LAST night's concert by the American hip-hop band The Fugees at Dublin's Point Theatre carried some chilling echoes of a previous concert at the same venue which ended in the death of a teenager.
Teenage fans were once again being crushed at the front of the stage and being pulled to safety by security crews. This time according to ambulance and security personnel who were at the scene, no-one was seriously injured.
At one-point when The Fugees Wyclef Jean appeared on a balcony, fans leapt over their seats to get closer to their idol. "This is not a concert, this is a party!" he shouted, while security guards tried to get people to move back from the edge of the balcony.
Later in the concert, Wyclef and his rapping partner, Prakazrel "Pras" Michel, held a "stage-diving" contest.
The worst crush came when singer Lauryn "L" Hill, the undisputed star of The Fugees, stepped down to the front row to sing an uptempo version of the band's hit single Ready Or Not. The ecstatic fans immediately pressed towards the spot where the 21-year-old rap star was perched, and security staff rushed from behind her to try to pull people to safety.
The Fugees attract a devoted teenage audience who identify with the band's streetwise hip-hop music and "rap refugee" spirit, and though the music was not quite as manic as The Smashing Pumpkins' style of grunge-metal, the hysteria of the fans was equally strong.
