Owners of shuttered River North restaurant speak for first time since mass shooting outside business

CHICAGO (WGN) — More than three weeks since a deadly drive-by shooting in River North, the owners of Art-Is Restaurant and Lounge spoke on camera for the first time Sunday.

“We’re just trying to figure out what’s next for us,” Chef Brandi Artis said.

Four people were killed and 14 more were injured after a mass shooting that took place outside the building just after 11 p.m. on July 2. Chicago rapper Mello Buckzz rented out the venue for a mixtape release party, which all went according to plan, until guests started to leave at the end of the night.

“It was a good night, it was a great night,” said Dr. Brittany Artis, Co-Owner of the Art-Is Restaurant and Lounge. “Nothing [said] the end result would be what happened. Absolutely not. Nothing, nothing.”

Brandi Artis said Mello Buckzz’s record label reached out ahead of time to see if they could use their space for the party. As the owners of a brand-new restaurant and lounge that opened in April, the Artises were excited for the opportunity.

“When you have things presented to you as a new restaurant, and as a LGBTQIA space, you are honored when someone that has a hit song out with another artist that you absolutely love [reaches out], and you’re like, ‘absolutely, that would be cool to host something like that,’” Brandi Artis said. “We were just giving her a space like we would give anyone else a space because that was what our mission was.”

The Artises told WGN-TV their mission is to be a welcoming place that provides good food and good community, free of any violence being on the menu.

“We were closed. Everybody was moving outside the door,” Brittany Artis said. “So when I heard it, and the proximity—that concerned me … I saw the bullets fly by us, like four or five, and I said ‘get down’ and she turned around to look and see what was happening and I yelled at her again, ‘Brandi, get down.'”

Two weeks later, the Artises announced on Instagram they would be closing the restaurant and lounge for good.

Present day, the Chicago Police Department’s investigation into what happened that night continues, but no arrests have been made.

The Artises said they feel targeted by some city officials for what transpired.

“If you’re planning to operate a restaurant, you don’t host rap album release parties that are catering to known gang affiliates,” Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd Ward) said on July 3.

Brittany Artis said they weren’t surprised by the feedback from some on City Council, but Brandi Artis said they have been appreciative of the support they’ve received from Mayor Brandon Johnson.

“We appreciate Mayor Brandon Johnson for saying that it’s not the business owner’s fault because in the Black and Brown community, we are blamed every single day for things that happen outside of our establishments,” Brandi Artis said.

Moving forward, the Artises said they are rethinking their home, business future, and taking time to spend with their kids.

“I’m a Wicker Park mom with two kids. This is not our norm. This is not what we want,” Brandi Artis said. “We may move. We may stay. We don’t know … All I can say is that I pray for the people who lost their lives, the victims. I pray for us, our staff. I pray for everyone who was involved in this to heal.”