One of the biggest musical stars in Philly isn't a person; it's World Cafe Live, a Mecca for performers and audiences alike
By Erik Philbrook
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The Downstairs Live! room and stage |
Charismatic, entertaining, innovative, eclectic and able to draw a loyal and growing fan base that h1s all age groups, one of Philadelphia�smost popular musical attractions isn�t the latest hip-hop sensation or a rising singersongwriter. Its name is World Caf� Live, and since 2004, it has been thrilling true lovers of music on both sides of the stage by providing a communal space to experience music unlike anyWhether you are a performer who fantasizes about perfect monitor mixes or a zealousmusic fanwho obsesses about excellent sight lines, World Caf� Live is a dream venue.
The state-of-the-art facility, built inside a classic Art Deco building inWest Philly, actually contains two music venues as well as the home of WXPN, the University of Pennsylvania�s beloved and influential public radio station. The upstairs space is an upscale caf� and restaurant that holds 100 people seated (or 200 standing) and showcases local and regional talent. The downstairs space is a dazzlingmusic hall and restaurant that holds 300 people seated and can expand to accommodate 650 people standing. Both rooms have an intimate vibe and impeccable sound systems that are acclaimed by both musicians and audience members.
World Caf� Live is a result of the vision, persistence and determination of Hal Real, founder and president of Real Entertainment Group, Inc., a jazz musician, former attorney and entrepreneur, who had a midcareer epiphany one day that he ought to build the best music venue possible in the city he loved. It took him seven years and it cost upwards of $15 million, but he realized his dream.
�You can have a vision and you can build a building, but it�s nothing without the folks who work here. They get it. They getwhat this can be and what it�s supposed to be about,� Real says. �I always use the phrase �a clubhouse� for the music and arts community in Philadelphia. I wanted a place where you could feel comfortable the second you walked in the door. You felt a buzz that was exciting to all of your senses; you smelled good things, you heard good things, you saw good things.�
When the idea for hismusic venue was incubating, Real had yet another epiphany. As not only amusician but also a passionatemusic fan, Real had long been a fan of David Dye�s nationally syndicated radio program, World Caf� (the 2006 ASCAP Deems Taylor Award winner for Excellence in Radio Broadcasting), which is broadcast on WXPN, his favorite station. It dawned on him that World Caf� and WXPN had
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Hal Real, Founder and President, Real Entertainment Group, Inc. |
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the community � the artists and the audience � he would want his venue to reach and nurture. So he approached the station with the idea of bringing their collective operations under one roof. XPN, which is operated by University of Pennsylvania and its trustees, embraced the chance to move to a new facility with the space, the aesthetic, the equipment � not to mention two incredible live performance spaces � they could utilize in exciting new ways. After a long negotiation period, the University agreed to a business arrangement with Real, even licensing him the powerful brand name of World Caf� to give his venture an immediate identity and cache.
As an attorney and an entrepreneur, Real possessed the right combination of skills to make the partnership work. �As long as I was willing to take the risky part, then WXPN was very much inmy camp,� Real says, laughing. �The first business guy I shared this idea with was this venture capitalist who had become a mentor to me. He was supposed to say, �are you out of your mind? No way man!� And instead he said to me, �you know, this is what you�re supposed to do. It�s not going to be easy. But this is the way you get to use all of your legal and business skills, and combine them with your passion and your ability to collaborate.� Being an entrepreneur is essentially like being an orchestra leader. You have to get all these different parties to come to the table, shake hands and work it out.�
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Performance at the World Caf� Live |
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Work it out they did. World Caf� Live first opened its doors inOctober 2004 and since that time the club has become a Philly institution, an integral part of the city�s cultural fabric. It is something of which Real is immensely proud.
�I think that I am most proud of the fact that we are not only part of the arts and music community, but the community at large. We�ve become a favorite place for events whether they�re corporate or for a needy cause, a wedding or a barmitzvah. The fact that people talk about this place like it has been here for fifty years blowsmymind because Philly is largely a traditional Quaker town, and it can be very negative about itself, very reactionary and known for rejecting things that are new. But I can�t tell you how welcome people have made us feel. The other thing that blows my mind is that people from all over walk in here and inevitably say we need one of these in our town, our village, our city.�
One of World Caf� Live�s most successful elements is its symbiotic relationship with WXPN, its �housemate.� Says Real, �We like to say that we�re independent, totally independent entities, butwe live together under one roof and we do really share a common music philosophy. We�re both about bringing new audiences to music and new music to audiences. We love the heritage stuff,we love having broad palettes, but we both really thrive on the energy from new music. When somebody looks at our calendar and says, �Hey Hal, I�mnot amusic head like you, and I haven�t heard of any of these people,� I say �exactly.� I guarantee you in any givenmonth you come here, there�s going to be somebody you�ve never heard of who�s going to become very famous � who�s going to be winning Grammy awards or nominations next year.�
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Cafe Live's upstairs room has an intimate coffeehouse vibe |
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WXPN, as one of the country�s top public radio stations, is largely responsible for the eclecticism that has become part of World Caf� Live�s winning formula. XPN General Manager Roger LaMay attributes that to its relationship with its diverse and engaged listenership.
�There�s no question that we have as loyal a following as you�re going to find out there,� says LaMay. �I think it�s because we have an emotional connection to our audience, which is partly because you�re able to do that with contemporary music. I also think that we�re committed to newmusic, which is essential for people that still want to discover new things.How do you find out what to put on your iPod? How do you decide what you want to listen to? We have a really strong track record in that regard. There�s so much music out there, we are sort of a trusted curator when it comes to that. I also strongly believe � and this is where I think that there are no generational differences � that there is a significant chunk of the audience looking for entities to be involved with that are not all about money. They�re looking for a refuge froma heavily commercialworld � certainly ourmediaworld, and the traditionalmusicworld, that has become more commercialized than ever. I think that people support us both because they like the music that we play and they like the community, but also because they want to support a alternative business model that�s not just driven by commercial concerns.�
While WXPN thrives not only on its reputation and talented, passionate staff, the addition of not one but two live venues under its roof helps to fulfill many of its initiatives
�There�s a lot of discussion in media and in public radio also of meeting the audience on all different platforms,� says LaMay. �That conversation is mostly about the Internet and digital platforms. Well, I see the �in-person� contact as another platform. And that in-person contact builds relationships in a very profound way. There�s no substitute. We can do all we can over the air and online, but the in-person channel is really a wonderful way to do it, especially since it involves music. Our �Free At Noon� series, for example, is one of our real success stories. Every Friday at noon we present free live music downstairs, whether it�s a new band like British Sea Power or a long-established band like Counting Crows. We found that even people who�ve never been to one, andmaybe just heard it on the radio, think that it�s one of the best things we do, because it�s introducing people tomusic.�
Helping people discover music isn�t just a mantra for both LaMay and Real. They have the programs to prove it. Real is proud to trumpet �On Stage at World Caf� Live,� a thirteen part concert series that was recorded in high-definition by Mark Cuban�s HDNet, as well as WCL�s popular Saturdaymorning event called �Peanut Butter and Jams,� a family music series he describes as �for kids eight and under and the people who drive them,� that was one of the first of its kind and has since spread around the country. He has also recently launched LiveConnections.org, a non-profit organization dedicated to engaging the Philadelphia community in new ways. The organization�s first program, �Bridge Sessions� has already brought together public, parochial and charter schools fromCenter City andWest Philadelphia with great musicians to stimulate learning about music, cultures and other points of view.
�The idea is really to blowthrough the boundaries and the genres,� says Real about the new initiative. �We spent six months exploring different notions with groups of musicians, schools, educators, and potential funders. It was sort of like when I started World Caf� Live but even more so. People said, �Wow, you guys do have the resources to do this.Youwould do that?� We said, �Yeah, man. We�ve got the space.� We can do it during our downtime early in the day. We can do it with a great base of residentmusicians, and as we get better at it we can hand pick some of our incoming visiting artists, who are playing at night.� We talked to (ASCAP Member) Lizz Wright during one of the artist focus groups about this. She said, �I�d love it! I�d come down on a train from Brooklyn to do one of these�just to do it.��
