{"id":2241463,"date":"2026-01-20T00:22:18","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T00:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2241463"},"modified":"2026-01-20T00:22:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T00:22:18","slug":"burlington-music-venue-radio-bean-seeks-new-owner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/burlington-music-venue-radio-bean-seeks-new-owner\/","title":{"rendered":"Burlington music venue Radio Bean seeks new owner\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The crowd at Radio Bean on Nov. 8, 2025. Photo by Charlotte Oliver\/VTDigger.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>After owning Radio Bean for more than 25 years, Lee Anderson announced Sunday that he\u2019s ready to hand off the downtown Burlington bar and music venue and let what he calls \u201cthe spirit of the Bean\u201d live on with someone else.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The news comes only six months after Nectar\u2019s, a fixture of the Queen City\u2019s music scene, <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/2025\/07\/31\/burlington-music-venue-nectars-closes-after-50-year-run\/\">announced it would close<\/a> in July. The business was floundering as a result of a drawn-out city construction project on its block and perceived public safety challenges downtown, the company said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But only several blocks away, Anderson promises that the show will go on \u2014 whether in front of a glittery curtain or below a sky full of twinkling misfit lamps. Gigs are on the books for the coming months, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide has-light-blue-background-color has-background\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50)\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-1c1b4f74 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left has-primary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c0213cbd22f6b8fbb5ef50a67f12df73\" style=\"padding-bottom:0\">READ MORE<\/h5>\n<div class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles  wpnbha show-image image-alignleft ts-4 is-2 is-landscape mobile-stack \" style=\"\">\n<div data-posts=\"\" data-current-post-id=\"640028\">\n<article data-post-id=\"628554\" class=\"tag-lgbtq tag-nectars category-burlington category-champlain-valley category-chittenden-county category-life-culture category-regional type-post post-has-image\">\n<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/2025\/07\/31\/burlington-music-venue-nectars-closes-after-50-year-run\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"780\" height=\"520\" src=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-scaled-1200x800.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Burlington music venue Nectar\u2019s closes after 50-year run\u00a0\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-scaled-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-125x83.jpg 125w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 782px) 600px, (min-width: 600px) 42.5vw, 90vw\" data-attachment-id=\"511329\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/2018\/11\/30\/nectars-investigation-returning-gun-shooter\/nectars-sign\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-scaled.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"5184,3456\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;5&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS REBEL SL1&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1543596981&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;38&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;1000&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.02&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Nectar\u2019s sign\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;The sign above the entrance to Nectar\u2019s in Burlington, where Chelsi Parker was shot in February. Photo by Aidan Quigley\/VTDigger&lt;\/p&gt;&#10;\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;The sign above the entrance to Nectar\u2019s in Burlington in 2018. File photo by Aidan Quigley\/VTDigger&lt;\/p&gt;&#10;\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-300x200.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Nectars-sign-scaled-1200x800.jpg\"\/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><!-- .featured-image --><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/author\/greta-solsaa\/\">Greta Solsaa<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name --><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-07-31T15:39:15-04:00\">July 31, 2025, 3:39 pm<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-07-31T15:39:24-04:00\">July 31, 2025, 3:39 pm<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .entry-wrapper --><br \/>\n\t<\/article>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>When Anderson first opened the joint, he was 22 years old and lived in an apartment upstairs. He paid for it with several credit cards and managed it day and night, he said. But now the 47 year-old lives about an hour away in Lincoln, where he helps raise his two young children, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy relationship from me to the business is just different now,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-1    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p>It felt like the right time for him, the venue and the community to consider other ownership options, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Anderson <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/photo?fbid=1303712695121834&amp;set=pcb.1303712835121820\">wrote in a social media post<\/a> that he would ideally like to see a group of people co-own and operate the place, allowing him to stay involved. But he\u2019s open to different possibilities, he said, and wants to reassure people that Radio Bean \u201cisn\u2019t going to vanish.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" data-attachment-id=\"640029\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/2026\/01\/19\/burlington-music-venue-radio-bean-seeks-new-owner\/radio-bean-1\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-scaled.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2560,1920\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"radio-bean-1\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;An audience listens to performers at Radio Bean on Nov. 8, 2025. Photo by Charlotte Oliver\/VTDigger&lt;\/p&gt;&#10;\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-300x225.jpg\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-1200x900.jpg?crop=1\" src=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-1200x900.jpg?crop=1\" alt=\"A group of people wearing colorful cone hats sit in a dimly lit room decorated with various hanging lamps and a gold tinsel backdrop, watching a stage performance.\" class=\"wp-image-640029\" srcset=\"https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-1200x900.jpg?crop=1 1200w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-125x94.jpg 125w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-800x600.jpg?crop=1 800w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-600x450.jpg?crop=1 600w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-400x300.jpg?crop=1 400w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-200x150.jpg?crop=1 200w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-2000x1500.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-780x585.jpg 780w, https:\/\/vtdigger.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/radio-bean-1-706x530.jpg 706w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An audience listens to performers at Radio Bean on Nov. 8, 2025. Photo by Charlotte Oliver\/VTDigger<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Since his announcement, many people have reached out to Anderson with messages thanking him and proposing ideas about the future, he said. After running the place for so long, he\u2019s seen the children of couples who met at the bar grow up, Anderson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>And he\u2019s seen the place itself evolve. For its first 10 years, the Bean often hosted theater performers and puppeteers, Anderson said. Now it gets mostly musical acts.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-2    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p>At the venue\u2019s \u201c25th Birthday Bash\u201d in November, the setlist convened over 100 acts. That night, a man in his underwear wore a giant hat shaped like a nose while he played the accordion to a sea of laughing people. At the same time in the venue\u2019s other room, local rap group A2VT moved a bumping crowd.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Over the years, he said he\u2019s had supernatural experiences that moved him, including seeing unplugged lamps glow with light, which left him with a reassuring feeling.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s telling me \u2014 whatever you\u2019re doing right now is exactly what you should be doing right now,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Anderson has announced a \u201cState of the Bean\u201d meeting Wednesday, where he hopes to get people together and listen to their \u201chopes and dreams and fears\u201d about the venue\u2019s future, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-3    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<aside>\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<section id=\"block-16\" class=\"below-content widget widget_block\">\n<\/section><\/div>\n<p><script type=\"pmdelayedscript\" data-cfasync=\"false\" data-no-optimize=\"1\" data-no-defer=\"1\" data-no-minify=\"1\">\n\t\t!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n\t\t{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n\t\tn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n\t\tif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n\t\tn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n\t\tt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n\t\ts.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n\t\t'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\t\tfbq('init', '298080038837837');\n\t\tfbq('track', 'PageView', {\"page_title\":\"Burlington music venue Radio Bean seeks new owner\\u00a0\",\"user_role\":\"guest\",\"event_url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/vtdigger.org\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/19\\\/burlington-music-venue-radio-bean-seeks-new-owner\",\"post_type\":\"post\",\"post_id\":640028});\n\t\t<\/script><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source vtdigger.org \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The crowd at Radio Bean on Nov. 8, 2025. Photo by Charlotte Oliver\/VTDigger. After owning Radio Bean for more than 25 years, Lee Anderson announced Sunday that he\u2019s ready to hand off the downtown Burlington bar and music venue and let what he calls \u201cthe spirit of the Bean\u201d live on with someone else.\u00a0 The [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2241464,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[359175,22477,21800],"class_list":["post-2241463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-burlington","tag-live-music","tag-music"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Burlington-music-venue-Radio-Bean-seeks-new-owner.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2241463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2241463"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2241463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2241465,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2241463\/revisions\/2241465"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2241464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2241463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2241463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2241463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}