Who we are
Free Mondays are pretty much what they sound like: live music, every Monday, no cover, no catch. Just good bands, great sound, free for everyone who loves music.
Why We Exist
There is a lot of really good music out there. There are plenty of music fans who want to enjoy a live show but can’t afford it. We know how much that sucks, because we’ve been there (who hasn’t?). We opened The Empty Bottle in 1992, to serve our customers cheap beers and great live music. In the early 2000s, we launched Free Mondays to make live music more accessible to more people
Over the next 20-ish years, our neighborhood indie music venue has become a cornerstone of the Chicago music scene, and Free Mondays have been credited with helping break bands like The Black Keys, Veruca Salt, Wilco, LCD Soundsystem, and more into the mainstream.
What We Do
Every Monday, we invite new bands, musicians, and artists to perform on our stage. We provide these acts with professional lighting, sound, the works - literally setting the stage for them to get a feel for the next level of live performance. We also offer financial, marketing, and legal resources, because making great music is a great start, but big success requires business smarts, too. And the band gets paid, but we don’t charge an entry fee to cover it. The crowd gets a free show, the artists get a boost, and everyone leaves buzzing.
Where You Can Find Us
Right now, Free Mondays happens at one of Chicago’s oldest and most beloved live music venues, The Empty Bottle. Vetted by fans, it’s earned its street cred as being a place where big bands you know and love once sweated it out on stage before anyone knew their names. We love this series and this scene, and we’re currently working on bringing the noise to new cities.
How You Can Help
Free Mondays have been a huge success for over 2 decades, and we’re looking to do more of it in other cities and markets. To do that, we need venues, sponsors and volunteers – anything from designing flyers to providing legal, financial, or marketing expertise. If this sounds like something you want to be part of, get in touch, and let’s make more music for more people.
If you’re lucky enough to have more money than time, feel free to