After 20 years of playing host to Singapore’s premier live bands, Holland Village institution Wala Wala has turned the lights off at its second-floor gig space.
The iconic watering hole, which started live gigs in October 2001, announced the closure via its Facebook page on Nov 7. The first floor, which has a cafe and bar, remains open.
All that remains in the now-abandoned second floor are stacked bar chairs and tables, as well as instruments and microphones that have not been used for almost two years. The owners are looking for a new tenant to take over the space.
“The second floor has been closed since the end of March 2020, when live entertainment was first banned (under Covid-19 restrictions), and we’ve been bleeding money ever since,” said Wala Wala owner and director Stanley Yeo.