We need your help to keep a beloved Chicago underground party alive.

Work Ethic is a Chicago based underground party; it is 100% independently operated, with no private investors. It is funded through the finances and efforts of passionate DIY organizers and the community around them.

I started this party as a cause of being mentored and encouraged by DJs like Darryn Jones, Mark Grusane, Marc Davis, and many others. They saw a young DJ interested in the sound they helped pioneer—deep disco, soul, funk, and left-field house—and gave me their time, imparting wisdom and encouragement. Along the way, this generation of DJs has come to feel like family to me.

The sound they built is now internationally recognized. The records they’ve made part of a “canon” fetch pretty pennies. But at home, the work of continuing and preserving a legacy is ongoing—and it will always be. I wanted to start this party so that a new generation of dancers could be exposed to this sound. I’m proud that this party has been able to build so much upon the work of the people who came before me.

As Work Ethic approaches our anniversary (has it really only been one year?), I'm reflecting on this party and what it means to me and everyone who gets to be a part of it. We're so grateful that so many of you, in and out of this city, see the work we're doing and are excited by it. I can see the effects of this party, and how much it's doing to expose a new generation of dancers to the foundational sounds of their city. This has always been the purpose - beautiful, meaningful music in intimate settings, drawing from the early days of "house music" and keeping that tradition alive.

But throwing this type of party is not easy. We have had three parties in a row nearly get shut down by cops, landlords, and unforeseen circumstances. It has taken a toll on me as an organizer. I feel exhausted. I have worked hard every time to keep the party alive, but in that effort have lost a significant amount of money - which has come out of my pocket.

This party loses money often. The losses are often small enough that I shrug them off - but over time it adds up. It affects my decision making as an organizer, making creative risks harder and harder to take. But I care about bringing moving, alternative programming into intimate spaces. But I need help to make this work more sustainable. Running a party like this poses a challenge—it is a small room, with niche progamming. Our margins are razor thin. This party has and will always be an independently funded. The people who keep this event running are you and me. No private investors, no money other than the community's money. So I'm coming to you, the larger underground community, with humility, asking you to help me recoup the losses we've taken recently and create a pillow for us to take creative risks.

$900 will bring me back to even - anything above that will go into a fund specifically meant to finance this party when (not if, because it will happen again!) extenuating circumstances cause us to go in the red.

Thank you in advance for your help.