New Venue in Oxford Welcomes Art, Music From All

Location of The Wall (All photos by Hadleigh Lynch)

Oxford is known for its unique town and character for people to enjoy walks around the Square, dining at local restaurants and the beauty of it all.

But where exactly can you listen to and perform music? In the last two months, The Wall has opened for business to attract local musicians and artists interested in showcasing their talents.

The Wall is located inside the Vaporized Shop located on West Jackson Avenue, right in between Anytime Fitness and Campus Book Mart. 20 percent of the space is used for electronic cigarettes and accessories while the other 80 percent is used as a lounge and a stage for DIY music and an art gallery.

Vaporized Shop is open Monday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. as it features art and electronic accessories for sale. On Fridays through Saturdays from 10:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. guests are welcome to play and enjoy music.

Tanner Scagges and Austin Wheeler are owners of the venue who decided to expand the space that eventually became The Wall. The Wall’s atmosphere is quite laid back with local artwork hanging on the walls.

The Wall was founded to create a safe place for people to express themselves. Anyone can some bring in art and music. Tanner Scagges, local and part-owner, emphasizes how important he wants people to know that The Wall gives them the freedom of expression.

Scagges said, “My main focus is honest music so that anyone can come through and play what they want and not worry about being judged. This place gives people a chance and to have an audience.”

The uniqueness and character of The Wall are about building a community and creating experiences with local residents and university students. The foundation is not one-dimensional but rather invites people with different backgrounds to come together.

The goal is to create an environment that people feel safe to broadcast their talents. Locals and some students will bring in their art for people to buy. Scagges describes that he wanted to make sure that this was a place for the locals of Oxford. Instead of cover bands, only the musicians in Mississippi will be featured.

After only being open for two months, many people would agree that The Wall is an incredible place to be entertained. Brady Faulkner, a former student at the University of Mississippi, expresses how he finds The Wall to be fascinating.

He said, “I came a couple weeks ago to listen to one of the performances and I honestly love the vibe here. The music and people are great and it is an awesome place to come and relax here during the summer.”

The Wall will have openings for people interested in performing throughout the rest of the summer. The Wall’s website, www.TheWall-Oxford.com, offers a schedule for locals to see which artists will be performing that weekend. People can go online to call or email the employees to set up a time to play.

As described on their website, “The Wall is a place for art. A place for you. Come be involved.”

Hadleigh Lynch is enrolled at Meek School of Journalism and New Media. She can be reached at hjlynch@go.olemiss.edu.

Follow HottyToddy.com on Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat @hottytoddynews. Like its Facebook page: If You Love Oxford and Ole Miss…