Right before more than 1,300 people dressed to the T waltzed into the Stampede Club in Aurora ready to wash down mimosas and party like it was 1 a.m. instead of p.m., the guys from GNC Productions were in the zone.
Justin Murchison handled security while Darryl Bufford, spoke to the caterers. Collin Draine and Nahjee Maybin did final checks with the venue owners. Gabe White and Cameron Douglas made sure the drinks were on ice and handled small last-minute details.
They were as calm as cucumbers for six guys who don't call party planning their primary profession and yet they were about to throw a party worthy of being called a summer classic.
Each of them works in a career that requires code switching and shedding certain demeanors, but at this event, this gathering of people who look like them, talk like them, who support them and, who like them, and are looking for a space to be their authentic selves, it's all worth it.
This sanctuary is Munchies & Mimosas, a brunch day party event bringing the tunes and the drinks to the Denver metro area and providing a hype, safe, cultural and welcoming space for Black and brown faces.
How is day drinking providing a culturally welcoming space?
Draine, Maybin, Bufford, White, Douglas, and Murchison all moved to Denver in the mid and late 2010s and immediately began to look for their community.
They joined young Black professional group chats, called up fraternity brothers and relied on the good ol' seven degrees of separation to link up with each other.
But one question remained: where could they all hang out and be themselves?
"There was a recognition that something was missing," White said. "Representation, social culture. There were really not a lot of spaces for us, especially during the day... We wanted to go to brunch and, you know, we would have one too many mimosas and we'd say, what to do next?"
Draine added, "We used to always go to different brunch spots. I won't name them, some didn't last past the pandemic, but we used to be 30 deep at the brunch spot. Just the rowdiest ones. The loudest ones. Just clearly black sheep. The ones who weren't supposed to be there."
Ostracization like that comes in subtle stares and snide or sarcastic statements. It's the record scratch people of color hear when they walk into a room and suddenly all eyes are on them.
Maybin and the others said they would frequently have friends from out of town come to visit, particularly for 4/20 and the Rockies opening day. After repeatedly feeling unwelcome around spaces in Denver, Maybin said they took matters into their own hands and filled a void that exists in the city.
"We realized at that time that we wanted to create something for our friends. Something for us to come together," Maybin said.
Munchies was born on Rockies opening day 2018, and it was technically supposed to be a one-off get together.
But the small gathering turned into a party of about 125 people at Your Mom's House on E. 13th Avenue -- and it was a hit.
"I vividly remember being down in the green room at Your Mom's House and we were excited because they were telling us they wanted us to come back and do it again," Bufford said. "So we were like, are we going to run it back? Everybody was excited and it grew from there."
White said he and Maybin pushed the idea forward.
"Nahjee's got what we call the Kool-Aid, in getting people to do things," White laughed. "Having traveled, been to other cities, seeing it being done already, we just followed that blueprint. We didn't try to reinvent the wheel... Black people brunching was a huge coming up at the time."
And now the guys were bringing it to Denver. If you ask the crew, Munchies truly popped off in November 2019 at their Fall Thru event at Lustre Pearl on 26th Street.
That was the pinnacle moment that solidified their spot in Denver's day party scene and in the POC community. It was the one where more Denverites came out to support. It gave less transplant-vibes and felt more like they'd found home ground.
"We put maybe 250 people in there and it's clip. Everybody's just like standing on s**t, swag surfing," Murchison laughed. "I'm just looking around and I think I lock eyes with Collin and I'm like yo, what the f**k. It was the moment for me in which I was like alright this is going to be something..."
Douglas continued, "Next thing you know, the golden hour hit. I'm talking about the sun shining through...It's still my favorite Munchies. The organic vibe was there. You can't fabricate that in any way."
Organic. As White put it, that's the theme of Munchies. The guys coming together, the crowd they've accumulated, the vibes they've curated. It's natural.
After that momentous Munchies, it felt like things could only go up from there. But then came 2020 when everything stopped in its tracks. That opening day, Munchies was delayed, delayed and then canceled.
But the grind didn't stop. The crew started New Black City, a nonprofit started to give back to the community. They hosted small fundraisers to support school scholarships and partnered with Feed the Streets to feed the unhoused. They hosted a Black Restaurant Week featuring Konjo Ethiopian Food, Saucy's, Whittier Cafe and Mimosas.
When the pandemic restrictions were lifted Munchies was back bigger than ever and welcomed more than ever. The crew said the Munchies around the 2021 MLB's All Star Weekend was when the event hit a 1,000 plus crowd.
The crew still believes there's a need in Denver for more spaces geared toward Black and brown people where they can be themselves.
It shouldn't be confused as a means of separation. It's about acceptance and not having to code switch.
Non white people often find they need to act a "certain way" in order to assimilate. So, they switch-up. That could be a change of tone, a change of vernacular.
After a while of conforming, there's a need to break free, and Munchies provides that inclusive playground.
"People love Munchies because they can be their authentic selves," Maybin said. "You're at work, code-switching. Out in public here, you're code-switching still but at Munchies you're just yourself. That's the gap we're filling. In the middle of Munchies, you'll look up like 'Am I in Denver still?'"
Bufford added, "It's a lot of Black people out here. It just takes the right event, like Munchies, to bring them into one space."
And the Munchies crew wants to provide more than just this one space.
They recently launched a new event series Any Given Sunday that aims to capture the original intimate, chill vibes of Munchies.
They're also building a community network. GNC Productions, the official business group, was awarded with a 2023 Community Legacy Award from the Urban League Young Professionals of Metro Denver, a group that brings young Black and brown professionals together and promotes leadership.
And there's more growth on the horizon for Munchies. If you ask the guys what's next, they all have different answers, but they all want to do more.
About 30 minutes before the most recent Munchies, held July 15 at Stampede, kicked off, the guys were getting ready. Usually, they get in a yoga session for some centering, but a pesky reporter was in the way.
Sneaker boxes were pulled out of backpacks. Brushes slicked down the edges of crisp braids and twists. Cologne was spritzed.
And the shots were poured.
"To a good f*****g show. To seeing it through..." The fellas toasted.
DJ Wire pulled up from Dallas to start the set. DJ Squizzy Taylor played next during the height of the party. Memphis rapper Duke Deuce's performance was proof that Munchies could pull in big talent.
At one point Squizzy dropped the classic: "Man I got that swaggggg."
The crowd screamed. The guys on stage grabbed a big Munchies flag and prepared for the quintessential Black synchronized dance often imitated but never swaggy enough.
Everybody in the crowd and on stage put their arms on each others shoulders, leaned left slowly, then leaned right slowly before the beat picked up for full Swag Surfin motion. Everyone was in sync. Everyone immediately knew what to do. It's that organicness the crew talked about on full display.
Munchies is ultimately a day party. A spot to day drink and party. But for the folks who once felt like outsiders in Denver, it's a void filled.
"The [unique value proposition] here isn't the fact that we're the first ones to do it. It's the fact that we're the only ones doing it here in Denver," Murchison said. "I want us to be happy. I want us to make it out in one piece. I think so many people get so lost in the business aspect of things and the stresses that come with it, they start losing the foundation of why we came here in the first place.... When the dust settles, I want it to have been worth something. I want all this to mean something. I want us to be happy with ourselves and what we did for Denver."
