Soul of the Southside celebrated their 4th annual Juneteenth festival at the corner of East Lake Street and Minnehaha Avenue in South Minneapolis on Thursday, June 19, 2025. The day included food trucks, yoga and meditation sessions, Double Dutch, live music and DJs, and more. Soul of the Southside attendees noted that the day felt incredibly community-centered, with a focus on sharing Black joy.

The day featured 2 stages for live music at The Hook and Ladder: The Carbon Sound Stage and The Legacy Building Stage. The outdoor Carbon Sound Stage featured Ray Covington, Brandyn Tulloch, Jackson Hurst, SoulFlower, XINA, iLLism, and Darnell Davis & The Remnant. The indoor Legacy Building Stage featured DJ Drunken Monkeee, GR3G, Omar Abdulkarim, Se’Anna. on da Mic, Pierce Brown, Fanaka Nation, and Mayyadda.

View Nick Greseth’s photos from the day below.

Soul of the Southside: The People

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Soul of the Southside: Carbon Sound Stage

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Photos: The Legacy Building Stage

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Night One: Obi Original + Alexis Rose

Obi Original shot by Bump Opera

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Night Two: Jovon Williams Quartet + echo

Jovon Williams Quartet shot by Daniela Bulvat

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Night 3: D Untethered & Stevie

D Untethered & Stevie shot by Daniela Bulvat

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Night 4: Zak Khan & Friends

Zak Khan & Friends shot by Bump Opera

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Carbon Sound hosted a showcase at Amsterdam Bar & Hall in St. Paul on Friday, April 19 to celebrate Minnesota Music Month. The show featured local rising stars MMYYKK, REIKI, XINA, and ZORA.

We didn’t book these artists because their names are all stylized in all-caps, although that might have been a good gimmick. We invited these artists because their diverse expression of music is emblematic of Carbon Sound’s mission of celebrating the depth and breadth of Black musical expression. Between ZORA’s energetic, confidence-boosting hip-hop and R&B, XINA’s ethereal presence and otherworldly vocals, REIKI’s signature brand of Punk Rage R&B, and MMYYKK’s soulful virtuosity, Friday night’s showcase was a celebration of the past, present, and future of music.

Check out Cat Grimm’s recap of the evening on The Current’s website. Listen back to MMYYKK and ZORA’s interviews on The Message with Sanni Brown to learn more about the artists and Minnesota Music Month.

ZORA

ZORA at Amsterdam Bar & Hall by Bump Opera

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XINA

XINA at Amsterdam Bar & Hall by Bump Opera

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REIKI

REIKI at Amsterdam Bar & Hall shot by Bump Opera

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MMYYKK

MMYYKK at Amsterdam Bar & Hall by Bump Opera

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Coco Jones, a rising star in R&B, performed in front of a sold-out crowd at First Avenue in Minneapolis on Tuesday, August 15. View bearBOI’s photo gallery below.

Coco Jones shot by bearBOI

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The Playground Experience, an interactive multi-sensory live performance showcasing the work of participating artists following a two-week residency, returned to Public Functionary on Friday, August 4 and Saturday, August 5.

Created by local multidisciplinary artist Vie Boheme and co-produced by The Bohemian Way and Public Functionary, this year’s edition of the Playground Experience featured local artists Taylor Seaberg, XINA, and Greg Grease sharing their art with the crowd in an intimate setting supported by installations by artists Maiya Lea Hartman, Sabrina Ford, and Sati VM.

View photos of the second night of 2023’s Playground Experience below.

The Playground Experience 2023

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Taylor Seaberg at The Playground Experience

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Greg Grease at The Playground Experience

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XINA at the Playground Experience

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Soul of the Southside brought Minneapolis together with a free street festival during the day for Juneteenth on Monday. The event featured live performances, a Black-owned marketplace, yoga and meditation sessions, and more. The event was presented by The Legacy Building and The Coliseum Building. View BUMP OPERA’s photos from the day below.

Soul of the Southside: The People

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Soul of the Southside: Performers

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Minneapolis showed up and showed out for Carbon Sound’s 1st Birthday Party at Fine Line Minneapolis on Juneteenth.

Celebrating a year of Music for Life and Juneteenth, the night was fueled by DJs Kwey, McShellen, Yhanté, Pin, and BYZARRA. Fanaka Nation brought out a live band for his set. Carbon Sound’s Content Director Julian Green also played a set as ech0astral.

View photos of the performers and the crowd below. See you next year!

Carbon Sound 1st Birthday: Crowd

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Carbon Sound 1st Birthday: Performers

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Check out bearBOI Photo’s shots of Rico Nasty performing live in St. Paul at Amsterdam Bar & Hall. Tune in to Carbon Sound 24/7 to hear Rico’s tracks like “Gotsta Get Paid.”

Rico Nasty shot by bearBOI

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With multiple events spread across the weekend, Black Fashion Week MN gave the Twin Cities plenty of looks. View photo galleries from Friday’s 50 Years of Hip-Hop Tribute and Saturday’s Minnesota Met Gala below. Learn more about Black Fashion Week MN here.

50 Years of Hip-Hop Tribute Show

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Minnesota Met Gala

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The Cherry Pit, a Minneapolis-based artist collective, is wrapping up their first season with two nights of music at Public Functionary.

Each night features a unique lineup and will host a jam session after the scheduled performances.

Night two of the Season Finale will take place at Public Functionary in Minneapolis on Friday, May 12. For more information, visit The Cherry Pit’s website.

Photos

The Cherry Pit Season Finale pt. 1 shot by Liam Armstrong

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Rapper Larry June made a stop in Minneapolis on Monday, May 8. He delivered his signature laid-back raps to a full house at the Varsity Theater. View Awa Mally’s photos below.

Gallery

Larry June shot by Awa Mally

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View Awa Mally’s photos from up-and-coming rapper redveil’s sold-out show in St. Paul on Saturday, April 22 below. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to view our upcoming interview with redveil!

Photo Gallery

redveil, femdot., and D'mari Harris by Awa Mally

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Yeat made his first-ever stop in Minneapolis on Saturday, April 15. View Carbon Sound Correspondent Awa Mally’s photos below and read our explanation of Yeat’s vocabulary here.

Photos

Yeat at The Armory

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Winter isn’t done with us yet. Luckily, rappers Key Glock and TiaCorine provided an excellent reason to leave the house during Friday night’s blizzard conditions. View Carbon Sound Correspondent Awa Mally’s photos below and tune in to Carbon Sound 24/7 to hear tracks like “FreakyT” by TiaCorine and “From Nothing” by Key Glock.

Key Glock by Awa Mally

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TiaCorine by Awa Mally

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Rising stars MAVI and Fly Anakin took the stage at 7th St Entry in Minneapolis on Tuesday, March 7 to spread love and spit bars.

View Nikhil Kumaran’s photo gallery below and tune in to Carbon Sound 24/7 to hear tracks like “Blicky Bop” and “Baking Soda.”

MAVI and Fly Anakin shot by Nikhil Kumaran

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Fresh off the release of his latest album Gumbo, Young Nudy made his first trip to Minneapolis on Thursday, March 16.

View Derrick Gichaba’s photos below and read our picks for the best Young Nudy Food Songs here.

Young Nudy by Derrick Gichaba

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Carbon Sound hosted the second and final night of our March residency at 7th St Entry under the on Tuesday, March 14.

Featuring Craishon, SYM1, and Yasmeenah, this edition of the residency focused on Black Twin Cities artists shaping the future of R&B and electronic music.

View Zoe Challenger’s photo gallery below.

Visit our YouTube channel to watch a recap of night 1 of our March residency featuring sahn and Huhroon.

Photos

An Evening with Carbon Sound - Night 2

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Carbon Sound hosted the first night of our March residency at 7th St Entry under the full moon on Tuesday, March 7.

Featuring sahn, Huhroon, and ech0astral (Carbon Sound Content Director Julian Green filling in for DJ Narcos), this edition of the residency focused on Black Twin Cities artists shaping the future of hip-hop and alternative rock.

View Carbon Sound Correspondent Awa Mally’s photo gallery below.

The next edition of An Evening with Carbon Sound, featuring CRAISHON, SYM1, and Yasmeenah, will take place on Tuesday, March 14 at 7th St Entry in Minneapolis. Visit First Avenue’s website for more information.

Photos

An Evening with Carbon Sound: Night 1

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NAV, SoFaygo, and RealestK at The Fillmore by Derrick Gichaba

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NAV, SoFaygo, and RealestK made a Valentine’s Day visit to The Fillmore in Minneapolis on Tuesday. Carbon Sound photographer Derrick Gichaba captured the concert. View his full photo gallery above.