who are at places which care will often scrape the ID with a fingernail to check for cosmic osmo's trick.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim at 3:49 PM on June 7, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

cosmic osmo: Also, my NY State ID has "UNDER 21" written on it in huge red letters.

emelenjr: Good idea - I have a (good!) camera but it's the kind that's compact and small, not the type I'd expect a reporter/photog. to have.
posted by bkudria at 4:09 PM on June 7, 2008

I actually knew a guy who got into a show when underage by posing as a music magazine reporter. Like, I didn't hear about this from a friend of a friend, I knew the guy and he really did it. Although, he was of Finnish descent and pretended to be from a Finnish magazine, which might have helped. This was also before the ubiquitous internet, faking affiliation is probably a lot harder these days.

I don't even want to attempt it/risk looking like a fool.

Then you're SOL. Your solution is, age.
posted by nanojath at 4:14 PM on June 7, 2008

(Also, if that photo on your profile is current, yeah, you're gonna get carded, babyface).
posted by nanojath at 4:18 PM on June 7, 2008

nanojath - it's not :p .
posted by bkudria at 4:21 PM on June 7, 2008

Ahem - another idea. I have in my possesion a (legit) ID card from a major newspaper here ('cause I work there). Might (dressing nice and) pretending I write/photograph for the paper, work?
posted by bkudria at 4:27 PM on June 7, 2008

Studio B checks ID at the door. I'm 31 and my boyfriend is 29 and we get carded every time we go. A fake ID is the way to go if you don't have any moral compunctions about that sort of thing.
posted by alicetiara at 4:31 PM on June 7, 2008

alicetiara - I don't. I just don't know who to get them from. MefiMails welcome.
posted by bkudria at 4:35 PM on June 7, 2008

If you're even worried about getting carded forget it.
posted by Max Power at 4:38 PM on June 7, 2008

Dont get a fake id...talk to anyone who resembles you (here in NYC they dont look as closely) and get their ID.......if you cant get that done...I would suggest going to some cash...talk to a bouncer (privately) just move him over to a side and tell him you need to talk to him alone (so the others dont see) and explain the situation....I know some people say to forget it but if you really wanna go for it dude, at least you gotta give it a try....
posted by The1andonly at 4:45 PM on June 7, 2008

Also, my NY State ID has "UNDER 21" written on it in huge red letters.

as long as according to the issued on date you were under 21, then there's no reason that that will be the thing that flags it for the bouncer. i'm from NYC and though i am over 21, whenever i go out here someone in my group is always using an old learner's permit or something for ID (because who knows how to drive here??)

ANYWAY. "chalking" an ID is a common trick that is known to just about everyone in NY, including bouncers, so if they're just glancing at your ID and handing it back to you you'd be fine, but all bets are off if intense scrutiny is involved. I've never been to Studio B so I can't comment on their door policy specifically.

(Also, I used to go out all the time in high school in the city and got carded maybe half the time...that is just not true of NYC anymore. I almost always get carded now, and I've had my ID scanned more than once in the past week, which I had never seen before this summer--at shitty bars in the LES I went to when I was 16! The po are cracking down on underage drinking, I guess. Your best bet is to borrow the (real) license of someone who looks passably like you.)
posted by cosmic osmo at 5:39 PM on June 7, 2008

i forget my id sometimes—i'm almost 30 but can pass for college-age easily—and i usually just tell bouncers how old i am, my year of birth and that i don't care enough about booze to drink so if they want they can just write a big black x on my wrists so the bartenders know not to serve me alcohol, and they always just let me in without even doing that. i'm a cute girl though and bouncers tend to be nice to cute girls, so your mileage may vary.
posted by lia at 7:17 PM on June 7, 2008

I was at Studio B for the Brazilian Girls concert and they carded everyone that was near me. The checked IDs before the doors were open, thats how I know he carded most people.

YMMV.
posted by edmz at 7:26 PM on June 7, 2008

Also, call ahead and check that it's actually 21+. I just missed the Diggnation Live event because it was listed as 21+ on Studio B's website but was actually 18+. I didn't learn this until the day of.
posted by InsanePenguin at 7:46 PM on June 7, 2008

If its a band you're trying to see, get there way early, like when they're loading in or doing their soundcheck. Hang around until you meet somebody, then buy them some food or beer or something when they go out to dinner. They'll sneak you in the back door, no problem.

It its a DJ thing, I don't know nuthin' about that scene. Probably the same, except they'll probably want drugs and glow sticks instead of beer and burritos.
posted by spilon at 8:32 PM on June 7, 2008

Thanks for all the tips, guys, the event was tonight and I ended up not going, due to all the dire warnings.
posted by bkudria at 8:36 PM on June 7, 2008