Safety Concerns? Kodak Black Day Festival Called Off at the Last Minute

An annual festival organized by rapper Kodak Black has been abruptly called off at the eleventh hour.

On November 9, organizers of Kodak Black Day — an annual Veterans Day charity event that was set to take place today (November 11) at Cacti Park of the Palm Beaches — announced that they had "no choice" but to postpone the festivities owing to "unresolved issues" with the West Palm Beach Police Department.

"Despite extensive planning and preparations, ongoing challenges with the local police department have made it impossible for us to proceed with the event as planned," event organizers wrote in a press release. "We apologize for the disappointment and inconvenience this decision may cause to those who were planning to attend."

In a phone interview with New Times, event coordinator Jessica Williams explained that although the festival organizers signed a contract with Cacti Park on October 29 and were told by the venue that no permits were needed because the venue is privately owned, they were informed on November 1 that, owing to the city's noise ordinance and the "musical element" of the event, they would in fact need a special event permit.

Despite submitting the permit application and receiving approval from fire rescue, zoning, and other city departments, the police ultimately nixed the application, citing short notice and a lack of available resources.

"The police were saying that a notice should have been given three months out, but we weren't aware of that, and we only did what was based off of the venue," Williams says. "The venue, in essence, dropped the ball."

Adds Williams, "We were speaking to the venue every day, giving them ticket numbers, where we were with everything. The venue approved everything and allowed us to start moving forward. We spent almost $200,000."

The park did not immediately respond to New Times' request for comment.

A screenshot shared by TMZ appears to show a West Palm Beach police sergeant assert in a mass email bearing the subject line "Kodak Black Event" that the department wouldn't approve such an event on "such short notice," as "proper planning and notification times must be adhered to."

"As we discussed today in our meeting, the requested Kodak Black event has far too many public safety issues and concerns to address, plan, and staff with such short notice," the email reads. "High-impact events such as these require a minimum of three months' notification to allow for the necessary planning and preparation that is needed to ensure public safety."

It's unclear when the email was sent. The police department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reached by phone for comment, city spokesperson Diane Papadakos said she didn't "know anything" about the event. "I can't help you," Papadakos told New Times.

This would have been the third annual Kodak Black Day held by the controversial Broward County-born rapper, who has a long history of legal troubles.

While the 2022 event was held at Pompano Community Park, it was hosted last year at an FAU Tailgate in Boca Raton. This was the first year that it was scheduled at Cacti Park.

This year's Kodak Black Day, which was set to feature live music, a carnival, and a car show, was also slated to include guest appearances from rappers Sexyy Red and Luh Tyler, with proceeds benefiting local veterans.

While it remains unclear when the event will be rescheduled, Williams said that Black intends to hold the festival within the next few months and suggested the possibility of rescheduling it to January 2025.