The members of Twin Cities indie act Hippo Campus have formed a new arts and advocacy program called Blossom. The idea came from the band’s trumpet player, DeCarlo Jackson, who took time to reflect on the uncertain state of the local music scene during the downtime created by the COVID-19 pandemic. This time to think granted him clarity and new resolve to create a new beacon that will share resources and curate events. “Blossom is a way for us as Hippo Campus, specifically to interact with more of the city,” Jackson explains. “That can look however that looks for each of us, but overall, it's just a place to help uplift art... It's important that people understand that there's a lot of music coming right here from Minneapolis.” 

As a native of St. Paul, DeCarlo recognizes the need to support local artists who feel disadvantaged being from a city with a name not ending with “York” or “Angeles.”  “All we need to do is recognize ourselves,” he says. He also sees Blossom as a way to support musicians in a vaporous field of work. “Blossom is a way to bring stability to everybody who wants to work with us. It's really just artists helping out artists out here.” When asked to describe what’s important to Blossom, Jackson replies, “Community, hands-on action, getting lit, and making groundbreaking tunes.” 

Blossom’s first foray into event curation will be a Tuesday, October 19, show at the Fine Line featuring Gully Boys, Raffaella, DNM, Ivers, and special guests. Proceeds from the show, along with all other ticketed Blossom events, will go to support local causes, organizations, and creatives, with Tuesday’s going to Juxtaposition Arts in North Minneapolis and author Crown Shepherd. Jackson says Tuesday’s audience can expect unreleased music that can’t be heard anywhere else and to feel a sense of connection. “I think people are a little bit scared of each other right now... I just want people to enjoy being around each other again.” 

Tuesday’s show is just the beginning for Blossom. Together with the other members of Hippo Campus, Jackson says a website, T-shirts, a mixtape featuring local artists, and more live events are in the works. A common thread through all these plans is a focus on community and putting artists first, a dedication to the intention behind Blossom and the name itself. “We just kept having talks about planting an idea, like a seedling, and it grows into things that you can't control, predict, or expect. That's the idea with this whole Blossom thing. We want to put our love into it and direct our efforts in specific ways. From there, it grows into the things that we want... Blossom is community burgeoning from something that wasn't before. That's the goal, we all grow together and learn how to share the space of Minneapolis a little bit more cohesively.” 

Blossom’s debut event will take place at the Fine Line at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, October 19th and feature performances by DNM, Gully Boys, Raffaella, Ivers, and special guests.