SETH HURWITZ, Owner of the 9:30 Club
Though Seth Hurwitz barely finished high school and didn’t go to college (except for taking one class; Business 101 at the local community school), he teamed up with his high school substitute teacher, Rich Heinecke, to launch I.M.P., an independent concert promotion and production company in 1980. They wasted no time making their mark on Washington D.C.’s music scene—first by booking acts at the offbeat Ontario Theatre, then bringing the same energy to the gritty, no-frills 9:30 Club. Six years later they made it official, buying the 200-capacity club from its original owners, Dody Disanto and Jon Bowers, and turning it into one of the most influential independent venues in the country. By 1996 the demand was undeniable, and they moved the club to a bigger space, expanding capacity to 1200 while keeping the same underground spirit intact.
Forty-five years later, I.M.P. is still doing things its own way. The company has put on more than 35,000 events, drawing millions of fans and delivering the kind of live music moments that stick with you forever. In 2004, Seth Hurwitz took over operations at Merriweather Post Pavilion, followed by D.C.’s historic Lincoln Theatre in 2013. The Anthem opened its doors in 2017—a 6,000-capacity waterfront venue, Hurwitz’s first ground-up project, and an instant staple of the city’s music scene. In 2023, he brought it full circle with The Atlantis, a 450-capacity venue built as a love letter to the original 9:30 Club, preserving its gritty, intimate magic for a new generation.