Rising Sun Presents expanding into Baltimore by taking over iconic venue

Baltimore and Philadelphia are both are home to passionate blue collar denizens, often get overshadowed by larger nearby metropolitan areas, have very specific culinary traditions, and love their sports teams.

They also have dedicated music communities, so when long-running and beloved Baltimore venue The 8×10 announced its closure, one of the Philly region’s premier concert producing groups stepped in to save it.

Located at 10 E. Cross St. in Baltimore’s Federal Hill neighborhood, The 8×10 has been hosting shows for the past 21 years under owners Abigail Janssens and Brian Shupe, who in January announced they would close the sapce June 30, sell it, and retire to take care of family.

That led to Rising Sun Presents to jump at the opportunity to give The 8×10 new life.

“We’re very excited about it,” Rising Sun Presents Managing Partner Chris Perella said, noting that Baltimore and The 8×10 have so much in common with Philadelphia and some of the group’s current projects.

If you regularly attend shows in the Greater Philadelphia area, chances are high you’ve been to a Rising Sun gig. Their local venues include Ardmore Music Hall (which is across the street from their Main Line headquarters), 118 North, Underground Arts, The Colonial Theater, and the Chestnut Street Milkboy location.

Perella’s got family connections to Baltimore, and he’s a diehard Orioles fan, so expanding Rising Sun to Baltimore wasn’t just about business.

“My personal bias aside, it wasn’t lost on me that if we took over operations a few hours from our home base that we need to have local investment,” he said.

Baltimore’s own Chris Jacobs has played more shows at The 8×10 than any other artist, and he’s been chosen for the venue’s leadership team, along with Baltimore native and regular 8×10 patron Jeremy Rusen.

“The opportunity to have Chris Jacobs be part of the team was key to feeling like it was the right thing,” Perella said.

Rusen will help oversee renovations to the space when it closes for a few months on June 30.

“We will take a few months to tackle improvements and stuff,” Perella said.

Those improvements will include a new facade, revamped decor, updated artist green rooms, and more. Additionally, leadership plans to reexamine the food and beverage program and launch a membership initiative.

After that’s all done, Rising Sun, Jacobs, and Rusen will build our their event calendar, assemble a team to work the venue, and reopen in October.

Over the past several years, The 8×10 has been known for hosting jam band-centric shows. Perella said those won’t go away, but show goers should expect a wider range of genres coming through the venue.

“The intention is to make the programming be more eclectic than it has been,” he said. “We can provide a home for jam fans without it being a thirds of the base of shows.”

Doing so leaves room for indie rock, reggae, metal, New Orleans jazz, and more, all serving the goal of attaining a broader audience.

“There will be no problem filling The 8×10 with fans,” Perella said. “There are really lively, loyal, and engaging live music audiences in Baltimore. Local music fans aren’t going to Washington DC weekly to see artists; there’s a huge music community in Baltimore looking for hometown entertainment.”

The positive feedback from Rising Sun announcing their partnership with Jacobs and Rusen to keep The 8×10 alive has exceeded expectations, too.

“We are fueled by an extraordinary response from the public announcement and from agents and folks in the industry we work with,” Perella said. Jacobs and Rusen relayed to Perella that friends, family, and people they run into at shows have been gushing with joy about the venue’s new life.

When the Rising Sun team headed down to Baltimore for their last site visit as a group, Perella said they saw two people at a Grateful Dead tribute band show who were wearing Ardmore Music Hall shirts. Others at the gig recognized Rising Sun staff.

“The patron response has been overwhelming and incredibly positive,” he said.

While some Philly-area concertgoers may fear Rising Sun’s expansion could impact local shows, Perella offered reassurance.

“Our Philly area venues and partners will be going on all cylinders still,” he said. “Expanding allows us to reinvest in our team to provide great experiences for fans and artists. The more we can offer in multiple towns naturally strengthens our core in Philly.”