Van Halen explains the true story behind the brown M&Ms story

David Lee Roth loves a good rumour.

Since the 1980s, Van Halen has dealt with their reputations as diva singers, temperamental guitarists and ever-changing members. Part of this perception is due to an infamous stipulation in their tour rider, which states that "there would be no brown M&Ms in the backstage area or the promoter will forfeit the show at full price."

When this tidbit about Van Halen was first revealed many years ago, it was seen as the epitome of entitled rock star behavior. However, as Roth now explains, the "brown M&Ms" clause actually served a much more important purpose.

In a video released on Van Halen's Vimeo page, Roth explains the legend of the brown M&Ms.

Brown M&Ms from Van Halen on Vimeo.

"The promoters frequently didn't read the contract rider and we would have structural and physical issues because there wasn't the proper electricity, load-bearing and stress, etc," Roth says.

According to the Van Halen lead singer, he put the clause in their contract rider as an easy way to make sure that the promoter had read the entire thing. Because if the promoter didn't include the brown M&Ms, who knew what else he'd neglected to do? And considering the elaborate shows that Van Halen put on for their fans, one wrong move could endanger someone's safety.

The system proved effective until Roth was accused of causing $470,000 worth of damage to an arena after he found brown M&M's in his dressing room, which Roth says was not exactly the case.

During one of their early tours, Roth did find brown M&M's in his dressing room and did have a fit. However, in the video, he says that the fit he through amounted to a $200.00 food and pillow fight -- and that he had nothing to do with the reported $470,000 worth of damage to the arena.

According to Roth, the venue had recently installed a rubberized floor that was sensitive to weight, and since the promoter neglected to read the stage weight requirements in the rider, the stage sank six-and-a-half inches into the floor, causing the damage.

At the time of his M&Ms fit, Roth had no idea the stage had sunk, but when it played out in the press, he remembers the media reporting, "David Lee Roth discovered brown M&M's in his dressing room and trashed [it], causing close to half a million dollars worth of damage."

Today, Roth laughs about the incident. "Who am I to get in the way of a great rumour?"

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