Keeping the Gypsy House Flame Alive: How Olivia Symone Is Building a Musical Sanctuary in Denver
When Gypsy House Cafe closed its doors, for a second time, in February 2025, after two decades as a Denver staple and a post-covid comeback, it could have marked the end of an era. Instead, for Olivia Symone, it became the beginning of something new. It’s a musical rebirth that could restructure how the city experiences local art.
“I’m just happy I get to keep the Gypsy House legacy going through music,” Symone says, her voice carrying the weight of someone who grew up sweeping floors at her mother’s beloved establishment since age six. “Because I grew up there, it’s kind of like my childhood home. I didn’t want it to just fully be over just because of gentrification and the physical building isn’t there.”
That determination has manifested as The Gypsy Lab Sessions, a three-hour event production featuring a live band backing different local artists each month, all recorded for YouTube. But to call it just a concert series would miss the point entirely.
More Than a Show
What Symone has built with her creative partners, Ill Se7en (Michael Acuna), Devin “Rebellious” Patterson, and an expanding collective of musicians, is something increasingly rare in Denver’s fragmented arts scene: an intentionally curated space where competition dissolves into collaboration.
“We try to take out the whole competitive spirit of concerts of like ‘you’re the headliner and you’re the opener,'” Symone explains. “We don’t have any of that.”
Instead, each session features four artists who complement one another, backed by a six-piece band of all Brown musicians that has grown organically over time. What started as a trio now includes a sound engineer who revealed himself to be a “dope ass guitarist and producer” six months in, plus recently added trumpeter Joshua Trinidad, and saxophonist Raymond Ciprian.
The evolution from the earlier, looser Gypsy Lab Live format to the current Sessions model hasn’t been without challenges. Managing schedules for 10 to 12 people across four artists and a six-piece band can be overwhelming. And then there’s the delicate work of guiding artists toward something larger than themselves.
“Some people just don’t see what Sessions’ vision really is,” Symone admits. “It can be difficult to try and ask people to separate themselves, not make it all about themselves, and focus on the grand scheme of what Sessions is.”
The Authenticity Factor
In an era when anyone can livestream from a bedroom, what separates The Gypsy Lab Sessions from the noise? For Symone, it comes down to intentionality.
“People can tell when something’s genuine, when something is intentional,” she says. “From the moment we get there and start setting up on the stage and curate the whole design—visual designs, the lineup of the artists, the band, the cameras—it is a different experience.”
The Sunday afternoon timing isn’t accidental. This is a full blown production, not just a live band and drinks. That difference extends to the audience as they’re part of the production itself and can relive it on YouTube after.
“Sundays are kind of those weird days where you want to be out, you want to be social, but you don’t want to go to a bar or be in a jam-packed room full of people,” Symone observes. “The guests that come to Sessions are very intentional. They’re creatives. They love to network, meet new people, find like-minded individuals.”
Moments That Matter
Ask Symone about highlights and her face lights up recounting stories that have nothing to do with polish and everything to do with discovery.
There was Sophia, an 18-year-old classically trained pianist who arrived shy and nervous for the youth-focused session. After three rehearsals, she tentatively asked if she could play something, uncertain if it fit the hip-hop and R&B framework. What followed left the room breathless.
“She starts off kind of fumbling with the keys and then she just breaks into this whole song,” Simone recalls. “We all had goosebumps. It was so silent in that room from the excitement. She’d been so coy, so shy, and then she just broke out into this amazingness.”
Then there was Brooklyn York, a poet who had never performed her work live. Paired with pianist Burroughs for a “Beats and Poets” installment, her vulnerability created a moment Simone still gets emotional describing. “I think I did cry at that one.”
Building Something Real
The next session arrives March 29th at PBLO Vita on Welton Street, featuring Kayla Marque, Zuri Lei, Chris Carter, and JG, plus tarot readings, a live painter, and sponsorships from local beverage companies. Tickets are linked through The Gypsy Lab Sessions Instagram.
But the vision extends beyond any single show. For Symone, this work connects to something larger, a response to an industry increasingly dominated by algorithms and artificial intelligence.
“I feel like we’re a part of the train of restructuring the music industry, especially with how AI is becoming such a problematic feature now,” she says. “I think it’s important to have that live band element in your music to differentiate you from a robot that’s trying to steal your s***.”
The Gypsy House Cafe building may be gone, but at The Gypsy Lab Sessions, the community continues.
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