During the 1980s, First Avenue flourished and became a landmark in the music and entertainment industry, playing a seminal role in establishing the '80s funk rock sub genre via the Minneapolis sound, and being the primary local venue for hometown star Prince.

[6] They opened The Depot on 3 April 1970, with Joe Cocker and Mad Dogs & Englishmen and a stage crowded with 27 musicians and singers who turned in two magnificent sets.

After a short remodel, The Depot in July 1972, evolved into Uncle Sam's, a national franchise of the American Avents Corporation of Cincinnati.

"[9] In about late 1973, Steve McClellan (who had become the club's talent buyer and eventually general manager)[10] started working at Uncle Sam's as a bartender.

[13] This space was once a restaurant (the "Greyhound Cafe") and later a coatroom, before staffer Danny Flies and McClellan spent $1,500 to turn it into a barebones music venue as part of Sam's.

[12][15] The Entry opened its doors on 21 March 1980, with Cathy Mason fronting Wilma & the Wilburs, who were first to play, as warmup for headliner Curtiss A.

[14] Chrissie Dunlap began to work days in the office in 1979, about the time McClellan booked the Ramones and Pat Benatar in back-to-back, sell out concerts.

[16] As EDM and rave culture grew in the 1990s, Cole mentored younger local DJs such as Woody McBride, DJ Apollo (Dory Kahalé) and E-Tones at Danceteria and other DJ nights such as House Nation Under a Groove and Depth Probe, helping to create a thriving and distinctive techno-music scene in the upper Midwest.

Encouraged by Dunlap to write their own material,[21] Jimmy Jam and the 11-piece Mind & Matter were able to break through with bookings by McClellan in the mid-1970s.

Prince's management team offered First Avenue $100,000 to use the mainroom for filming in late November into December 1983, with the clause that the Entry would remain open.

McClellan feared the audience had changed from genuine music lovers to a lot of tourists; still, he and Meyers were grateful for the boost in revenue.

[21] The club was briefly closed by Fingerhut in late fall 2004 for financial reasons, causing a wave of protest from music fans.

[3] The issues were quickly resolved (the judge presiding in the bankruptcy case noted, "I gather there is some urgency about this"), and the club was reopened by new partners Meyers, McClellan, and former business manager Byron Frank, with shows resuming after one week's closure.

[26] The nightclub has been the starting point for many acts that have come out of the Twin Cities, including Prince, The Replacements, Hüsker Dü, Soul Asylum, Semisonic, and Lizzo, among others.

[36] Later after the advent of ubiquitous digital photography, he became an employee in the facilities department,[37] and made a series of under-two minute videos for the Minnesota Historical Society describing his photos.

It showcases Minnesota's top wrestling talent and brings in bigger names, including Sean Waltman, Jerry Lynn, Tyler Black, Colt Cabana and others.