MEIS Students Showcase What Makes Denver’s Music Scene Stand Out  
The members of Fresh Fruit! met while studying at CU Denver. Photo courtesy of Fresh Fruit!

MEIS Students Showcase What Makes Denver’s Music Scene Stand Out  

Acts featuring current and former Lynx played at two local music festivals.

July 28, 2026

Denver’s eclectic music scene was on full display at two local music festivals the weekend of July 25—and current and former students of CU Denver’s Music & Entertainment Industry Studies (MEIS) program were well represented among the many performing acts.

Check Out Some of the Acts Featuring Lynx at UMS and Blucifer’s First Rodeo

What’s Happening?

After nearly ending, Denver’s long-running local music festival the Underground Music Showcase (UMS) returned in a new form. The festival relocated from its former home on South Broadway to the River North Arts District (RiNo). It also expanded its focus to include more national acts—including some rising stars among MEIS alumni (find more on that below). From Friday, July 24, to Sunday, July 26, acts played on stages at 30th and Larimer streets, 25th and Larimer streets, and venues throughout the area.

New this year, local musicians banded together to continue the spirit of celebrating all local acts with a summer festival of their own. Blucifer’s First Rodeo is a local-artist-curated music festival that took place from July 23 through 26. Denver music fans caught performances at venues around South Broadway and private homes in the Baker neighborhood. Fifteen of the bands featured current and former MEIS students.

A woman plays a guitar and sings.
Four people stand near a fence.
Hala Hooper (left) and look at fiona. (right) will both play at Blucifer’s First Rodeo.

How MEIS Supports the Denver Music Scene

For MEIS Department Chair Evan Shelton, the strong representation of CU Denver talent at the two events is a testament to the university’s contribution to the Denver music scene. “MEIS fosters a cooperative environment that breeds musical collaboration, trains musicians to actually navigate a career in music, and supports them in authentic musical exploration,” Shelton said. “Our students are out there participating in the Denver music community.”

The Collaborative Environment That Gave Rise to Denver’s Latest Major Musical Export: Marfa

While many music programs emphasize individual excellence, CU Denver encourages cooperation first and foremost. “With us, it’s ‘We should try to work really hard to become the best we can, but we need to work on doing that together,’” Shelton said.

For Shelton, alums like Bryce Menchaca, BS ’24, and Kellen Wall, BS ’24, are a great example of this. The pair formed the Americana duo Marfa after studying together at CU Denver. Now, their single “Daisy” has 2.5 million streams on Spotify, they’ve worked with the same producers as Leon Bridges and Jon Batiste, and they’re playing shows across the country. “They were both having pretty decent success doing their own stuff, and then they just decided to start writing songs together,” Shelton said.

Their story illustrates what’s so valuable about the MEIS program’s community-oriented approach to music education. “I think that collaborative environment mirrors—and in some ways contributes to—the local music scene here in Denver, which is extremely collaborative,” Shelton said. Marfa played two sets at UMS.

How MEIS Supports Original Artists

MEIS students pick a track to focus on from music performance, singer/songwriter, recording arts, and music business, but they all take courses across those disciplines. “That’s helping to equip them with the skills they’ll need to reach out to a festival, know how to sign a contract, know how to record a demo if they need to do that,” Shelton said. “We’re creating well-rounded musicians for the industry today.”

MEIS is made more unique by fusing that well-rounded training with a focus on contemporary music and individual exploration. “We’re not your typical, classical model,” Shelton said. “Our students are actively learning about modern styles and they’re encouraged to explore different styles. We’re the only place you can really do that in the state of Colorado and one of the few in the country.”

The result? MEIS graduates are as eclectic as Denver’s music scene. “You can find everything you’re looking for,” Shelton said of the city’s varied mix of performers.

Check Out Some of the Acts Featuring Lynx at UMS and Blucifer’s First Rodeo

*This list does not include all bands with Lynx members.

Underground Music Showcase

Blucifer’s First Rodeo