Once the Olympics got involved in this mess, there really was no turning back: the State Liquor Authority held an emergency meeting yesterday, and decided to suspend the liquor license of the SoHo club where Drake, Chris Brown, and their respective entourages got caught up in a bottle-tossing bar brawl. But now where will R. Kelly host his book release party?
Both basement lounge Work In Progress (WiP) and the Greenhouse club where it’s located have lost their ability to serve booze for now. “The SLA will not tolerate violent bars that break the law,” said SLA Chairman Dennis Rosen. “This should serve as a message that this agency will not hesitate to take immediate action when licensees pose a threat to public health and safety.”
As the News points out, the club had already lined up several big events this week, including the aforementioned R. Kelly party, an event for Knicks point guard Iman Shumpert, and a fete for the cast of the new Oliver Stone movie Savages.
This news comes a day after the club sued the city, claiming it's losing $264,000 a week because of the city-imposed shutdown over code violations. And a few days ago, Tony Parker sued the club claiming he suffered a scratched retina because of the fight and may miss the Olympics.
Various other injured tourists caught up in the melee have also sued over the fight, and the future of bottle service in NYC has been put on life support. So let us never, ever forget that this whole mess was allegedly started when Drake allegedly passed a note to Brown reading, “I am f--king the love of your life.”
