Two years after opening, the Cicada, a Fort Worth bar that spotlights indie music acts, found itself on the verge of closing after a 25% increase in rent.
The financial strain from the rent hike was compounded by rising alcohol and supply costs as well as a nationwide decline in patrons attending live music events.
“We were drowning to the point where I honestly was ready to give up,” said Tyler Stevens, who runs the bar with her husband, John. “I did not see a way out.”
The Cicada opened in March 2023. Stevens, who previously ran the Tin Panther — another Fort Worth music venue in Fort Worth that has since closed — saw slower nights than expected.
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“We’ll have a fantastic week where we have Friday, Saturday night sold-out shows. And then the very next week, we have a mediocre outcome for those shows,” she said.
Dallas-based law firm Mullen & Mullen, which sponsored a recent D-FW music festival and other initiatives championing local independent music, heard about the bar’s woes through the Fort Worth Music Office, also called Hear Fort Worth.
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The firm and the Fort Worth Music Office pledged a $20,000 grant to the Cicada this month, making it the first recipient of the new Jambaloo Venue Prize.
Future winners will also be in the D-FW area and selected by a group of judges evaluating the venues’ impact and community value, among other criteria.
The Cicada will use the grant for outreach efforts including social media marketing and merchandise as well as for artist fees, Stevens said.
“We can finally afford to do some of the things that will really help us to be more seen,” she said.
Joe Morrison, an attorney at Mullen & Mullen, had not visited the Cicada, but friends heaped high praise on it.
“If you’re in Fort Worth, it’s going to be one of, if not the first, place you play,” Morrison said. “Frankly, looking at it, not everyone’s going to blow up and become a professional musician. But these are just places where people can go out and express themselves.”
In recent years, storied music hubs have shuttered across North Texas. Andy’s Bar in Denton closed in February. Lola’s in Fort Worth, where singer Leon Bridges performed before his rise to fame, closed in 2023. Deep Ellum nightclub Lizard Lounge closed in 2020.
“The margins are so thin on having a music venue,” said Tom Martens, director of the Fort Worth Music Office. “We’ve heard of venues where their air conditioner went out, and it put them out of business.”
As for Stevens, Martens said, “you have this person who has a building that has rent, that has products she has to keep in stock. … She has to pay talent, pay security, and sound and licensing. … It’s going to have a price to it.”
A June study from the National Independent Venue Association, an advocacy organization, found 64% of independent venues were not profitable. Research relied on sources such as survey data and venue information, including attendance levels.
“No one’s becoming a millionaire opening a live music venue,” Martens said. “It’s a passion to amplify our local musicians.”
The Jambaloo Venue Prize has been a “safety net” for the Cicada, Stevens said. “We’re definitely not out of the water yet, but we have a life vest on. … We’re swimming towards the future.”
The bar’s mission remains the same: “to revitalize that fire that used to be in people’s hearts for local music,” she said.
“It’s basically about getting community to come back out,” she said.