It ain’t easy to sustain a creative vision in the first place, but once COVID hit the first domino—setting off a chain reaction that led to defunding, closures, and premature funerals in the arts—the creative spaces that managed to cling to life found themselves on life support. This was the case for Ryan Holman and Madda Udvari-Solner, who have transformed a Lincoln Warehouse loft into Hear Here Presents, an intimate space for live music, studio sessions, and community building in Milwaukee.
“I had to cancel the most shows I’ve ever had to, even some big sessions we put on the books with 88.9 Radio Milwaukee. Since then, we’ve been figuring out how to rebuild,” Holman told me on a recent autumn afternoon in the studio. “We were at the precipice of doing this big thing we’ve been working towards, and that just shot us backwards.”
The three of us sat on chairs and a lounger in the studio, steps away from a big table that doubled as their workspace for the day. But during events, it’s usually covered in snacks, merch, or members from the community catching up. An assemblage of Persian rugs create a delightfully retro sanctuary atmosphere. The walls are covered in landscape paintings that loom above Greek bust figurines, tube televisions, and cowboy mood boards. This is not your typical stage-and-standing room venue.
Sessions at Hear Here are more like a Tiny Desk Concert, or a Riverwest Radio performance: intimate and expertly curated for a selective audience. Holman and Udvari-Solner keep the audience small, lining up folding chairs around a drum set underneath glittering disco balls, and hire professional videographers to capture the live session. From the very beginning of this nine-year project, Hear Here wanted to introduce the city to new artists, and introduce touring artists to the city.
“What we’re doing here matters on a broader scale for Milwaukee,” Holman said. “A nationally- or world-touring band in this space makes it possible for them to connect one-on-one with fans. We have had bands reach out to us after playing and telling us how much they loved Milwaukee. And we just really love art. We want to elevate the local and national scene.”
For a while, Holman and Udvari-Solner sustained the project by funding it themselves, putting back whatever they made from sales into paying artists and videographers, who were already working at a discounted rate. They found momentum again once the pandemic emergency began to cool, booking shows and ramping up their production efforts to maximize the audience experience and band deliverables, with special sessions for VIP guests and open invitations to the public.
At the end of one such event last December, party crashers pulled the Lincoln Warehouse fire alarm, setting off events involving building code reviews, ADA compliance issues, and an eventual mandate from higher up the management ladder to fully cease such events in the space. Suddenly, what helped Hear Here Presents bounce back from the pandemic threatened their physical and financial overhead.
In order to keep their space in the building and remain steadfast in their vision, Holman and Udvari-Solner had to pivot yet again. They’ve expanded their scope by revamping the Miramar Theatre green room, booking bands and art directing for Wantable Fest at lightning speed, and working with local brands like System Seltzers on promotional videos shot in the studio. Their new tactics seem to be working.
“We keep it really small now. That incident really violated our trust and made us dial it back into something more exclusive. If you’re at our events now, it means we trust you and want you here. This level of community needs to always come first,” said Udvari-Solner.
So why is this space so important to Milwaukee? It’s a showcase, a labor of love, an expression of genuine investment in musical talent and local initiatives. Visit any other big city, and concepts like Hear Here Presents are not uncommon. For creative visionaries, it is a sign of life, and their longevity represents a community vote of confidence.
But the biggest question still looms large: How do projects like this find sustainability in the long run? Hear Here Presents has just launched Hear Here Media on Patreon in order to distribute perks and experiences among its supporters. Donors will receive access to exclusive events and opportunities to attend the live sessions that have brought acts like Kikagaku Moyo, Twen, Daniel Donato, and Joseph Huber to the city. High-tier donors are slotted to receive the true VIP treatment with green room access and studio meet-and-greet opportunities. As Udvari-Solner phrased it: “The reason we do this is truly not for us. It’s for the city, for the scene, for artists and for our love of creativity. We are finally back to a spot where we can lean into our full abilities and ambition.”
Hear Here Presents will host Mindchatter at the Miramar Theater on November 2, and plans to launch “WSOS Radio,” a DJ set happy hour for exclusive patrons. As Holman and Udvari-Solner continue forward with community and music on the mind, you can bet any future setback won’t slow their roll.
“Had everything gone as planned, we wouldn’t be innovating like we are now,” said Holman. “This is the next chapter of Hear Here.”
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