GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Neighbors across Grand Rapids emailed and shared on social media that they can hear music from the Acrisure Amphitheater miles away following a recent concert.
FOX17 Meteorologist Colton Cichoracki says weather conditions may have played a role in how far the sound traveled.
Amy Clark, who lives on the north end of Grand Rapids, captured video from her home of bass clearly audible from the amphitheater.
"It was definitely really loud. I could hear his voice, I could hear, you know, which songs were playing, and I live four miles away, so that's pretty wild," Clark said.
Clark was not alone. A handful of people sent emails describing how far they could hear the music. One viewer named April wrote that she could hear the concert from 3 Mile and Plainfield. Another viewer, Tim, said he and his wife were not able to sleep.
"This is the first one that I've been able to hear from my house," Clark said.
The noise has been a story I have been covering closely since 2023. In my earlier reporting, project leaders showed neighbors what to expect when it came to sound levels.
A concert could potentially reach 100 decibels at the site, but maps shown to neighbors indicated that just a block north of the amphitheater, levels would drop to around 62 to 67 decibels.
One woman who attended the Machine Gun Kelly concert said the sound inside the venue was about what you would typically expect.
Cichoracki crunched the numbers and says weather likely played a factor in how far the sound carried.
"Because we had some low clouds and some humidity, all of which caused the sound to not be able to escape up into the sky, so it likely traveled out distance-wise, and that's why we heard it in so many neighborhoods across West Michigan," Cichoracki said.
Marie, who lives in the Creston neighborhood, said she is not against the amphitheater but hopes the conversation about noise leads to a better dialogue on the issue.
"I think it's great for the city. I think it's really exciting how many great acts are coming, but I think that, you know, was this a one and done incident? Was it, was there something, was it Machine Gun Kelly, that was louder than all of the other acts that have performed? I don't know," Clark said.
The amphitheater has not responded to a request for comment. A Grand Rapids city spokesperson provided a statement saying the amphitheater is exempt from the city's noise ordinance and that shows will end at 11 p.m. unless given permission to run later.
