"Who want the mic?" Yasmine Holtz, artistically known as Jhazzy Wolf, asked the crowd gathered at The 778 Denver on Mariposa Street on Wednesday night for a weekly open mic.
As snow fell outside, bouncy, locally produced hip-hop instrumentals played inside the Lincoln Park nightclub and local talent warmed up to perform.
A sunset orange stage light lit the room as Wolf kicked off the night's show.
Artists have gathered here since last November for Wolf Wednesdays at the members-only bar and nightclub for the open mic Wolf started for local hip-hop and R&B talent.
"All talent is welcome to the stage, we don't want to turn anybody down," Wolf said. "But it is tailored to Hip-Hop and R&B because we don't have enough outlets in Denver."
One of the biggest draws to this particular open mic are the incentives: $100 cash prizes, studio time, and press kits to the performers with the most crowd votes.
Wolf, 24, first got the idea for Wolf Wednesdays during her time living in California with her father. As an R&B artist herself, she had to figure out a way to get plugged into a community she knew nothing about at the time.
"I started going to open mics in San Diego and the vibes in there were like nothing I had ever experienced. Everyone who was there were artists. That's when I knew we needed something like that in Denver," she said.
Wolf said that, in her experience, many of the events in Denver don't cater to Hip-Hop and R&B artists.
"I'd ask for an aux cord to play the instrumentals I'd perform over, and many of these places looked at me funny. They were surprised I wasn't playing an instrument," she said.
Wolf Wednesday's bounced around bars and venues in Denver before eventually landing at The 778 last fall.
Wolf credits DJ Teaze as one of the earliest silent partner's of her show.
"He came to my show one day and reached out the next day about wanting to sponsor cash prizes. When we started offering better opportunities for artists, that's when we blew up," Wolf said.
Now, partners like Bright Future Media and Jump The Line are helping sponsor Wolf Wednesdays by offering studio time and funding cash prizes. More recently, MCA Denver agreed to partner with Wolf and offer a paid performance on its rooftop for the winner of the upcoming Alpha Showcase on April 12.
That's "how it's supposed to be," Wolf said.
Despite the snowy conditions, 30 performers took the stage this week.
From rappers to singers, comedians and poets, local talent was buzzing until about 1 a.m.
Yasmine Emani, 20, is a Park Hill resident and an alum of Denver School of the Arts. She performed for the first time at a Wolf Wednesday event after hearing about it through a friend on Instagram.
"Everyone is saying R&B is dead," she said as she began her performance, "so I had to prove them wrong."
The self-described alternative soul artist then began to fill the room with a voice that caused attendees to look around the room with faces that non-verbally asked, "Are you hearing this too?" Beyond being a place to get exposure, the open mic night is a chance for artists and performers to network.
Elijah Beauford, known as Young Activist, 24, performed two original songs. In between them, he plugged his new studio.
"Just to let y'all know, I run a studio in Montbello on 47th and Peoria. Please connect with me if y'all looking for some studio time," he said.
"I'm always working and this is one way to get our name out there," he said when asked why he attends Wolf Wednesdays.
For Wolf, it's a win-win situation for partners and artists alike to see their music community flourish in this capacity.
"I love Denver and I'm just blessed to be able to do this full-time," Wolf said.
Visit here for details on upcoming open mics and how to sign up for them.
Editor's Note: References to Holtz have been changed to Wolf due to artist's preference.
