St. Louis hip-hop is living and breathing at the Sheldon Concert Hall & Art Galleries. 

Wait ... what? 

As odd as it sounds, “Hip Hop Live” kicks off this weekend with iLLPHONiCS and Blvck Spvde in the Sheldon ballroom. 

Other acts in the series, which will showcase hip-hopacts that play original music, are Mathias & the Pirates and Looprat on Nov. 16 and Midwest Avengers and Anthony Lucius on Jan. 19. DJ Nune spins. 

We talked with iLLPHONiCS frontman Larry “Fallout” Morris, who organized the series with Sheldon operations director Quintin Reed and executive director Paul Reuter.

***excerpt from STL Post Dispatch article by Kevin C. Johnson 

Buy your tickets now!

This Friday LOOPRAT makes its way to Oklahoma! The event is free to the public and is sure to be lively in the heart of downtown Norman, OK. Over three days, a wide array of music stylings will be present including fellow Saint Louis act 18andCounting who will grace the main stage on Thursday.

For the full schedule, visit http://normanmusicfestival.com/

LOOPRAT performs Friday at 10:00pm on the Budweiser Depot Stage!

LOOPRAT MC ZenMugen debuts the lead single for his upcoming project “Wisdom Unlimited EP” via LOOPRAT Music. The self-reflective content pairs with a classic instrumental from keynote LOOPRAT artist Davie Napalm. The concise wordplay and distinctive delivery showcases the collectives Hip Hop stylings while the message resonates with the trials and ultimate redemption of one man's journey.

Single art was commissioned from Marco Faßbender depicting the unknown of the horizon as well as the transition from mundane to sacred associated with the gateways of Buddhist shrines. The sound is a triumphant return from Mugen’s brief hiatus after his debut “Full Circle” released in November 2017.

Listen to the song here.

#WisdomUnlimited summer 2018...

April 5th @The Bootleg w/ Naughty Professor

Nola based funk sensations Naughty Professor stop through St. Louis for a show with the LOOPRAT Collective. 

April 14th @ STL-Style for Lo-fi STL 

Live recorded one take music video performance as part of Lo-Fi St. Louis video series. 

April 18th @SEMO for Earth Day Ecopalooza 

South East Missouri State Earth Day Celebrations in the quad of campus over the lunch hour.

April 27th @Norman Music Festival, Norman OK 

Oklahoma's largest music festival is FREE!

May 12th @Des Moines, IA w/ Blackalicious

Des Moines, Iowa summer concert series featuring underground legends Blackalicious.

LOOPRAT was recently added as local support for a show April 5th at The Bootleg. Naughty Professor headlines as a part of their tour of the Midwest. The funk band out of New Orleans released their new Album ‘Identity’ in summer 2017.

In January of 2017, just after a performance at the Art of Live Festival, LOOPRAT reconvened at Suburban Pro Studios in the early hours of the morning. The ensemble included five MCs [NatKingFlo, Will-Be, Mugen, David Bohlen and newest member Armani] as well as a six piece ensemble [Joseph Ferber on Guitar, Luke Smith on Keys, Tonina Saputo on Bass, Keith Bowman on Drums, Khamali Cuffie-Moore on Trumpet and Sam Katz on Saxaphone]. The group put together their longest single take track to date: a 14 minute cypher. LOOPRAT is back with a full serving of JazzRap as a follow up to 2016’s “How Live?” 

Stream on Spotify 
Stream on Tidal

Video Shot by SomethingWonderful

The first LOOPRAT show of the new year is fast approaching. The collective returns to the stage Friday, February 23rd at Off Broadway STL with a show that truly serves as a premier event experience. In addition to an “All the Way Live” concert experience, there will be live art and booths by Haveah Mcgowin, Righthandrobot and Carla Steppan Chin in addition to professionally prepared street tacos on location.

Joining the crew on stage is Tonina Saputo, a consistent contributor and affiliated act fresh off her first performance at The Pageant. Adding to the empowered feminine aura of the night is LePonds. She was recently recognized by the Riverfront Times 2017's Heat which rated amongst the best Saint Louis albums of the year.

Rounding out the show is another full ensemble: Monkh and the people. The genre bending group mixes socially aware lyrics with Rock, Reggae, Blues and beyond.

RSVP to the event page now!

Tickets are $10, there is $3 minor surcharge and anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

LOOPRAT will be back on the Delmar Loop at Delmar Hall to celebrate New Years later this month! Come close out the year with us as we bring together the full live band to showcase our 2017 repertoire. This year, we performed at 6 festivals, won S.L.U.M.F.E.S.T. Hip-Hop group of the year, released the project In (<) No Time, launched ZenMugen as a solo artist and created a lot of music. We appreciate everyone who has supported us and hope that we can catch up with you and celebrate the progress in person. DJ Mahf will be spinning all night, including during the My Posse In Effect performance. The group pays tribute to the Beastie Boys in a the most energetic, thorough and entertaining way possible.  

RSVP to the event page now! 

LOOPRAT MC ZenMugen has been working with the collective in the Saint Louis music scene since 2013. Through the years, he has contributed to all five of the group's releases to date, both directly with lyrics and indirectly as a creative support and springboard. His new Demo Tape titled 'Full Circle' sees to an exploration of trials, lessons, and growth ultimately centering on and circling back to the identity he has worked to achieve as an artist.

Production covers a range of influences on the Midwestern sage, both classic and contemporaries. LOOPRAT producer Davie Napalm contributes 3 original beats including the single 'In the Thick of the Madness.' The cover art, white charcoal on black paper, is an accurate depiction of a collapsing black hole created by a physics student with a knack for expressive mediums. Logo and text work done by freeztheartist. Digital edit done by NatKingFlo. Mixed and mastered by Matt Sawicki at Suburban Pro Studios.

Stream full project here!

or Download on our website

LOOPRAT MC ZenMugen has been meditating on the art of Hip Hop for years. His emergence as a solo artist has been an impending moment. Next Tuesday, his debut project, a demo tape titled ‘Full Circle’ releases in tandem with his first show at the Firebird. The the project will be available here on the music tab of the LOOPRAT website as well as on SoundCloud and Bandcamp. Stay tuned for further updates.