JAY-Z SUPER BOWL PARTY PLANS HIT A SPEED BUMP

By: Yves Erwin Salomon

Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z has his own chain of 40/40 sports bars, but unfortunately for the rapper, he doesn't have one in Detroit, where he was hoping to throw an event during Super Bowl weekend, which is February 3rd through the 5th. SOHH.com reports that the mogul was denied when he requested use of the Detroit Public Library for an upscale shindig.

Conrad Wilson, head of marketing for the Detroit Public Library, attempted to offer an explanation as to why the rapper's request was turned down. He said, "Many people are asking for venues in Detroit and they are required to go through our formal channels and provide all the information about which buildings they'd like to use, as well as file for all the necessary permits and insurance. If that wasn't done properly, that would be a reason to deny the request."

Jay-Z enlisted MMG concert promoter Demetrius Carrington to organize the event, and Carrington had a different take on what transpired. He said, "They cancelled. We thought it would have been a really unique special thing. They totally screwed us and we ended up losing the whole function. It is ridiculous for a city in such financial shape to deal in such an unprofessional manner."

Carrington, who maintained that he followed the appropriate procedure, added, "For us to be in financial ruins in this city and for somebody to arbitrarily change their minds is ridiculous. We were going to employ 100 security detail. They issued me a preliminary contract; we could've done something legally. I was very disappointed. They have one of the biggest venues in the city that is probably going to sit dark (on) one of the biggest weekends that Detroit will have for a long time."

Jay-Z might still be able to pull off his shindig. He's been in talks with Detroit's C Pop Art Gallery about possibly hosting the event.