An exclusive Melbourne nightclub frequented by celebs and AFL players is being dragged through the courts for allegedly playing a Britney Spears song too loudly.
The Emerson, a swanky hotel in the heart of South Yarra’s party district, is being prosecuted by police for serving alcohol while music was louder than background levels.
The rare charge alleges the busy venue played Britney’s megahit ‘Baby One More Time’ too loudly in February last year. The Emerson denies the charge.
The star-studded venue, described by one female regular as the ‘place to go if you wanted to meet footballers’, is an exclusive three-level bar catering for Melbourne’s glamorous in-crowd.
It has hosted international megastars including 50 Cent and Travis Scott, who both performed there.
Other celebrities to attend the venue include Bianca Censori’s sister Angelina Censori, England cricket legend Kevin Pietersen and various AFL footballers including Bailey Smith, Isaac Quaynor and Rory Lobb.
A Victoria Police officer told Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday how he and two partners entered the venue undercover about 10.50pm on February 10, 2024.
State Liquor Unit acting-sergeant Joshua Carver told the court The Emerson was a ‘well-known nightclub in South Yarra’ which was popular with a ‘younger crowd’.
‘It’s quite a busy place, it has levels one, two and three, it’s very busy,’ Sgt Carver said.
Sgt Carver said he and his colleagues made their way up to level three where he told the court two bars were in operation serving alcohol and a DJ was pumping out tunes.
The liquor officer said he ‘believed’ he and his colleagues purchased booze while they inspected the venue.
Sgt Carver then said he detected the volume of the dance music was ‘above background level’.
‘We weren’t able to talk to each other, we couldn’t hear each other,’ he told the court.
‘We said “huh” and “I can’t hear you”, people were speaking with raised voices, I noticed people had to lean in to speak to each other.’
Sgt Carver told the court some people were dancing and some were sitting down.
The cop said he and his partners recorded a six-second video clip and a voice clip to ‘gauge the volume of the venue’.
Sgt Carver, who was a senior constable at the time of the incident, said he messaged his superior who arrived at the venue in uniform with another officer about 11.19pm.
‘I saw a bunch of security guards scramble downstairs and I think that was due to police arriving,’ Sgt Carver told the court.
Sgt Carver said he saw the sergeant and his offsider go to level three, walk around and make ‘observations’.
He said he saw the uniformed police speaking to an Emerson staff member.
Sgt Carver said CCTV vision of the night in question was played to the court, allegedly depicting a staff member turning the music down.
Sgt Carver said he also saw the DJ making a hand gesture which he took to mean ‘cut it off’.
‘The last song that was playing before the music was turned down was hit me baby one more time a remix of a Britney Spears’ song, a pop/dance version,’ Sgt Carver said.
‘That is the song that was playing when the music was turned down, the music was above background level with that song playing and it was then turned down when that song was playing.’
Vision of a huge line to get into the heaving venue once owned by former AFL legends Glenn Archer and Leigh Colbert was shown to the court but Magistrate James Fitzgerald questioned the relevance.
‘Is that Commercial Rd in South Yarra?’ Magistrate Fitzgerald asked. ‘I don’t get out much.’
Lawyers for The Emerson asked Sgt Carver if he obtained a copy of the ‘red line plan’ – a document which outlines where a licenced venue may serve alcohol.
Sgt Carver, under cross-examination, said he had not, while also admitting he did not speak to any of the bar’s patrons while he was at the venue.
The court was also shown vision which depicted five people seated at a table beside the dancefloor who appeared to be having a conversation.
The Emerson was owned at the time of the allegation by Melbourne nightclub supremo Tom Caw.
Mr Caw was instrumental in securing international stars 50 Cent and Travis Scott to appear at his venue in 2023 and 2024.
Kanye West’s Melbourne sister-in-law Angelina Censori appeared at the Scott performance where Collingwood defender Isaac Quaynor and influencers Hannah Dal Sasso and Elle Ray also attended.
The Emerson declined to comment through its lawyers when contacted by the Daily Mail.
The venue has been in hot water before, and was fined $1000 after inspectors found the venue to be beyond maximum patron capacity in August 2023.
The award-winning nightclub’s 1434sqm floorspace has capacity for 675 guests and features a restaurant, cocktail bar and lounge, a VIP club and a rooftop bar.
It also offers ‘booth’ packages which start at $2000 on Saturday nights.
The prime site at 141-145 Commercial Rd was sold in 2019 for an undisclosed figure understood to be around the $11 million mark.
The sale occurred while former North Melbourne teammates Archer and Colbert still owned The Emerson, which was launched in 2013 after a multimillion-dollar refurb.
The contested hearing before Magistrate Fitzgerald was delayed due to legal argument and scheduling issues and will resume on August 28.