The P.O.P. Issue 008 - John Barclay

The P.O.P. (Portraits of POPLIFE) documents inspiring individuals who push artistic boundaries and strive for excellence in order to advance the communities around them. Uniting a wide range of talented creatives from diverse backgrounds, this editorial series invites them to share their passions and the impact they've had on the realms of hospitality, music, fashion, art, and design.?

Our latest issue comes to you from NYC, where we sat down with John Barclay, the man behind some of Brooklyn’s hottest nightclubs. Read below to hear the owner of Bossa Nova Civic Club discuss his newest project Paragon, the trials and tribulations of being a club owner, and his journey towards changing the law in New York City.

John, tell us a little bit about yourself. What do you do?

John Barclay: Most people know me as a dance music entrepreneur. I co-founded two NYC dance establishments, Bossa Nova Civic Club and Paragon, as well as a yerba mate soda brand called White Label.?

How did you get started in the nightlife industry? What influenced this path?

JB: In my youth, I played in grunge and metal bands. There wasn’t really the best cultural infrastructure for 15-year-olds in my hometown, so we would organize DIY shows ourselves. We would convert any spaces we could get our hands on - banquet halls, abandoned barns, houses, office buildings, or storage units - into temporary dancehalls and charge $3 for entry.?

In college, I started throwing dance parties in the basement of a bar that was connected to a laundromat. When I moved to NYC at the height of the bloghouse era, I continued making music, DJing, and organizing nights mostly at modest-sized bars, just for the fun of it. Certainly my first noteworthy achievement was my involvement with 285 Kent, a warehouse in Southside Williamsburg where we organized raves, until the NYPD got involved. We transferred the lease to Todd P of Market Hotel who, along with his crew, turned it into a DIY landmark that had years of relentless, exciting, and messy programming such as Grimes, A$AP Rocky, and Big Freedia. We would pop in and return to our old venue, now under Todd P’s command, once a month or so, to throw a rave.??

It was around this time that the whole North Brooklyn dance scene as we understand it today really started to form. Up until then, “art” kids, or whatever they were called, were pretty anti-rave, but I think the scenes they were generally into got old and they were finally willing to try something new. Almost overnight everyone had rave fever. We took that energy to a few other venues until we caught word of an abandoned bar in Bushwick that was available for rent, and almost 11 years ago, we opened Bossa Nova Civic Club.??

Bossa Nova has become a highly influential nightclub in the underground techno scene, from being featured in The New York Times, to being named one of the best clubs in the world by Playboy. What is it that makes Bossa Nova so different from other clubs?

JB: At the time that we opened Bossa Nova, we had the lane all to ourselves. In 2012, techno in New York was a very niche scene, and it had no real headquarters. We opened up, and all these cutesy dorks that were making music in their bedrooms and hanging out on message boards or Myspace or whatever, all-of-a-sudden had a place to perform, explore, socialize, and dance.?

We were very lucky that some of them turned out to be extremely talented. Discwoman started at Bossa; Dweller, Floorgasm, Volvox had a residency; the place just exploded with talent and energy. I think most people would say we did a decent job of fostering and curating that talent. We became the Honeycomb Hideout, the Techno Cheers, if you will, of the Bushwick dance scene.?

Bossa Nova has gone through lots of challenges. What were they and how did you overcome them?

JB: Just like any other bar or restaurant, everyday can be a nightmare. We’ve had a broad spectrum of problems including, but not limited to, hurricanes, fire, pandemics, people with septum piercings on twitter, etc. Certainly, our biggest challenge has been the government and its never-ending war on culture.

You recently opened a new venue named Paragon. Can you tell us about this project??Were you ever concerned about having two competing clubs? How are they able to coexist?

JB: Paragon is our new 2.5 story bar/restaurant where we host dance nights on the weekends. The location has been a discotheque for decades and has a classic NYC dance club feel. The lighting is handled by Nitemind and the design by Safwat Riad. It’s full of mirrors and stainless steel. It looks like Cinderella’s castle. The music is generally rooted in NYC house and techno, but we keep it eclectic and exciting. Bossa is a little more rambunctious and casual, while Paragon is slightly more grown, sexy and professional.

You were one of the lead people who helped to repeal the NYC Cabaret Law. Tell us about the history behind this achievement. What inspired you to change the law?

JB: The NYC Cabaret Law, originally passed in 1926 to target jazz clubs, banned dancing in 99.5% of establishments in NYC. By the time we repealed it in 2017, it was enforced almost exclusively against Black and Latino bars and restaurants. It sounds made-up, but in 2016 they would literally raid bars/clubs and sometimes shut them down for allowing people to dance. Unmarked vans would pull up and a dozen officers would storm the place paramilitary style. I’ve been to court for it twice. They treated us like we were Al-Qaeda for letting a few nice people dance to music; so embarrassing.?

After almost an entire century the city finally caved in, but not without a fight. We had a ruthless campaign with hundreds of people working nonstop. Now, dancing in NYC, like almost everywhere else in the entire world, is legal.

What makes the NYC music scene so different compared to other cities in the U.S.?

JB: NYC rent is horrifying. This means you have to work relentlessly just to afford a cramped apartment. This means, per capita, New Yorkers have more steam to blow off than just about everyone else, and when we go out to express ourselves, we are dead serious about having fun. We don’t get to relax in our backyards like the rest of the country, so when we get an occasional hour or two to dance or feel good, we make the most of it.?