Detroit, MI

The Scarab Club

Venue review

The musician's read

The Scarab Club is a historic arts club with intimate live-concert and recital programming. The venue combines live entertainment with food, drinks, and conversation, so musicians need to complement the room while still giving guests a reason to listen. For musicians, controlled volume, strong vocals, and a compact, professional setup are especially valuable. Solo artists, duos, trios, and compact full bands can all work depending on the night, with the strongest performers able to move smoothly between atmosphere and higher-energy moments. Based on the venue’s programming, chamber music are among the styles most likely to feel natural here, although individual events can broaden that mix. The Scarab Club is worth considering for musicians whose audience size, stage setup, and live format match the venue’s scale and atmosphere. Before pursuing a date, bands should think about whether their normal set length, equipment footprint, volume, and audience draw suit the way people actually use the space during live events.

Booking Information

Venue booking contacts

Free directory

Contact Information

Role
Talent Buyer
313-831-1250

Member booking tools

Use Quick Pitch, saved venues, follow-ups, tour planning, and the Booking Dashboard with membership.

Open booking tools

Venue details

Age policy
21+
Genres
Chamber, Classical
Sound & production
Confirm with venue
Address
217 Farnsworth St, Detroit, MI 48202, United States
Venue phone
313-831-1250
Call venueText venue

Official venue links

Venue photos & reviews

See the room before load-in

See current venue photos, ratings, selected reviews, hours, and contact details.

Scout this venue

Reveal live photos, rating, reviews, hours, and contact details.

KEEP DIGGING

You might also try

Other venues in Michigan, weighted toward the same city and genres.

The Crofoot Ballroom is a Pontiac concert venue with a strong reputation for local and national touring acts across rock, punk, metal, hip-hop, electronic, alternative, and indie. The venue complex includes multiple rooms, giving artists opportunities at several scales. For musicians, the Ballroom works best for acts with meaningful draw and a polished concert set, while smaller spaces can support developing artists and multi-band bills. Professional production and a standing audience make the room music-first rather than hospitality-driven. The Crofoot is a strong Detroit-area target for regional touring bands and original acts that want a venue network capable of supporting growth from intimate stages to a substantial ballroom.

Read the whole thing

AXIS Lounge at MGM Grand Detroit is casino lounge with recurring live performers and nightlife programming inside MGM Grand Detroit.. The listed capacity is 315 seated — lounge (published design capacity; older source), which gives performers a useful sense of the audience scale. Musically, R&B / jazz / lounge / mixed fit naturally with the programming here. For musicians, the hospitality setting rewards strong vocals, professional presentation, and enough dynamic control to complement food, drinks, and conversation while still making the music feel intentional. AXIS Lounge at MGM Grand Detroit is best suited to performers that understand the room, adapt their dynamics to the audience, and approach the date as a specific venue fit rather than a generic booking. Overall, it offers musicians a distinct performance setting where the live show can become a meaningful part of the audience experience. Acts that prepare for the venue’s format and crowd are likely to make the strongest impression.

Read the whole thing

Baker’s Keyboard Lounge is one of Detroit’s most historic jazz clubs, with a long tradition of presenting pianists, jazz ensembles, blues, soul, and local legends. The room is intimate and listening-focused, making trios, quartets, piano-led groups, vocalists, soul-jazz, blues, and standards natural fits. For musicians, high-level playing, repertoire, and dynamics matter more than production. A compact ensemble can fill the room naturally, and the audience is close enough to hear every detail. Baker’s is a major Detroit target for experienced jazz musicians and touring small groups looking for an iconic listening room with deep history and a crowd that understands the music rather than a general nightlife audience.

Read the whole thing