In May 2025, a longtime Austin blues club closed, leaving many in town without their favorite haunt. Skylark Lounge is no more, but the East Austin Creative Coalition (EACC) has responded to the closing with a new campaign to keep that pocket of the creative community going with paid opportunities.
EACC, a group effort to develop the African American Cultural Heritage District in East Austin, is launching Keeping It Live on the East Side, which will offer performance stipends and stage opportunities to those that the Skylark left without a home base.
Skylark Lounge was seen as a hidden gem; not exactly a secret, but not as widely publicized as some other blues venues. Located at 2039 Airport Blvd., it became a people's venue that wasn't expensive to attend, shrugged off pretense, and kept musicians engaged in a weekly blues jam.
After the initial announcement, owner Johnny LaTouf disclosed to theAustin-American Statesman that it was tiredness after his brother Terry's death that led him to close the lounge. Terry had helped run the bar, and keeping the club going after his death didn't feel the same.
A press release from EACC points out that because the Skylark was a champion of the blues, jazz, soul, and funk, it became a "cultural institution and creative anchor for East Austin artists." Its target demographic to help with the program is musicians who had regular gigs at the Skylark when it shut down unexpectedly.
Performances will be held at Kenny Dorham’s Backyard, an outdoor music venue that also hosts food trucks, community gardens, and other art pieces and performances. The space is managed by DiverseArts, a hard-to-pin-down yet active group that promotes, as it suggests, art by diverse populations.
The first performances of the campaign are happening during DiverseArts and EACC's annual Juneteenth Culture Fest, which runs from June 16-21.
As presented in a press release, events at the Juneteenth Culture Fest include:
- Monday, June 16, 7:30-10 pm: Kenny Dorham's Juneteenth Blues Jam
- Wednesday, June 18: WORD: Truth to Power, Spoken Word Edition, featuring Xenogia with Da’Shade Moonbeam, Zell Miller III, and Enrique Cabrera
- Thursday, June 19, 7-10 pm: Bluesteenth Showcase Concert featuring performances by James & Mel (guitarist James Lott, of the historic East Austin Lott Family gospel groups) Mel Davis (blues harp and reeds man, leader ofBlues Specialists), Harold McMillan's Assorted Chocolates, and closing the evening, headliner theMatthew Robinson Blues Band.
- Friday, June 20, 4-7 pm: Open House Hours at EACC's new administrative headquarters and gallery, New East Arts Gallery and Creative Center, 1101 Navasota St, Suite #1, 78702. Art is on display onsite.
- Additional pop-up community and neigborhood activities throughout the week
Proceeds will come from donations from each event at the door, and will directly benefit Austin-area musicians.
