The annual festival attracts thousands of people from across the country to Yankton Trail Park for three days of national, regional, and local music. The Second Stage is known for hosting many amazing locals, like Soulcrate Music, We All Have Hooks For Hands, and Burlap Wolf King.

This  year’s Jazz Fest will be August 26-28. The deadline for submissions is Wednesday, February 15. Go HERE for more information on how to submit.

Not a musician? Not a problem. You can still help out by volunteering. I will be managing the Second Stage again this year and can always use some help selling merch. Feel free to shoot me an email (lucy.albers (at) gmail (dot) com) if you’re interested. If you’d like to help out in other areas of the festival, go here to sign up.

A good friend introduced me to the group last year and I’ve been obsessed since. It didn’t take long for me to connect with the wonderful Lucas Dix (also of Hives Inquiry Squad) and urge him to submit to The Best Love Is Free, ran by the amazing Botzy in Culture Cry Wolf. Not only has a rap friendship blossomed, but the two got together to make this video for the song “Sunflowers” in promotion for The Best Love Is Free 3, due out in just a few short weeks. And, rumor has it there will be more collaboration work from the two artists in the future. (Don’t worry, I’ll keep you updated.)

Check out the video below. Then head over to Jellyfish’s bandcamp to hear more of their music.

The Best Love Is Free 3 concert is set for February 11 at the Fine Line in Minneapolis. Performers include Culture Cry Wolf, Toki Wright, Crunchy Kids, K.Flay, and more. Check out the event page here and get your tickets!

The Museum offers numerous great activities, from art shows to photography lessons to crafting daycare. In order to be able to provide so many events, they need to be as ‘green’ as possible.

I fully support the Museum and back their efforts. So I am putting out a call of action to all my friends: starting today, January 17 through Sunday, January 22, be a hoarder.

The list of materials they are currently taking as donations is long. And even better, they are things many people can easily find around the house. From old calendars and shirts to empty jars and egg cartons, the materials can easily be collected instead of thrown away.

On Sunday, January 22, I will be collecting these items to take in to donate FOR you. It’s that easy. All you have to do is set aside any items you want to get rid of on THIS LIST, then shoot me an email at thelucyrae (at) gmail (dot) com telling me, and I will arrange a time on Sunday to pick them up at your house. Don’t have anywhere to put the items? I will GIVE you a box to fill.

Winter has finally arrived and that means you are probably opting to stay inside more often. Make use of that time and collect some old items to get rid of. Keep some of the things you generally throw away: baby food jars, Kleenex boxes, tape dispensers, etc. Just make sure it’s on the list.

Supporting the community is more than attending events or sharing information. If we can make a huge donation just from a little effort like this, it’ll really be a big difference.

So again: Hoard anything on the list starting NOW. Email me at thelucyrae (at) gmail (dot) com and I will arrange a time to pick up your donations on Sunday, January 22.

It’s a really simple thing to do, even if you only hoard two things. It all helps.

Matt Scharenbroich is the mastermind behind the beautiful video, compiled of “tripped out vizualz and 1,600 hand drawn pieces of paper” (according to the Doomtree website). It’s a great representation of Sims and allows an extra visual-emphasis on his descriptive lyrics. I wouldn’t expect anything less from the talented group.

You can pick up a FREE copy of the Wildlife EP, a promotional release from Sims, by clicking here. Be sure to catch Sims on tour with Lazerbeak and Cecil Otter at these dates.

In the meantime, check out the video below.

Sims “LMG” (dir. Matt Scharenbroich) from Doomtree Records on Vimeo.

You may remember these guys from Soulcrate’s summer kick-off show back in May, a special El-Raedio episode, or the numerous rap parties they throw up in Minneapolis. Either way, they rule, and you should definitely get to know them.

Check out the video below, and be sure to grab a pre-order of their newest album,  Dia de los Muertos, over at their website. You won’t be disappointed.