They lift your spirits, prompt you to think, make you feel grateful and inspire you to do more. They connect you to our community, shining a spotlight on what's good about our city. They're stories that are Uniquely Milwaukee.
In the heart of the Riverwest neighborhood is a weekly showcase of some of Milwaukee’s most talented voices.
Linneman’s Acoustic Open Stage began in 1993, making it the city’s oldest open mic and a staple of the local music scene.
“Linneman's is an institution, and it's meant a lot to tons and tons of people,” said Chris Porterfield, frontman for Milwaukee-based band Field Report and an alum of the open mic. “It's a really special place. And what Jim and Marty have built is a great gift and service to our city.”
Jim Linneman and Marty Hacker are longtime partners in life and nightlife. The venue’s namesake rarely misses an installment of the Acoustic Open Stage, and he was there the night we were on hand to experience the energy of a community built on a shared love for music.
“Each and every Wednesday we have a featured performer who gets a half hour,” Linneman explained from the stage as he introduced Ethan Munson. “And to be the feature here, you have to come in and take part in our Open Stage and show a love for music and the desire anyway to write your own songs.”
As Munson took the stage, he played lively folk and rock covers, ending his set with an acapella version of “Mercedes Benz” by Janis Joplin. During the song, he invited the audience to sing along with him, and shared that he used to always end this way at the open mics he used to host.
This is a typical Wednesday night at Linneman’s — an eclectic mix of people, songs and instruments, ranging from banjos and guitars to keyboards and even a kazoo. It's also a space for seasoned performers to connect with newcomers. In between sets, through the noise of light guitar riffs, you can hear musicians asking each other about their songs and finding time to collaborate.
One of the performers, Vivek, let the audience in on the feelings of familiarity he noticed at the open mic before stepping on stage. “I only moved to Milwaukee over the last summer, but I'm slowly getting to know, getting more familiar with all the music friendly places around the city, as well as faces,” he said. “I'm definitely seeing some more familiar faces now than when I first started out.”
Many people attend as part of their weekly routine, while others step up to the mic nervously for the first time. Some just find comfort sitting in the dimly lit bar, listening to new voices.
Char was among the observers — at least for a little while. A Milwaukee native studying at Columbia College Chicago, she made her Open Stage debut a memorable one by sharing an original song. “This is also my first time at Linneman’s,” she shared with the audience. “Thank you so much for just being such a warm and inviting space.”
Singing alongside her was Jackson, a co-worker and fellow performer. More of their colleagues sat near the foot of the stage — an impromptu company outing. For Jackson, the Open Stage is part of a process of building a musical network in the city. Before moving to Milwaukee, he felt trapped and burnt out in his hometown of Stevens Point. He says he uses the open mic as an outlet to reconnect with music.
“I needed to be in a community that I knew had a deep and thriving music scene,” he explained. “I didn't know any musicians in Milwaukee, but I took a chance on the biggest city in the state. … Ever since I've lived here, I met so many people through working in the service industry that are also musicians, and I've made so many beautiful connections.”
The history of building musical connections through Linneman’s Acoustic Open Stage isn’t anything new. Porterfield moved to Milwaukee in 2006 and — like Jackson — connected with the city’s music scene in an impactful way through Linneman’s. He became a regular and was eventually invited to be one of the featured performers.
“I kind of wore that like a badge,” he said. “I felt like, ‘OK, somebody thinks that I'm good enough to be able to do this for more than just three songs.’”
Others agreed. In the years that followed, Field Report gained national exposure by opening for acts like Jeff Tweedy and Counting Crows. The band was even granted their own official day in Milwaukee in 2014.
But Linneman’s was one of the very first to give him a platform to share his music. It also provided a space to connect with, learn from and even compete with other local and influential performers.
“There's this kind of valuable and not bad competitive thing that starts at the Open Stage,” he explained. “Like when somebody you know comes out with a new song, and you're like, ‘Oh man, that's better than anything they've ever done. I gotta come back next week and try to top that.’ And so there's a sort of iron-sharpens-iron element that happens.”
That combination of friendly competition and plain old friendliness makes Linneman’s a hub for support, friendship and creativity. It’s a magnet for the city’s musicians, drawing people in and keeping them coming back.
“I've been to a lot of open-mic scenes and this one was definitely the warmest feeling one,” Char said as the night came to a close. “There's a lot of crowds that come to open mics that are there for whatever reason, but this one I really felt like they were there to build community and have community.”
