Briana Pereira
Words by Briana Pereira
Jack Rabbits, a concert venue located in the San Marco, turns 25 this year. The venue opened on Hendricks Avenue back in 1999 after Tim and Anne Hall moved here from San Diego, California. Anne is the venue owner, and Tim is responsible for booking shows through Jax Live Presents, his talent-buying and promotion business.
The location can be easily identified by its red spray painted doors and is popular for hosting smaller artists that are indie, punk, metal and alternative. The venue has a family friendly atmosphere for people of all ages, but they also serve cheap drinks for those 21+ looking to have a fun time.
In its 25 years of business, Jack Rabbits has remained a unique and important role in the Jacksonville music scene. From the jump, the venue has been a space for local talent to flourish and somewhere to catch the next rising star. Artists that have now been on tours world wide had performed on Jack Rabbits’ stage to a crowd of just 300 people in the past, artists like Paramore, Tegan and Sara (this one’s for all of my fellow Grey’s Anatomy lovers), Modest Mouse, Kurt Vile and many others.
Attending a concert at a smaller venue like Jack Rabbits can seem a bit intimidating at first, but with the right crowd and performer, it’s nothing but intimate and feels like such a safe space. July 2023 was the first time I attended a concert at a venue as small as Jack Rabbits. I was seeing an artist who I loved at the time and who I had seen in the past once before, but not only had I chosen to go to this concert solo, it was also crowded, and humid — like that sticky, damp, hot where you’re on the verge of being miserable, especially after just doing your hair and makeup. I was overwhelmed by nerves standing around anticipating the doors to open. All of my anxieties were washed away the minute I made it through into the venue, as I had immediately been befriended by the audience members surrounding me. In addition to that I had later experienced a concert like no other before, so personable and intimate. Having such a small space allows the artists to interact with their audience in ways not possible at other venues, and it also allows for a different level of connectedness between audience members.
I’ve attended concerts at spots like the House of Blues in the past which are considered to be smaller venues, but the interactions between the performer and the guests were nothing compared to what you get somewhere like Jack Rabbits. The concert I attended in July was for Hobo Johnson, a rapper, poet and singer-songwriter. I had seen him and his former band, Hobo Johnson & The LoveMakers in Orlando about four years prior. This time around at the concert, I remember so many details of how he interacted with members of the audience, even allowing a few to join him on stage and play chords to some of his most popular songs. For me as a viewer I remember the interactions so well, and I cannot even begin to process how it felt for the fan who had the opportunity to stand on stage in front of a whole audience and play alongside one of their favorite artists. Talk about a core memory.
So when I think about Jack Rabbits celebrating 25 years as a venue, I develop quite the sense of gratitude for the tone it has set for the concert goers throughout Jacksonville. The power of having a small, local, live music venue that hosts some of the next and best upcoming artists is so valuable to the culture of music. It allows the audience to develop a connection with both musicians and the fanbase creating a greater sense of community.
Yeah, attending a sold out show at VyStar or Daily’s Place is a separate feeling of surrealness, but nothing beats the intimate settings of a packed room with 200-300 fans, oh so present in every moment. One thing I noticed is a lot of the artists that Jack Rabbits hosts tend to appeal to a more niche fanbase, creating a tight knit community of regular concert goers within the city, and embracing the different elements within the music culture of Jacksonville.
Follow FOLIO!