My father has stories of bringing in rap acts like Salt-N-Pepa and Uncle Luke just as they were starting to pop. During this time, black artists weren’t being supported by the industry, they were creating their own lanes and building audiences through the clubs. It’s important to note that this meshing happened not from people listening to records or tapes, but traveling to clubs touring artists. It’s literally birthed out of Chicago house, Miami bass, and hip-hop. We sat down with Loving to discuss the impetus for this exhibit, on view through August 11, and the importance of Baltimore Club.ĭescribe what Baltimore Club music is and how it has come to define Baltimore.ĭoing this project made me realize how special Baltimore’s location actually is, and how its proximity to the Northeast, South, and Midwest has created a unique sound that resonates. In doing so, it documents the impact this local sound had on contemporary music, in Baltimore and beyond. Curated by Mia Loving, founder and organizer of creative incubator Invisible Majority, Decades captures the scene’s spirit and energy through archival photographs, interviews with renowned DJs and regular clubgoers, and installations that celebrate former venues like the Paradox and Odell’s Nightclub. The exhibition, roundtable, and concert series, currently on display at The Peale Center in downtown Baltimore, highlights the city’s homegrown genre and the black-owned clubs that led to its golden era from the 1980s to the early 2000s.
But along the way, one of the city’s most vital music scenes-Baltimore Club-has largely gone undocumented, even as the energetic dance genre has come to define the grit, wit, and brilliance of its namesake city.ĭecades Night Club finally brings that history into the spotlight. Baltimore has a long musical legacy, from the legendary jazz clubs of Pennsylvania Avenue that featured the likes of Billie Holliday, Louis Armstrong, and John Coltrane, through the modern DIY scene that has incited national acclaim.