Musicians are a very eccentric crowd, and their strange proclivities extend beyond the stage and public eye. Many people have heard about Van Halen’s famous request to have a bowl of M&Ms in their dressing room with no brown candies in the bowl. However, many artists make very particular requests.
Before embarking on a tour, musicians need to outline what is called a tour rider. This document meticulously details an artist’s baseline requests for every venue that they will be performing at. These requests range from safety instructions for pyrotechnics and light effects to personal hospitality requests. While this might seem like entitlement, not all bizarre requests are diva behavior, but rather an ask that serves a greater purpose. The following, however, are 8 of the most peculiar.
9
Van Halen’s Bowl Of M&Ms
These Candies Are More Important Than You Think
This famous rock band is not only well known for Eddie Van Halen’s iconic guitar chops, but also for their incredibly electric stage performances. Each member brought an explosive energy to the stage that added fuel to the fire of their show, and their light show heightened the experience. As the story goes, the band put a clause in their tour rider that M&Ms must be provided to the band in the dressing room, but no brown M&Ms were allowed backstage.
If the band spotted brown candy in their dressing room, they knew that the show might not be safe.
This was to ensure that all the requirements of the tour rider had been reviewed, including the safety requirements. If the band spotted brown candy in their dressing room, they knew that the show might not be safe. Their intricate light show and production required delicate attention to the required power supplies and heavy load-bearing battens to be safe. David Lee Roth talked about this clause openly in an interview (via NPR) after people began to believe that the band was going on an unnecessary power trip over candy.
8
Rihanna’s Clean Toilet Request
The Bathroom Must Be Squeaky Clean
Some artists need all the toilet seats to be replaced in the backstage area before they arrive at the venue. However, Rihanna takes a different approach. You can keep the toilet seats, as long as they are spotless.
According to the LA Times, Rihanna’s tour rider outlines that all toilets must go through a “DEEP CLEAN” with each letter capitalized for emphasis. She requires that the bathroom be spotless, and the toilet and shower be deep cleaned. To top it all off, she sets the mood with candles that are nearly $40. If you want to feel like you are in Rihanna’s dressing room, the candles are Archipelago Black Forest candles.
7
Eminem Wants A Koi Pond
This Rap God Wants To Bring A Zen Vibe Backstage
When Eminem took a trip to Northern Ireland to perform at the Tennant’s Vital festival, he made an extremely bizarre request for his backstage accommodation. NME reported that Eminem’s rider came with the request that a wooden pond be built backstage. Not only did he want the pond to be filled with fish, he was very particular about the fish species. The fish that he requested were not cheap, ranging from £200 to £600 each.
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It is particularly odd that the fish aren’t his pets. He isn’t requesting that a pond be built so that he can bring his beloved fish with him, he just wanted some fishy company before his show. After staring into his fishpond, Eminem also fuels up for a show with yogurt, seedless watermelon, and a workout, according to the items on his rider.
6
Mariah Carey Requests A Zoo
This Iconic Pop Diva Requires The Company Of An Excessive Number Of Animals
In 2009, Mariah Carey had a very special vision for a delightfully festive Christmas show. Carey was ushering in the Christmas season at Westfield Shopping Centre, lighting up the mall’s mesmerizing display of lights. She required a ridiculous amount of production and spectacle for this singular show.
According to The Telegraph, Mariah Carey wanted to arrive on the scene in a Rolls-Royce to stand on a bright pink podium at the end of a pink carpet to dispel Christmas magic from her wand to the surrounding lights. She wanted confetti in the shape of butterflies to rain down around her to conclude the show, which is no surprise to fans of her 1997 album Butterfly. However, her strangest demand was the animals she wanted present at the event.
She required a ridiculous amount of production and spectacle for this singular show.
Carey wanted to be surrounded by 20 adorable snowy white kittens as she turned on the lights. She wanted 100 white doves to fly into the air as the lights came up, but both of these requests would be blocked for safety reasons. Overall, safety would not be an issue for the singer at the event, because she requested that she be guarded by an excessive 80 security guards throughout the event.
5
Beyoncé Thrives At 72 Degrees
The Singer Needs Her Thermostat Set And Her Grapefruit Candles Lit
Beyoncé is a world-class talent, and she knows exactly what she needs to deliver an unforgettable experience. Queen Bey’s tour rider is full of very specific requests, particularly surrounding the singer’s backstage environment and its appearance. She has very detailed requests for furniture, candles, and the temperature of her room.
InTouch magazine (via The State Journal-Register) released a copy of Beyoncé’s tour rider that reveals that the Destiny’s Child alum requires a particular ambiance backstage. She wants the room to be decorated exclusively with all white furniture. She requires many different places to rest, requiring a love seat, a sofa, and a chaise lounge. She also requires two white rugs to cover the floors of her green room. Not only does the furniture need to be bright white, but the tablecloth under the catered food must be as well.
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Beyoncé also likes to maintain the ambiance of the room. She requests Joe Malone grapefruit candles, which go for $50 or more. However, she isn’t too picky, any comparable grapefruit candle will do in the case that Joe Malone candles are not available. She also wants the room to be a very particular 72 degrees Fahrenheit. This may be for comfort, but it could potentially be ideal for her vocal and physical health. The artist also likes to keep it clean with two bars of Irish Spring soap.
4
Lady Gaga’s Dinner Schedule & Beyond
Lady Gaga Knows Exactly What She Wants To Eat
Most people can not decide what they want to eat for dinner, but Lady Gaga knows exactly what she wants every day of the week. In addition to her strict eating schedule, Gaga has a fairly unusual requirement for her vocal health. According to ABC News, Lady Gaga has a precise schedule mapped out when it comes to what she and her team will be eating daily.
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Her weekly schedule is outlined clearly: Monday is barbecue, Tuesday is Asian food, Wednesday is Mexican food, Thursday is American fare, Friday is craving night, Saturday is a variety of pasta dishes, Sunday is a Thanksgiving-style turkey dinner. She also requests two bottles of white wine, either Kendall-Jackson or Robert Mondavi, which are shockingly affordable. She has a few additional interesting food requests, like non-sweaty and non-smelly cheese, vegetarian hot dogs, and cases of water that are not Dasani.
Lady Gaga also requires an oxygen tank backstage. It is unclear why she asks for this, though it may be for her vocal cord maintenance or perhaps to provide relief from her lupus symptoms. Singers generally keep a vocal first aid kit to ensure they can sing their hearts out night after night without losing their voice.
3
Aretha Franklin’s Fear Of Heights
Aretha Franklin Wants Her Feet Planted Firmly On The Ground
Aretha Franklin is the queen of soul, and she always got what she wanted. Franklin was sometimes referred to as a diva, as she was known to make very strict requests of her staff. Her iconic vocal melodies are full of soul, and belted high notes that soar far above the heads of audiences. However, the singer herself is not one for flying. She was always afraid of heights and refused to fly in an airplane.
Not only did Franklin refuse to fly, but she didn’t want to stay in a hotel room above the fifth floor, according to Page Six. Her custom bus that took her to each show was a necessity due to her fear of planes.
Her voice was her greatest asset.
The icon had many little quirks like this. For each gig she demanded $25,000 in cash at the conclusion of her performance. This particular amount is strange because it was not even the entirety of her artist’s fee. While many artists try to control the heat of their environment, Aretha Franklin did not care if it was 100 degrees on stage; she wanted all the air conditioning vents above the stage to be taped up. This was because her voice was her greatest asset, and she did not want the air from the vents to enter her lungs.
2
Kanye West’s Custom Slushy Machine
West’s Bizarre Antics Extend Beyond Public View
It is no surprise that Kanye West makes out-of-pocket requests in his tour rider. As one of the most entitled artists of this generation, of course he has unreasonable requests. In 2016, before his plunge into infamy, West had several eccentric requests in his Saint Pablo tour rider.
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In his dressing room, you could find a slushie machine with two custom concoctions. One tap dispenses frozen Coca-Cola and Hennessey, and the other flavor is lemonade with Grey Goose, according to Complex. He also required a full entertainment system with a TV, CD player, DVD player, and an XBOX 360. In his dressing room, he also requested a barber’s chair inexplicably.
1
Britney’s Framed Photo Of The People’s Princess
The Pop Princess Wants To Be Surrounded By Royalty
In 2011, Britney Spears made a trip across the pond touring for her new album Femme Fatale. While in London, she must have been feeling the influence of English culture, because she wanted Princess Diana to be with her in spirit for every show. According to Pop Crush, Britney requested that a framed photo of Princess Di accompany her in the dressing room for every gig. The icon of British royalty was an inspiration to Spears, and the picture likely brought her the confidence necessary to perform.
However, the requests don’t stop at framed photos. Spears has very extravagant food requests. She has a love for fast food, requiring McDonald’s cheeseburgers, but hold the no buns. She is also a lover of fruit, requesting 100 prunes and figs, which is likely far more than anyone should eat in one day, even pop royalty. She also got into the English spirit with fish and chips paired with mushy peas. The seafood, however, doesn’t end there. She loves deep-fried shrimp scampi and needs her fix before she hits the stage.
