Northside Jazz

IMG_4625.jpg

In the mid-20th century, Howard Street was the center of black culture in the bustling Rubber Capital of the World. It was home to many of Akron’s black-owned business and entertainment establishments. In 1920, George Mathews opened his barbershop in Howard Street, and in 1925 opened the Hotel Matthews next door. The hotel became an anchor for the neighborhood, and an iconic destination for the era’s most famous black entertainers, who came to town to perform at many of the “whites only” clubs and hotels, but could not stay there. In the 1960’s, the Howard Street District began to decline and was eventually razed for “urban renewal” in the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Art x Love was engaged to create a mural honoring Akron’s jazz heritage in the old Howard Street District of the city. The mural faces the former site of Hotel Matthews, and depicts Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, nightclub dancers, Cab Calloway, and Louis Armstrong playing together. You can learn more about Akron’s vibrant jazz heritage and thriving scene here:

Jazz on Howard Street

The Rubber City Jazz & Blues Festival

Arts Midwest // Once the ‘Jazz Corridor of the Midwest,’ Akron is Cementing Its Place in Jazz Culture

BLU Jazz+

Jazz Studies at the University of Akron School of Music

Mac Love

Mac Love is the Co-Founder & Chief Catalyst of Art x Love, a creative agency based in Akron, OH.

http://www.artxlove.com
Previous
Previous

Will you marry me?

Next
Next

Yoga