Live Music Is Back Crossword

Go-go became the District’s official music as of 2020, but it’s been the funktastic heartbeat of the capital city since it came on the scene in the ‘70s. This crossword traces the origins and history of go-go’s iconic sound. And as D.C. has evolved, so too has its eclectic music scene. Down and across this grid are the people, places, instruments and more which create the District’s living musical anthology. View the answers here. 

Print the downloadable PDF here.

ACROSS

6. A national park — for the performing arts (2 words)

8. Popular punk venue whose beloved Red Room closed in 2018 (2 words)

9. A free music streaming platform where a sizeable chunk of DMV rappers have gotten their start

10. Music venue at 7DrumCity (2 words)

13. A rapper who once told National Music Express she resonates with being a pop-punk princess; she has collaborated with the likes of Doja Cat, Aminé and more (2 words)

14. One of the first music venues in the U.S. specifically catered to Black artists (2 words)

17. The name of Chuck Brown’s famous band (2 words)

19. American trumpet player in the D.C. go-go scene as part of Rare Essence, notably buried in a light blue casket (2 words)

20. One of Chuck Brown’s most popular tracks, including his own name (2 words)

22. A basement bar near Farragut Square where Gregory “Sugar Bear” Elliot played (3 words)

24. A famous Arlington recording studio, which closed in October and played an important role in D.C.’s hardcore scene (3 words)

25. R&B superstar, who collaborated with Drake and Tyler, the Creator in 2021 (2 words)

26. Famous go-go band with known hits like “Pump Me Up” and “Let’s Get Small” (2 words)

28. DMV rapper behind the anthemic song “Crew,” featuring Brent Faiyaz and Shy Glizzy

29. Handheld brass instrument with three or four valves/buttons

32. Live music venue located at The Wharf (3 words)

33. Go-go band who got their start as children, using objects they could find around their neighborhood — pots, bottles, hubcaps, etc.

36. Part of a drum set that can open and close

37. A self-proclaimed blues bar and soul food restaurant named after a single-letter rearrangement of a D.C. neighborhood (2 words)

41. The famous punk record label, housing bands such as State of Alert and Minor Threat (2 words)

42. One of the District’s most famous natives, lovingly known as the “Prince of Motown” and creator of one of the most critically acclaimed albums of all time: “What’s Going On” (2 words)

45. Renowned locally-based R&B singer who played a Marvin Gaye tribute concert at Wolf Trap in August 2021 (2 words)

46. Trailblazing Black punk band with a beer styled after them, produced by Key Brewing Co., called Positive Mental Attitude (2 words)

47. D.C. native and late ‘90s/early 2000s R&B star behind the smash-hit “Pony,” who worked extensively with artists like Timbaland, Aaliyah and Missy Elliott

48. The first D.C. go-go band to be signed to a major record label (2 words)

49. D.C.’s most prominent performing arts center (2 words)

52. White House-adjacent live music hall which shares a name with a certain popular musical (2 words)

53. R&B singer originally from D.C. whose 2019 album “Shea Butter Baby” was her first for Dreamville Records (2 words)

54. Music venue at the Wharf which opened in 2017 with a show featuring The Foo Fighters and The Struts

55. The official music of the District as of 2020, and rightfully so

56. One of the few local music venues which include a number in its name

57. Revolutionizers of go-go, most well known for their hit “Jungle” (2 words)

58. Simply, the godfather of go-go (2 words)

DOWN

1. Activist group working to protect go-go’s legacy in the District (3 words) 

2. A beloved venue which recently relocated to  Union Market — think a singing avian creature, just spelled differently

3. A global superstar featured on the Ben’s Chili Bowl mural (next to the Obamas), whose work and influence expands far beyond just Paisley Park

4. D.C. hybrid nightclub and concert venue, also ranked as the world’s best nightclub in 2021 by DJ Mag

5. One of D.C’s most famous rappers, who rose to prominence with the release of  “Dig Dug (Shake It)”

7. Their song “(Doin’) Da Butt” was in “School Daze,” Spike Lee’s 1988 film (2 words)

11. Grungy go-to H street venue which closed spring 2021 (4 words)

12. Annual outdoor music festival launched in 2014 at the back lots of Union Market (3 words)

13. Song by The Blackbyrds named after one of D.C.’s most beloved (and largest) public parks
(3 words)

15. Artist and producer behind 2020’s “Live Forever” album (2 words)

16. Singer behind the classic “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” which hit no. 1 on the charts in 1973
(2 words)

18. A new venue in Navy Yard with a partially-seated set-up, making for a relaxed musical experience – unless you want to rush the stage (2 words)

21. One of the most famous venues in D.C. whose name includes a time (2 words) 

23. A leading figure in the American modern dance movement, she founded a dance company in 1926 in her name and earned Kennedy Center Honors and  the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2 words)

27. Drummer for Nirvana and founder +  iconic frontman of the Foo Fighters who attended high school in Arlington and Alexandria (2 words)

30. A jazz and supper club located in Georgetown which hosted Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie
(2 words)

31. Trailblazing post-hardcore band, whose name also means fake, artificial 

34. The 1975 album from funk legends Parliament, titled after one of the District’s most beloved nicknames, honoring its history as the first majority Black major city in the U.S. (2 words) 

35. Music venue on U Street with a bust of a certain U.S. president in the window (2 words)

38. Famous venue in Columbia, Maryland, which has an Animal Collective album name after it

39. The band behind the D.C. classic “The District Sleeps Alone Tonight” (2 words)

40. A new Water Street venue on the waterfront (2 words)

41. One of the world’s most famous pianists, composers and jazz artists originally from the District, who has a local arts school named after him (attended by Dave Chappelle) (2 words)

43. Rapper formerly known as Jay IDK

44. Theater that annually hosts the Washington Ballet’s “Nutcracker,” named after a co-founder of Warner Bros. Studios (2 words)

50. One of the District’s high schools which Marvin Gaye attended, located in Columbia Heights

51. In a classic SNL skit, Will Ferrell played this instrument

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