A historic South End jazz club has raised more than $35,000 for an ambitious new plan during the pandemic
Wally's Cafe Jazz Club not only wants to keep its business afloat, it wants to expand.
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For 73 years, Wally’s Cafe has provided a warm, intimate space for Bostonians to enjoy live jazz music on a nightly basis. First opened by Joseph Walcott in 1947, the family-owned business has also been a proving ground for the city’s young musicians, many of whom hone their craft during those evening sessions at the South End institution.
The coronavirus pandemic has put all of that on hold for now. But that hasn’t stopped general manager Frank Poindexter, the grandson of Joseph Walcott and son of current owner Elynor Walcott, from thinking big.
With the help of a GoFundMe campaign created by his daughters Jordan and Jalisa, Poindexter is trying to turn a long-held dream of his into reality by creating a multi-purpose production facility called the “Student to Student Music Cafe” that will serve as a resource Boston’s next generation of musicians.
“Wally’s has been a training ground for years,” Poindexter said. “We’ve had so many Berklee students perform at Wally’s, honing their craft. With this, they could have an additional space to be musically creative beyond the two-hour window they have performing at the cafe.”
Poindexter hopes to purchase the building next door to Wally’s at 429 Massachusetts Ave. for the Student to Student Music Cafe, which will be run as a non-profit. He has a lot of ideas for how the space could be used, including a partnership with Boston public schools where young musicians give virtual instruction to the school’s students and apartment living for musicians above the cafe and production facility.
The jazz band Public Option (left to right) Kevin Harris, Greg Duncan, Lee Fish, Jason Palmer, and Mitsuru Yoshizumi performing at Wally’s Cafe. Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff
In less than a week, Wally’s GoFundMe campaign surpassed its initial funding milestone of $30,000. Jordan Poindexter says they’re now aiming for $50,000, which will help push the project forward while also helping the cafe stay afloat during the pandemic.
As one of a very limited number of Black-owned businesses that has a Boston liquor license, Poindexter has also partnered with other Black-owned businesses in the Boston Black Hospitality Coalition, which has received grants from the city and the NAACP.
“We’re already affected disproportionately due to the historical limited access to resources we’ve had to deal with,” Poindexter said. “We partnered with other local businesses to bring awareness to the plight of minority businesses.”
Even as Wally’s looks to the future, the Poindexters worry about the present. What makes the cafe so great — a cozy, intimate space to gather for live music — is what may keep patrons away initially whenever Wally’s reopens.
“We’re working with a local LISC organization and participating in a Six Feet Apart program in order to reopen in compliance with public officials,” Poindexter said. “But we’re still going to face a psychological barrier that this pandemic has brought.”
While building the Student to Student Music Cafe would mark a significant change for Wally’s, Frank says giving back to the community has always been at the heart of the cafe.
“That’s why we do what we do and why we’ve been doing it for 73 years,” Poindexter said. “We have a need for young musicians and young people to have safe spaces to work on their craft. Wally’s builds these networks, and they’re lifelong networks that give them a support system to succeed.”
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