Already in the 1940s, the address was home to the "Hippodrom", a club that had been made famous in the films of Hans Albers. It featured a rotunda filled with wood chips, in which guests and regular artistes would ride on horses. During the second world war, the building was destroyed by bomb attacks, but it was rebuilt after the end of the war. Bruno Koschmider (1926-2000), an ex-trapeze artist, opened the Kaiserkeller in October 1959 at Große Freiheit 36 with place for 550 guests (not seated). On 19 September 1985 the music club opened under the current name "Große Freiheit 36" with a concert by the blues guitarist Rory Gallagher. One year later, the Kaiserkeller reopened, and a Café was set up in the upper level. On 19 February 2015, the club hosted the concert for the preselection of the German entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 2015.