Keep The Party Safe, Colorado’s awareness effort to prevent fentanyl overdoses, and AEG Presents: Rocky Mountains, have launched a new partnership to help educate concertgoers in Colorado about the risk of fentanyl contaminated recreational drugs across the state.
Dr. Rob Valuck speaks at the Keep The Party Safe/AEG Presents kickoff event on the importance of fentanyl awareness. |
The partnership, brokered by AEG Global Partnerships, will reach the Denver and broader Colorado music community through messaging and resources at multiple AEG Presents owned and operated venues and festivals in the region: Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre, The Ogden Theatre, The Bluebird Theatre, 1STBANK Center, The Gothic Theatre, Mission Ballroom, Global Dance Festival and Civic Center Park Concert Series. Through the new partnership, AEG Presents: Rocky Mountains and Keep the Party Safe will help ensure music and live-entertainment fans have the information they need for a safe and fun time, no matter the events they attend.
Launched in 2022 by the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention (Consortium) housed inside of University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy, Keep The Party Safe educates and empowers audiences to take steps to protect themselves and their friends from overdose. Keep The Party Safe skips judgment to land important safety messages, using nightlife-inspired artwork and references to grab attention just long enough to indicate: ‘We’re not here to judge. We’re here to keep you safe.’
National Fentanyl Awareness Day
The announcement at Mission Ballroom, AEG’s premier Denver concert venue, aligns with the observance of National Fentanyl Awareness Day, May 9, which aims to increase awareness and education about fentanyl. In remarks to event attendees, leaders from both organizations spoke about the importance of collaboration to help stem this public health crisis.
“Keep The Party Safe is targeted to those who might not know they are vulnerable and might not know about ways to stay safe, like having naloxone to reverse overdoses or picking a designated non-user,” said Robert Valuck, PhD, RPh, executive director of the Consortium and a professor at CU Pharmacy. “With AEG Presents, we’re finding creative ways to get the word out about life-saving precautions people can take by integrating Keep The Party Safe messages and resources into the concert experience.”
Emergency overdose kits are now available at AEG Presents concert venues across Colorado. |
“The health, safety and well-being of our guests will always be our number one priority,” said Don Strasburg, Co-President, AEG Presents Rocky Mountains & AEG Presents Northwest. “We’re proud to be teaming up with Keep The Party Safe, an important and timely awareness effort that mirrors our commitment to helping combat overdose and supporting the people and communities we both serve across the state of Colorado.”
Keep The Party Safe representatives conducted a naloxone training for AEG staff, empowering them to recognize and respond to an overdose. Organizers also debuted new Keep The Party Safe concert-themed venue creative and Overdose Emergency Kits.
A Public Health Crisis
Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, continues to drive the overdose epidemic across the country and in our state. In 2021 in Colorado, there were 1,881 overdose deaths, and nearly half involved fentanyl. (CDPHE) Fentanyl is 50 times stronger than heroin, which means overdoses happen faster and are more likely to be deadly. (CDC) When recreational drugs are tainted with fentanyl, it’s very hard for people to know it’s there—it can make anyone vulnerable to an overdose.
Don’t Let Fentanyl Cancel the Show
The official partnership runs through April 2024, with the potential to reach more than 1.2 million concertgoers with life-saving messages and resources. Keep The Party Safe education messages will be integrated into AEG venues and festivals in the Denver area:
- Global Dance Festival, Denver, July 21-22
- Mission Ballroom, Denver
- The Ogden Theatre, Denver
- The Bluebird Theater, Denver
- 1STBANK Center, Broomfield
- Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre, Greenwood Village
- The Gothic Theatre, Englewood
- Civic Center Park Concert Series, Denver, various dates
Within AEG Presents owned and operated venues and festivals, concertgoers will engage with the campaign via bathroom mirror clings, venue posters, digital signage, and event activations as well as interactive giveaways at a select number of shows and festivals. Additionally Keep the Party Safe will help drive raise awareness for fans with key brand messaging across the respective venue and festival’s digital and social channels.
Keep The Party Safe encourages people to create a checklist for a safer night out.
- Y.O.N: Bring Your Own Naloxone
- Before the party, designate a non-user
- Know the signs of an overdose
- As soon as you spot an overdose, call 911 and use naloxone
For more information, visit KeepThePartySafe.org.
April 1, 2024