Rapid City Limits Josh Miranda brings big city ideas downtown STORY BY MICHELLE PAWELSKI // PHOTO BY ANDY GREENMAN
For Josh Miranda, it’s about the experience – art, food, live music, community. It’s what he found in Austin, Los Angeles, and Denver, and what he is now bringing to Rapid City. “A vibe of art is what I am really going for,” said the South Dakota native and development/event coordinator for the Dahl Arts Center. “Places that have a thriving art culture have a higher quality of life.” He recently started Rapid City Limits, a spinoff of Austin City Limits, the long-running music series, television show, and festival. Rapid City Limits is a live concert series that takes place at the Dahl Arts Center and spotlights artists and music of the Black Hills region. “I was always a fan of Austin City Limits and am a blues fan. I thought it would be a really cool concept (to start in Rapid City).” The series, which began in April, has had four performances with the next one planned for December.
Rapid City Limits was the art center’s first public event after COVID-19. The series is supported by community sponsors. “We really wanted to get in-person events going again, and this series helped us launch that,” said Josh, adding that the shows have been selling out. “(Alex) Massa was so cool. We hadn’t had events in more than a year and it was crazy packed. It was such a good evening; we knew we had to continue on this journey.” The idea came from Josh’s travels through the western half of the United States. After graduating from South Dakota State University, Josh packed up his Toyota Tacoma and hit the road. A longtime lover of music and film, he decided Austin would be his first stop. “I knew it was an up-and-coming city… lots of startups… Google and Apple were there. It has a really vibrant music, art, and culture scene. I was intrigued by that.” Josh made the most of his year in Austin attending
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