“The music business functions on relationships – people don’t seem to understand that in St. Louis,” said rapper Tef Poe.
“I had this one cat say, ‘I guess it’s all about who you know.’ And I’m like, ‘Exactly. You hit the nail on the head, brother.’”
This Saturday, the 3rd Annual St. Louis Underground Music Festival, or SLUMfest, will present the opportunity for local artists to get to know one another. More than 60 artists will perform on four stages, and MCs, b-boys, DJs and graffiti artists will cross-pollenate with the essential elements of hip-hop.
A mix-tape to highlight the featured artists and a preview party at the Gramophone will serve as the sneak preview.
“SLUMfest is planned to be a networking event and a showcase event for artists that are trying to get on,” said co-creator and SLUMfest host Finsta.
“SLUMfest is meant to be for the community, so you can become more essential to hip-hop in your city. If nobody outside of your neck of the woods, your neighborhood – your house – knows you, you have a lot of people that you do not know, but you need to know on all levels.”
Poe – on the bill since the first SLUMfest – has graduated from the line-up and is returning as an “esteemed alumni” to present his “War Machine 2” release.
Schema, a long time underground fixture from the Hi-Pointe days, is now trying his hand as a solo MC.
“Man, I’m so proud of this guy,” Schema said pointing to Poe. “I’m learning from him now, and I’m just so blessed to be a pupil again.”
That type of exchange between artists was the premise of SLUMfest’s creation.
“I believe in camaraderie more than competition,” Finsta said. “Because when there is more unity involved, everybody wins.”
They started out nearly 20 years ago as the odd men out. They blended together from different parts of St. Louis – plenty from South City – when North City was hot in the streets of hip-hop.
“We were the guys who didn’t fit on either side of it, and St. Louis hip-hop is divided like the civil war,” Schema said.
“We couldn’t fit with the North and we couldn’t fit with the South, and we just kind of busted out being who we were.”
They weren’t the typical hardcore ‘hood rappers, but not all the way underground either. Based on their experience, they took it upon themselves to build a unified front.
“It’s hard for us to get a foundation because of the ‘crabs in a barrel’ effect in St. Louis with rap,” Schema said. “You have to know that you have to do whatever you can to get your home behind you.”
These days, there seems to be a trend where acquiring Twitter followers and Facebook friends can be mistaken for building an authentic fan base. But both the artists and the organizers hope that SLUMfest will become an essential stepping stone to the hip-hop scene.
More than anything, the point of SLUMfest is to get the hip-hop artists back to the basics of the craft.
“Worry about your talent first – your skill – and just polish yourself,” Poe said. “Know what kind of person you want to present, what kind of rapper you want to be. Be honest. Know who you are and your total blueprint, and put that in your music. If you wouldn’t go to the store and buy it, then why put it out?”
This type of advice will be spoken and implied as they come together – for the sake of fellowship, learning opportunities and a good time in the name of hip-hop.
“All of us feel the same way about helping the hip-hop community in St. Louis,” Finsta said. “For some of them, this is major – to get their shine on and make connections with some artists out there.
St. Louis Underground Music Festival 2012 will take place on Saturday, June 16 at 2 p.m. at the Atomic Cowboy, 4140 Manchester Ave., 63110. For more information, call (314) 442-8749.
