The Copycat Building is a former manufacturing warehouse at 1501 Guilford Ave,

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, today used as an artists' studio and living space. Built in 1897, it is home to the city's creative class and a landmark of the

Station North Arts and Entertainment District The Station North Arts and Entertainment District (often referred to as just Station North) is an area and official arts and entertainment district in the U.S. city of Baltimore, Maryland. The neighborhood is marked by a combination of artistica ...

. It earned the nickname "the Copycat" for a billboard advertising the Copy Cat printing company that stood on its roof for years. The building was purchased by Charles Lankford in 1983 for $225,000. At the time it housed a variety of light-industrial tenants, which Lankford sought to retain. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the Copycat Building became a focal point of tenant-landlord conflict. Though state and national eviction moratoria prevented eviction proceedings against tenants, Lankford attempted to remove a number of tenants in arrears by refusing to renew month-to-month leases. Because Lankford operates the Copycat without the legally required licensing, tenants and state legal nonprofits challenged his right to relief in tenant holding over court. In December 2021, the

Maryland Court of Appeals The Supreme Court of Maryland is the state supreme court, highest court of the U.S. state of Maryland. Its name was changed on December 14, 2022, from the Maryland Court of Appeals, after a voter-approved change to the state constitution. The cou ...

ruled in Lankford's favor, allowing him to displace tenants despite lacking a license in a blow tenant advocates have called "an 'earthquake' that could endanger tenants" throughout Maryland.” This ruling led to the passage of the Rental Licensing Accountability Act, which aims to block owners of unlicensed units from seeking relief in specialized tenant courts.

Tenants

The Copycat Building was home to The

Wham City Wham City is an art and performance collective based in Baltimore, Maryland. Members of Wham City include musicians Dan Deacon and Ed Schrader, visual artists Jimmy Joe Roche, Peter Ryan O'Connell, Mason Ross, Adam Endres, Dina Kelberman, April Ca ...

Art's Collective, former home to Baltimore artist

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, Blood Baby, Santa Dads, Videohipos, Ed Schrader,

Jimmy Joe Roche Jimmy Joe Roche is an American visual artist and underground filmmaker, based in Baltimore, Maryland. He is a long-time collaborator with Baltimore-based musician Dan Deacon. Career Roche's works have been screened in venues and museums all ove ...

, and others. In addition to hosting local and touring acts Wham City hosted live stage performances, including of their interpretation of

Beauty And The Beast ''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve, Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' ( ...

, and held the first Whartscape Festival in the building in 2006. The related group Wham City Comedy also maintains a studio at the Copycat, where filmmakers and comedians

Ben O'Brien Ben O'Brien (born November 4, 1984) is an American comedian and filmmaker from Baltimore, Maryland. They are a member of the Wham City arts collective and founding member of Wham City Comedy. They have directed videos for Adult Swim and Merge Rec ...

and Alan Resnick produce and direct works, including the infomercial parody

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, which was produced for

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

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and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...

. Bands that have performed in the warehouse include:

Grimes Claire Elise Boucher (; born March 17, 1988), known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Her early work has been described as extending from "lo-fi R&B" to futuristic dance-pop, and has in ...

, Lightning Bolt,

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Future Islands Future Islands is an American synth-pop band based in Baltimore, Maryland, comprising Gerrit Welmers (keyboards and programming), William Cashion (bass, acoustic and electric guitars), Samuel T. Herring (lyrics and vocals), and Michael Lowry (p ...

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, Gravenhurst,

Honne Wells Honne or Hönne may refer to: * Honne and tatemae, Japanese words that describe the contrast between a person's true feelings and desires, and the behavior and opinions one displays in public * Hönne, a river in Germany * Honne (band), an Engli ...

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Anathallo Anathallo was a band originally from Mt. Pleasant, Michigan and then based in Chicago, Illinois. The band started practicing in the fall of 2000 and played their first show soon afterward. Their name is derived from a Greek word meaning "to renew ...

, The USAISAMONSTER,

Need New Body Need New Body is an avant garde music collective band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and beyond, numerous members of which have gone on to become members of the band Man Man. The band was formed from members of the defunct progressive rock/ neo-p ...

, Porches, and

. Today, the Copycat is still home to many young artists, musicians, filmmakers, and professionals looking for a large space to create, study, and live in the city. Many residents use their living spaces to host art and music-related events.

External links

Documentary Film "Welcome to the Copycat"

Explore Baltimore Heritage – Copycat Building

References

*''

Baltimore City Paper ''Baltimore City Paper'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper published in Baltimore, Maryland, founded in 1977 by Russ Smith and Alan Hirsch. The most recent owner was the Baltimore Sun Media Group, which purchased the paper in 2014 from Ti ...

'' May 8, 200
Industry to Easels: Arts-District Designation Easing Conversion of Factories to Studios
{{Baltimore art districts Buildings and structures in Baltimore Greenmount West, Baltimore