By Lisa Thibodeau

Sacramento is gaining a new live music venue called Channel 24 from Another Planet Entertainment, the producers of Outside Lands, which should help to fill a gap in the city’s lack of midsize live music stages. 

The 2,150-person venue is located at 1800 24 St. near Midtown and is projected to open in early 2025. This new establishment will help amplify the music scene in the capital city by bringing in more artists and shows.

Berkeley-based Another Planet Entertainment chose to add Sacramento to its repertoire of music and events venues, which includes: Greek Theatre in Berkeley, The Castro Theatre in San Francisco, Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, Fox Theater in Oakland, and Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys Lake Tahoe Hotel and Casino in Nevada. 

This new building is located close to a light rail station and is described in a press statement as having “incredible sightlines” in a two-level theater, with a main music room, a club with VIP seating, several bars with food options, an open-air patio and a central kitchen. Offices for Another Planet staff will also be on-site. 

“Channel 24, is right in the heart of the city and we hope that the venue quickly becomes an integral part of Sacramento’s vibrant live music scene,” said Allen Scott, Another Planet’s president of concerts and festivals in a press release. 

A 2023 Sacramento Music Census report discovered that options for live music and events are insufficient in Sacramento. Key Findings from the report  which polled 1,392 online respondents found that, “Sacramento’s local, live music ecosystem is out of balance.” The city does not currently have a healthy ratio of venues for artists to create a “vibrant music ecosystem.” 

Furthermore, the census found regulatory factors hinder musicians by lumping live music in with bar and nightclub restrictions, “narrowing the opportunities for creatives.” The census also found a need for, “work on diversity, equity and inclusion for women and BIPOC people.” (Another Planet is listed as a contributor to the city’s project.)

Sacramento’s music scene has a history of difficulty in booking bands because of this lack of live music stages, according to Mike Testa, president and CEO of Visit Sacramento. “We’ve struggled with diversity in size of venues, which impacts the band tours that will stop in our city. Opportunities for bands and promoters were either the giant arena, or a small club or bar, with not much in between.”

Ace of Spades a 1,000-person venue on R Street in Sacramento, not far from where Channel 24 is located, has hosted big names like Tyler the Creator and Snoop Dog, and has helped to change the music landscape by bridging that gap between the landmark Golden 1 Center with its capacity for 17,680 people, and other large venues like Thunder Valley Casino in Lincoln, which seats 4,500, and the smaller — though often historically rich — bars and restaurants like Old Ironsides and the Torch Club.

Daniel Romandia, marketing director and talent buyer at Harlow’s and the Starlet Room, on J Street in Sacramento, which has been hosting shows for over 40 years, is jazzed about another midsize music option in town. 

“We are very excited about Channel 24 because the way we see it, the more venues the better for the Sacramento music scene,”  Romandia said. “This shift towards investing in Sacramento nightlife addresses the problem of booking agents passing up our city for the Bay Area.”

Harlow’s, with its 450-person capacity, along with Crest Theatre, The Boardwalk, Torch Club and others in Sacramento are members of the California Capital Venue Coalition, which advocates for local, independent brick-and-mortar establishments and works to preserve live entertainment in Sacramento. 

“We want the community to know we are here, and want to work with up-and-coming artists on things like album releases that often debut in our smaller, 280-person capacity Starlet Room,” Romandia said.

In addition to the economic boost, live music venues like Channel 24 and festivals like Aftershock and Golden Sky cast a spotlight on Sacramento making it attractive for both visitors and the people who live here, according to Testa. 

“Art and music are two things that help to show a city’s personality, which is incredibly valuable,” Testa said. “All cities have restaurants and hotels, but it’s the creatives in any given region who demonstrate the ethos of the place, and that, at least to me, is what makes a city attractive for exploration.”

This story was funded by the City of Sacramento’s Arts and Creative Economy Journalism Grant to Solving Sacramento. Following our journalism code of ethics and protocols, the city had no editorial influence over this story and no city official reviewed this story before it was published. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, Capital Public Radio, Outword, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review, Sacramento Observer and Univision 19.