Roxy NYC
Encyclopedia
- For other people and places named Roxy see: RoxyRoxy-Brands:* Roxy , women's brand of clothing, accessories, and snowboards by Quiksilver company for surfing* The Roxy Theatre, music venue in Los Angeles & online source for music, arts, culture, and more.-Names:...
and Roxy TheatreRoxy TheatreThe Roxy Theatre is located in the historic downtown section of Clarksville, Tennessee in the United States. Standing on a corner of the Public Square it offers live theater shows to the public offering a wide variety of selection in the spirit of literary theater...
Roxy NYC (sometimes The Roxy) was a popular nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
located at 515 West 18th Street in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Located in Chelsea
Chelsea, Manhattan
Chelsea is a neighborhood on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The district's boundaries are roughly 14th Street to the south, 30th Street to the north, the western boundary of the Ladies' Mile Historic District – which lies between the Avenue of the Americas and...
section of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
it began as a roller skating rink
Roller rink
A roller rink is a hard surface used for roller skating or inline skating. This includes roller hockey, speed skating, and recreational skating...
and roller disco
Roller disco
A roller disco is a discothèque or skating rink where all the dancers wear roller skates of some kind . The music played is modern and easily danceable, historically disco but in modern times including almost any form of dance music or pop music...
in 1978, it was founded by Steve Bauman, Richard Newhouse and Steve Greenberg then acquired in 1985 by Gene DiNino until it closed its doors for good in March 2007. It even hosted a party for the famed Olympic gold medal-winning USA Ice Hockey team
Miracle on Ice
The "Miracle on Ice" is the name in American popular culture for a medal-round men's ice hockey game during the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New York, on Friday, February 22...
in 1980
1980 Winter Olympics
The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIII Olympic Winter Games, was a multi-sport event which was celebrated from 13 February through 24 February 1980 in Lake Placid, New York, United States of America. This was the second time the Upstate New York village hosted the Games, after 1932...
.
Overview
Beginning in the early 1980s, the owners began hosting dance nights. Referred to by many as the “Studio 54 of roller rinks,” these parties thrived for several years. Then, as the popularity of skating began to fade, the space was revamped into a dance club in 1982.Ruza Blue, a British expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
nicknamed "Kool Lady Blue", founded an all-ages, all-races hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
club in June 1982. Jon Baker, the future founder of Gee Street Records
Gee Street Records
Gee Street Records was a British hip hop record label started by Jon Baker in 1985. The label's name came from its original location, a converted warehouse on Gee Street in London....
, worked the door. Hip hop pioneers Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa
Afrika Bambaataa is an American DJ from the South Bronx, New York who was instrumental in the early development of hip hop throughout the 1980s. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the three originators of break-beat deejaying, and is respectfully known as the "Grandfather" and the Amen Ra of Universal...
and Afrika Islam
Afrika Islam
Afrika Islam also known as the "Son of Bambaataa", is an American hip-hop producer.-Life:He started his carrer in 1977 joining Rock Steady Crew. He was 10 years old back then...
began DJing there, and were soon joined by Grandmixer D.ST, Jazzy Jay
Jazzy Jay
Jazzy Jay born in Beaufort, South Carolina, United States, November 18, 1961), also known as The Original Jazzy Jay or DJ Jazzy Jay, is a pioneering American hip hop DJ and producer. He has collected roughly 400,000 records.-Background:...
, Grand Wizzard Theodore and Grandmaster Flash
Grandmaster Flash
Joseph Saddler better known as King Grandmaster Flash, is an American hip hop musician and DJ; one of the pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting, and mixing....
. The club sponsored MC battles, Zulu Nation
Universal Zulu Nation
|rightThe Universal Zulu Nation is an international hip hop awareness group formed and headed by hip hop pioneer Afrika Bambaataa. Originally known simply as the Organization, it arose in the 1970s as reformed New York City gang members began to organize cultural events for youths, combining local...
gatherings, breakdancing competitions with the Rock Steady Crew
Rock Steady Crew
Rock Steady Crew is a b-boying crew and hip hop group that was established in the Bronx, New York City in 1977. The group was initially formed by b-boys named Jimmy D and Jojo. In subsequent years, Rock Steady Crew became a franchise name for groups in other locations. The Manhattan branch was...
, graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
murals, and double Dutch
Double Dutch (jump rope)
Double dutch is a game in which two long jump ropes turning in opposite directions are jumped by one or more players jumping simultaneously.While double dutch began in the inner cities of America, it is growing in popularity throughout the US and the world...
competitions. The club had a major influence on the evolution of hip hop culture over the next few years. A performance at the club by Afrika Bambaattaa was captured in the 1984 film Beat Street
Beat Street
Beat Street is a 1984 drama film, following Wild Style in featuring New York City hip hop culture of the early 1980s; breakdancing, DJing, and graffiti.-Plot:...
.
The Roxy hosted one of New York City's largest weekly gay dance night, Roxy Saturdays, promoted by John Blair Productions, which has featured many famous DJs including Junior Vasquez
Junior Vasquez
Junior Vasquez, , is an American club DJ and remixer/producer.-Career:...
, Manny Lehman
Manny Lehman
Manny Lehman is a house music DJ and producer. In addition to his production and DJ work, Lehman is one of the most requested remixers presently, transforming many songs into club hits....
, Hex Hector
Hex Hector
Hex Hector , is an American dance remixer. He won a Grammy in 2001 for "Best Remixer".-Biography:Hector was born in in Manhattan, New York, of a Puerto Rican mother and Cuban father, and was raised in the Washington Heights neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan...
, Victor Calderone
Victor Calderone
Victor Calderone is a house music producer, DJ and remixer.-History:Raised in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn, Calderone was introduced into New York City's nightlife by his older brother, Cesar, who was very active in the club music business. Calderone began to dabble with turntables and...
, Frankie Knuckles
Frankie Knuckles
Frankie Knuckles is an American DJ, record producer and remix artist. He played an important role in developing house music as a Chicago DJ in the 1980s and he helped to popularize house music in the 1990s, with his work as a producer and remixer...
, Merritt
Merritt
Merritt is a surname.Those bearing it include:*Bill Merritt *Michael Merritt *Samuel Merritt *William Hamilton Merritt , influential figure in the Niagara Peninsula of Upper Canada...
, Offer Nissim
Offer Nissim
Offer Nissim is a popular Israeli DJ and producer. He was born in 1964 in Tel Aviv, Israel.Nissim produces house music in mostly tribal, hard and progressive styles, including exclusive tracks featuring female vocalists and Meital De Razon...
and Peter Rauhofer
Peter Rauhofer
Peter Rauhofer is a DJ, remixer and producer who formerly went under the moniker Club 69 as well as Size Queen. A native of Vienna, Austria, he is famous for his remixes of a number of Madonna's songs including "Nothing Really Matters", "American Life", "Nothing Fails, "Nobody Knows Me", "Get...
. Artists such as Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
, Madonna, Beyoncé, Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
, Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
, Grace Jones
Grace Jones
Grace Jones is a Jamaican-American singer, model and actress.Jones secured a record deal with Island Records in 1977, which resulted in a string of dance-club hits. In the late 1970s, she adapted the emerging electronic music style and adopted a severe, androgynous look with square-cut hair and...
, Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
, Gloria Gaynor
Gloria Gaynor
Gloria Gaynor is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits; "I Will Survive" , "Never Can Say Goodbye" , "Let Me Know " and "I Am What I Am" .-Early career:Gaynor was a singer with the Soul...
, and George Clinton
George Clinton (funk musician)
George Clinton is an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and music producer and the principal architect of P-Funk. He was the mastermind of the bands Parliament and Funkadelic during the 1970s and early 1980s, and launched a solo career in 1981. He has been cited as one of the foremost...
and the P-Funk All-Stars have all performed at the Roxy.
Roxy had stopped for several weeks in the fall of 2006, but resumed operation once again on December 2, 2006. The club closed their doors for good on March 10, 2007. A documentary about the club's final party, entitled "Roxy: The Last Dance" premiered in August 2008 on the LOGO
Logo (TV channel)
Logo is an American digital cable television channel owned by Viacom's MTV Networks division. Launched in June 2005, the channel's programs are geared towards the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community...
cable television network.
There were plans for the club to be demolished in order to make room for new residential apartments, however in July 2008 there was news that the Roxy would re-open under new management. The local community board that represents the interests of the residents near the club have stated that the club could re-open if it served the community in the long run.
See also
- Crobar
- DanceteriaDanceteriaDanceteria was a well-known four-floor nightclub located in New York City which operated from 1980 until 1986 and in the Hamptons until 1995. Throughout its history, the club had seven different locations, three in NYC and four in the Hamptons...
- Palladium
- Studio 54Studio 54Studio 54 was a highly popular discotheque from 1977 until 1991, located at 254 West 54th Street in Manhattan, New York, USA. It was originally the Gallo Opera House, opening in 1927, after which it changed names several times, eventually becoming a CBS radio and television studio. In 1977 it...
- The LimelightThe LimelightThe Limelight is the name of a chain of nightclubs that were owned and operated by Peter Gatien, located in Atlanta, Hollywood, Florida, and London, and formerly in New York City and Chicago.-History:...
- TwiloTwiloTwilo was an American nightclub in operation from 1995 to 2001 in New York City and from 2006 to 2007 in Miami. The New York location at 530 West 27th Street in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan regularly attracted a crowd of thousands to its warehouse-like dance floor...
- Webster HallWebster HallWebster Hall is a nightclub located at 125 East 11th Street, between Third and Fourth Avenues, near Astor Place, in Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1886, its current incarnation was opened by the Ballinger Brothers in 1992...