Music of Omaha - Institutions and Venues

Institutions and Venues

The Dreamland Ballroom was located at 2221-2225 North 24th Street in North Omaha on the second floor of the Jewell Building. Opening in 1923, it became the premier nightclub for big bands and jazz in Omaha. James Jewell, Jr. booked the original Nat King Cole Trio for $25 a person for one show. Other performances included Dinah Washington, Earl Hines, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Louis Armstrong and Lionel Hampton. Dreamland closed in the 1960s. Today the renovated Jewell Building is used for offices and apartments.

Although Sokol Auditorium and its sister space Sokol Underground have been a concert hot spot for many years, the city has recently seen a rise in other indie music venues. These newer venues include The Waiting Room (created by One Percent Productions, an Omaha-based booking company), Rock'N'Jocks (formerly the Rock), and The Mosaic. There are numerous other smaller venues and coffee shops that offer nightly performances. The recently opened Slowdown complex, located near the Qwest Center, is a Saddle Creek-generated complex of a music venue, shops (such as Urban Outfitters), restaurants, and apartments.

Recent developments in the Omaha music scene include the closing of the Cog Factory, The 49'r Lounge, and the Ranch Bowl, three prominent venues that helped launch the current Omaha music scene. Two new developments are Slowdown, a new recording space for Saddle Creek Records located on the edge of downtown Omaha, and One Percent Productions' venue, The Waiting Room Lounge. In addition to The Waiting Room Lounge, the Benson area features prominent venues, including The Barley Street Tavern, reputed to be the bar with the best acoustics for live music in Omaha due to its 'double barrel' layout. Also, the Omaha Blues, Jazz, & Gospel Festival and the Omaha Black Music Hall of Fame both celebrate African American music in Omaha. In 2009, the nonprofit MAHA Music Festival featuring rock music was held along Omaha's riverfront, which has become an annual summer event. In July 2011, the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority (MECA) hosted more than 50 bands for the first annual Red Sky Music Festival at TD Ameritrade Park.