American Football, an emo rock band formed in Urbana, has listed their iconic house on Airbnb. For prices as low as $135/night, anyone can experience a stay at one of the birthplaces of emo and math rock.
The two-story white house is located at 704 W. High St. in Urbana. The house’s walls have survived countless house shows and college parties — and are also featured on the cover of every release since American Football’s self-titled debut album in 1999.
Despite their short-lived career, American Football cemented themselves as one of the creators of the emo genre, and they left a massive impact on the music scene. Their leading track, “Never Meant,” has amassed over 58 million Spotify streams and is included on lists like “30 Essential Songs From The Golden Era Of Emo.” Their “American Football” album made it to sixth on Rolling Stone’s “40 Greatest Emo Albums of All Time.”
Due to this, the American Football house has become a musical landmark as one of the primary images that fans associate with the band. Each album cover is a photo of a part of the home, and there is an etched “x” mark on the sidewalk where photographer and resident Chris Strong took the original album photo.
The image of the house has a feeling of simplicity and nostalgia — a theme consistently present in emo music. Fans associate the album cover with these emotions, and emo bands have taken this simplicity and used it as inspiration for their music and aesthetic ever since.
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The home was nothing more than a place to drive past and snap a photo of until Polyvinyl Records, Strong and American Football themselves collectively purchased the house in May 2023. Now, it is available for the public to rent. However, the owners have a particular interest in renting to music artists.
The Airbnb listing states, “By preserving the 130+year-old house and opening it up for artists, creative retreats, events and nightly stays, we hope this indelible space will continue to inspire others for many years to come — right here in the community that gave shape to its unique legacy.”
In addition to the Airbnb listing, the ownership collective launched a website offering a comprehensive history of the location, discounted rates for bands and recording artists that want to stay there, information about local shows and music events and an inquiries page for venue bookings.
