Creative Loafing just broke the story that downtown soul and hip-hop club Sugarhill will be closing on Tuesday, May 5:
When Sugarhill opened nearly three years ago, it was the only bright spot in the city’s attempt to remake the touristy wasteland Underground Atlanta into a hub for Atlanta nightlife. City officials even went so far as to designate Underground as the only place within Atlanta city limits permitted to serve alcohol past the 2:30 a.m. pouring curfew instituted near the height of Buckhead’s sprawling bar and party scene.
Yet, Underground still seemed to attract a motley crowd at best with its random mix of urban-oriented clubs (Motion, Frequency, the House).
“It’s hard to get our clientele to cut through that environment,” Dunn says, admitting that unless they booked big draws it was hard to pull the kind of consistent crowd necessary to sustain operations. “It basically became a destination spot.”
Such was the case two Saturdays ago when indie soul heavyweight Eric Roberson headlined the monthly Harmony in Life showcase. By 10:30 p.m., a standing-room only crowd had packed Sugarhill’s lower level and the balcony was overflowing.
But for a clientele of grown folk ranging in age from mid-20s to 30-something, such a night on the town was often more hassle than it was worth.
Ticket Alternative is still selling tickets for a few Sugarhill events scheduled for after the club's closing date, including the Anthony David and Jaguar Wright show for May 16, and promoters are working on finding a new venue for these shows. We'll let you know as soon as we know where they have been moved to.
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