VENUES OF AMERICA:
PARADISE ROCK CLUB
W
hen you search up the name “Paradise
Rock Club,” one of the first words that
comes up is “history.” The venue, which is over
forty years old, is a Boston relic, holding the
reputation of bringing big name bands to the city.
But what distinguishes the ‘Dise (a nickname
that sometimes sticks, and sometimes doesn’t)
from arenas like TD Garden, or Fenway Park?
The obvious answer is size, but that’s not what
makes the venue special. Rather, it’s the consistent
maintenance of its mission statement: bringing
top-rate performers to Boston, before they become
famous. Oh, and the pole that infamously stood
in the way of audience and performers alike for
decades prior to the 2010 renovation.
If you speak to anyone who’s been to concerts
in Boston, they’ll likely bring up the Paradise
Rock Club as one of their most memorable
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experiences. It was only during this past October
that I was inducted into this club of real Boston
concert-goers, at a show for the then-fledgling
rapper Aminé during his first national headlining
tour supporting the debut album Good For You.
Tickets had gone on sale months prior, when his
only trending single was the summer “Caroline,”
and had only cost twenty dollars before fees.
His album was yet to come out, and only a few
friends agreed to commit so far in advance, with
most being hesitant to commit because “what if
the album isn’t even good?” But what I’ve come
to learn about the venue is simple: if an artist is
playing at the Paradise Rock Club, then the album
is going to be good. It’s completely unsurprising
that Aminé blew up almost immediately after this
show, selling out in larger cities like New York
and then moving onto an international tour.
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