Established in 2018, Waluigi’s Mansion has hosted countless acts at its house near downtown Urbana. From Kangaroo Court, Soft and Dumb, Telephone Junkies and Friko, it’s safe to say the house show venue is adept at hosting a plethora of performers.

Ryan Waldinger, senior in ACES and one of the house organizers, described Waluigi’s Mansion as having a “really, really fun environment” that creates a feeling of community among its concertgoers.

“I think it’s awesome that I get to live in this area and the community, and — outside of students — everybody here that’s a local is super open to letting us do these things … (they’re) just really great people,” he said.

Waldinger said it means a lot to him and the other organizers to be acknowledged for their hard work in organizing the shows.

“We work really hard to put the shows on, and we try to do our best to make an environment that people appreciate and that artists can appreciate and use for exposure,” he said. “To get some exposure ourselves and to also, you know, be appreciated for it — it’s always awesome.”

Waldinger encouraged people who are interested in going to house shows to start getting involved.

“This sort of thing, the local music scene and house shows specifically, stays alive through word of mouth and passing things down” he said.

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