Fans who were hoping to post recorded moments from any of Dave Chappelle’s upcoming shows will go home disappointed.
The comedian has inked a deal with Yondr to use the company’s smartphone-locking pouches to ensure none of his material is leaked to the web, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
This means attendees at any of Chappelle’s performances from this point forward will be given gray smartphone sleeves, available in three sizes. Staffers will instruct them to place their phones inside the sleeves and fasten them, at which point they are welcome to carry them inside the venue.
As soon as they enter the “no-phone zone,” however, the pouches will have locked shut, preventing anyone from recording, sending, posting or calling anything from their phone. If you really need to make a call or send a text, simply leave the designated no-phone zone. As you move past several strategically placed stations, the pouches will automatically unlock.
The service is already being employed by various schools around the country, according to THR.
Hannibal Buress was the first comedian to try Yondr. After a video went viral of a 2014 performance in which he repeatedly called Bill Cosby a rapist, resulting in death threats, Buress decided to use the technology at a show last June. That led executives from Live Nation, producers of the current Chappelle tour, to consult with him about Yondr. He told them he was happy with the results.
“It’s a huge thing for Chappelle, like all comedians: how to make the show phone-free,” says Yondr founder Graham Dugoni, 29, who adds that “the deal came together pretty quickly.”
