“Jazz and mambo flowed along a stretch of the Bronx in the 1940s and for years after. Lined with nightclubs, theaters and catering halls, Southern Boulevard was a musician’s playground,” writes The New York Times’ Winnie Hu speaking of the Bronx of an aspired era, which has been recently revived with “The Boogie Down Booth” – a temporary kiosk for public to enjoy the Bronx-born music while waiting for a bus or friends, and to escape from the surrounding hustle-bustle of Southern Boulevard.

On July 23rd, we celebrated the launch of “The Boogie Down Booth” with a press event onsite, which featured a thrilling live performance by Circa ’95. The band’s music will continue to play at the Booth until mid-September alongside many other great tunes by an incredible line-up of Bronx artists, curated by WHEDco’s Bronx Music Heritage Center. 

Design Trust executive director Susan Chin shared her excitement for this multi-faceted initiative in her high-spirited address. She was joined by DOT Bronx Borough Commissioner Connie Moran, WHEDco Founder & President Nancy Biberman, SBS Deputy Commissioner Michael Blaise Backer, and Bronx Music Heritage Center’s Will Calhoun and Elena Martinez.

Check out what press has to say about “The Boogie Down Booth”:

“The brightly colored structure is a cross between a sound booth and a bus stop, providing seating while playing homegrown South Bronx music. The booth is the second installation of an initiative called Under the Elevated, which seeks to reclaim some of the space underneath New York City's nearly 700 miles of elevated track.”

 WILL HUNTSBERRY, The Wall Street Journal

“Temporary installations like these are meant to pave the way for broader environmental changes around the city's transportation infrastructure, which Design Trust Executive Director Susan Chin described as space the city cannot afford to waste.” 

EDDIE SMALL, DNAinfo

See more press coverage.

Read more about “The Boogie Down Booth”.

Share your thoughts on how underused areas below elevated transit infrastructure in the Bronx and across the city can be improved. Leave a comment online vie email – ute@designtrust.org – and social media through using hashtags – #UnderTheElevated and #Bronxmusic.