COVER STORY
Welcome to Beer City ITS MAYORS ARE STEPHEN TYLER AND CHAD WHITEHEAD. By Matt Dinger
While the original Beer City was a lawless and short-lived pre-statehood Panhandle town from which Beer City Music Hall took its name, the collective force behind the venue intend to bring the spirit of the town back to life in the form of a new 500-person music venue and survive much longer than the two years behind its namesake. The partners in the Tower Theatre revival, Pivot, are also the developers in the complex where Beer City Music Hall and others reside. “We have always been aware of the fact that Oklahoma City has historically had a shortage of rooms to build artists and it’s really hard to just show up, having never played in the market, and sell out Tower Theatre. You’re kind of putting an extra risk into the room by not having the band come through the market, to build their audience and to build their fan base,” partner and talent buyer Chad Whitehead said. While the idea came to fruition in 2018, the real estate was tied up through 2020 and supply line issues have held up the venue in the final stretch but it’s poised to start holding shows as of April 2, Whitehead said. The first show at the venue will be Eli Young Band, a country performer, followed by a DJ set from electro-funk duo Chromeo. A couple more country acts follow before the first show that’s already sold out, hardcore band Knocked Loose. Two days later, Spanish-language comedy performer Carlos Ballarta is set to take the stage. This musical hodgepodge is precisely the impetus behind the new venue. “We are going to be able to put some hardcore shows on over there at Beer City because it’s a flat floor with a barricade built in. We can’t really do that safely at Tower; there’s just those terraces and those drink rails. Not a safe environment for any hardcore dancing or moshing or anything like that,” Whitehead said. “For the growth of the music industry in Oklahoma City, we have to have a variety of these smaller rooms that build up into rooms like Tower and Jones Assembly and Criterion. Really, what we’re doing is filling a gap in our marketplace. Everyone’s
well aware that e ver si nc e Wormy Dog [Saloon] closed, there’s not been a mid-sized room in Oklahoma City and Wormy Dog only did a very specific genre,” The stage is almost complete at Beer City Music Hall. Photo by Berlin Green. he said. While there will be exceptions, the “We didn’t have too much choice. idea is to have shows with ticket prices It was more of how do we make the between $15 and $25. best of that situation, whereas over “Hopefully, any night of the week, here, it’s an empty box so we had all you can go there and see a great show, the choices,” managing partner find a new artist that you’re absoStephen Tyler said. lutely going to be on their bandwag“It’s always about what’s on stage. on for. It’s at the level where most of That is a thing I’ve said in many difthe artists are still going to be in a ferent conversations. There are places van, not a tour bus. It’s a different that have live music and then there hardship at are venues, that level,” and that’s Whitehead my distincsaid. tion. That’s Because not a knock of the acts against planned to anywhere grace the else or anystage, they thing else, put special but what is considerthe first ation into thing? Is the venue’s the first g r e e n thing your room, like a booze or shower and your food w a s h e r/ and then dryer. the music is “A little there, or is extra hospithe first tality goes a thing your long way at music and the level then the that Beer booze or City’s at the food or and we’re whatever is r e a l l y Artwork by Jack Fowler adorns the bar. Photo by Berlin Green. ju s t to excited to forge some relationships support that? We are music and with artists and put on great shows,” events first. Everything else is secWhitehead said. ondary to that, really,” he said. Tyler, who handles the sound and “Every aspect of the spot — the light design in Beer City, said that functional pieces of the bar, the stage options were limited in the Tower — were designed with our team: our Theatre, which had already been built bartenders, our bar managers, our compared to Beer City which was a sound techs and lighting design. blank slate. Everybody got to be involved in the
process. So everything kind of has those elements to it that are designed not just for efficiency, but for quality performance. The sound system is probably too big for the room. But, you know, why not?” Tyler said. The bar will have 16 taps, with eight beers to start on them, plus a broad selection of cans and bottles, including Beer City branded beers, the first of which is produced by Anthem Brewing. The hope is to stock the coolers with as many Oklahoma beer brands as possible. The menu is also still in development, but its centerpiece will be a burrito. “They’ll be Mission style, if you’ve ever been to San Francisco. It’s a little tighter of a burrito, so it’s not like a food baby that’s just gonna fall apart and be a big mess. It’s not Chipotle, it’s wrapped pretty tight so it’s a longer burrito. A lot easier to eat it if you’re just holding it configured in your mouth. We wanted something that’s clean and easy to take with you on your way out the door or you can just hold it and walk around and street tacos are not going to be clean. We’re mostly thinking about the fact that you can now sell to-go alcohol and having something to partner that with as well,” Whitehead said. “At the end of the day, our job is to put on an awesome party, bring the coolest music in and have all the great people and have the best drinks and just have a great time,” Tyler said.
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