Music at the Intersection continues growth, drawing 12,000 to Grand Center

In its third year, the homegrown event drew 12,000 attendees Sept. 9-10 on the strength of more than 50 national and St. Louis artists, along with increased awareness and ideal weather. The festival, produced by the Kranzberg Arts Foundation, attracted 8,000 folks in 2022.

The buzzy lineup included Smino, Masego, Thundercat, Herbie Hancock, Snarky Puppy, Taj Mahal, Grandmaster Flash, Arrested Development, Angela Winbush, Tank and the Bangas, Cameo, Ravyn Lenae, Nate Smith featuring Jason Linder and Tim Lefebvre, Peter Martin featuring Dianne Reeves, the Bad Plus, the Tesky Brothers, Samantha Fish, and Keyon Harrold with Pharoahe Monch and Stout.

St. Louis artists also had many opportunities to shine. Acts included the Mighty Pines, Paige Alyssa, Denise Thimes, Marquise Knox, Root Mod, Mai Lee, Blvck Spvde and the Cosmos, DJ Nune is Lamar Harris, James Biko, Alexis Tucci and the House of Tucci, Lusid, and Eric Donte and the Maxi Glamour Experience.

A celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop ran throughout the festival, with tributes curated by DJ G. Wiz with DJ Kut, DJ Sir Thurl, Charlie Chan Soprano, Time Traveler DJs and DLY D-Ex. 

Radio veterans “Gentleman” Jim Gates and Edie “Lady B.” Anderson received the festival’s Legends Award.

There were some late starts on the first day that threw the schedule off, but the festival overall ran smoothly. Acts performed on four outdoor stages.

“St. Louis giants were well represented, playing next to living legends and the best of A-list contemporary artists across a variety of genres,” Chris Hansen, executive director of the Kranzberg Arts Foundation, said in a statement. “A real celebration of community — and not a bad note played all weekend.”

And now for some random musings, takeaways and after thoughts.

• It’s best not to compare Music at the Intersection attendance numbers to those of the much larger Evolution Festival, which debuted in August in Forest Park. They’re two different festivals, in different locations, doing things for different audiences. There’s room for both to live.

• We need Music at the Intersection. Jazz, blues, hip-hop and soul aren’t featured often enough on big festival stages in St. Louis in the same way rock, country and Americana are. Music at the Intersection overwhelmingly gives its primary genres the platforms they deserve. The growing crowds prove the city wants it.

• I have yet to figure out how to correctly navigate music festivals with overlapping sets. Should I move around and catch snippets of multiple sets? Plop down at one stage and take in the full set? I regret that some artists’ performances slipped through the cracks for me.

• It’s cool that the festival aims high and low with its age demographics. The first day attracted younger crowds for Smino and Masego, while the second day attracted older crowds with Herbie Hancock and Taj Mahal. 

• No one would suggest that the incredible drone display that accompanied Smino’s performance was the first such display at a St. Louis concert. (Was it?) But it has to be the favorite. The many surprise drones formed numerous shapes high above the main stage, including, naturally, a rendering of the Gateway Arch and a message of love from Smino.

• Hip-hop god Grandmaster Flash’s DJ set was largely a Midwest tribute that relied heavily on Nelly, with bits of Chingy, Eminem and Bone Thugs-N Harmony — then took a turn into KC and the Sunshine Band? That’s not the way, uh-huh, uh-huh, I like it. Uh-huh, uh-huh.

• The Legends Awards for Gates and Anderson were perfectly timed. Back in 1979, Gates was a co-owner at WESL in East St. Louis and interrupted Anderson’s midday radio show with orders for her to play Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” which had never been played on radio before. History was made. Congratulations to them both.

• Winbush, the highest-billed woman on the lineup that needed more women higher up, was tremendous in her long-overdue homecoming set. Mayor Tishaura Jones surprised her with a proclamation that made Sept. 9 Angela Winbush Day in St. Louis.

• In Arrested Development’s colorful set, lead rapper Speech brought out a bunch of family members, mostly elders including his 84-year-old mother, who all live in East St. Louis or nearby. It was a touching moment.

• I want to hear everything Say She She has ever done. Immediately. The “discodelic soul band” blew me away. 

• Music at the Intersection organizers often describe the event as a “festival of discovery.” I enjoyed discovering Nate Smith and Phony Ppl live for the first time, two acts I had not initially planned to catch.

• Hip-hop artist Sir Eddie C, who kicked off the festival, is a textbook example of how a St. Louis artist can smartly earn a slot on the lineup the old-fashioned way. In 2022, Sir Eddie C drew so much advance attention to his sold-out show at the Dark Room that Hansen, of KAF, came to check him out. He likely solidified his festival slot that evening. 

• The return of the Mvstercamp Stage, literally in a decorated alley near the food vendors and the rear of Sophie’s Artist Lounge, still felt hidden and under-publicized. But then again, maybe that just adds to its underground vibe. 

• The decision to flip the food vendors with the artisan vendors was smart. It provided for more space to spread out in the food area.

• There was definitely more sound bleed among the stages than we would have liked, particularly from the main stage.