Family Of Rapper Juice WRLD To Open Homewood Brewery In His Honor

HOMEWOOD, IL — The family of Homewood's very own Jarad Anthony Higgins have reached an agreement with the village to open Homewood Brewing Company at the former Vice District Brewing location. More commonly known as Juice WRLD, Higgins was a rapper, singer and songwriter. He died in 2019.

On June 22, company owners Robert Lauderdale and Carmela Wallace presented background on their upcoming project in Homewood. Wallace said the brewery is a way to pay homage to her 21-year-old son, who was admired by many around the world.

"I’m from Homewood. Homewood was special to me,” Wallace said. “[This is] my way to pay tribute to him as well. I was so happy to have the opportunity to come back to Homewood and to give and serve the community."

Vice District closed in 2019, and its equipment was sold shortly after. The business left a $20,000 mortgage for the property to the village, and Homewood Brewing will pay that money to the town upon completion of the purchase.

Lauderdale told the board he wants the brewery to attract more people to town. He said the company will do this by reaching out to people who enjoy craft beer and inviting them to try theirs. They will also be contacting colleges to host seminars, and food will be locally sourced, with the goal of bringing that "homestyle kind of appeal" he said Homewood is known for.

"Our focus is to bring people into Homewood," Lauderdale said. "We want to try to make Homewood the Mecca for craft beer in the Chicago area."

The company has since launched pages on social media, including Facebook. Lauderdale said that depending on the build out, the business plans to open within nine to 10 months.

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