Jack Antonoff Has a Massachusetts Arrest Story About His Mom

Jack Antonoff loves Boston.

The city was one of the first places to embrace his band Bleachers back in 2014 and he's never forgotten. During a high-energy Bleachers show at MGM Music Hall at Fenway 10 years later, he proved the bond is real by spilling some family tea:

His mother, Shira, once broke the law while a student at Boston University.

"One time my mother got very high and broke into the MIT Tennis Bubble," Antonoff, 40, confessed to a sold-out crowd during a sweaty set celebrating Bleachers' new self-titled album. "The purpose of the break-in was to run around."

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The tennis facility Antonoff is referring to is still on MIT's Cambridge campus. It boasts four courts and very much looks like a bubble. Rules might have been different in Shira's day, but the MIT website suggests non-students can book court time for a small fee. However, waltzing into the building without a reservation is still not allowed.

So, what happened to brazen rule flouter Shira?

"She was arrested by campus police, which is the bowling with bumpers of being arrested," Antonoff said.

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The 11-time Grammy winner's father, Rick, also attended Boston University but wasn't implicated in the story. Not that one, anyway. Rick appeared on stage earlier in the night, playing guitar on the fourth song of the June 11 show, "How Dare You Want More."

Antonoff jokingly urged fans to follow in his mother's footsteps. "Don't destroy property or do any opioids but get riled up," the hitmaker said. "Break into the MIT Tennis Bubble and run around."

Antonoff, who produces music for other big acts when not performing (most notably his close friend, frequent collaborator and part-time New Englander Taylor Swift), spent a few minutes toward the end of the show showering love on Boston.

The New Jersey resident recalled playing to bigger and bigger crowds in the Boston area over the years at some of his favorite venues, including The Middle East, House of Blues and "the holy grail," Paradise Rock Club.

"Boston, I know that drive so well," Antonoff said. "I know that Sheraton on the way home that's 30 minutes outside the city that looks like a castle. It's a pretty good hotel."

The hotel is in Framingham, in case you're interested.

All night at the Lansdowne Street venue, the love was palpable in both directions.

After the band closed with its first hit, "I Wanna Get Better," followed by "Don't Take the Money" and "Stop Making This Hurt," Antonoff said goodbye like he meant it and left the crowd with his usual parting words:

"Boston and Bleachers Forever."