You can’t keep good women down, proven by the return of the St. Louis-based Femfest.
The Blender by Kevin C. Johnson keeps you up to date with the latest concert news and more from the St. Louis music scene.
The showcase presents nearly 60 rappers, singers, musicians, poets, DJs, producers and comedians performing on two stages Oct. 14 at HandleBar in the Grove neighborhood.
While Femfest isn’t solely a hip-hop event, the hip-hop aesthetic is strong. Femfest was partially born out of St. Louis hip-hop festival SLUM Fest.
Rapper Bates, who founded Femfest with Rob “Rob Boo” Ford, says the event “provides a platform that’s very important to us,” and it’s needed to show the variety that exists among women in hip-hop. Bates fronts the band Bates & the Strangers.
“Right now we only have one type of female rapper in the mainstream, but there’s not just one side of female hip-hop, and if you don’t respect one thing, there’s another side you can respect,” she says.
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Rob “Rob Boo” Ford and Bates discuss the return of Femfest. Video by Kevin C. Johnson
”A lot of people, men in the industry, didn’t give a (crap) at first (about women performers) but started to see how much money can be made off of female artists. They’d been neglecting us for 10, 15 years. Now they see where the money is.”
Along with popular national acts such as Nicki Minaj, Cardi B. and Megan Thee Stallion, artists including Ice Spice, Latto, GloRilla and Doechii are gaining popularity, not to mention St. Louis artists Sexyy Red and Big Boss Vette.
“As far as the music scene in St. Louis goes, it’s not just about the male artists,” says Ford, also a SLUM Fest co-founder. “There are a lot of females doing great stuff, now more than ever. People are stepping it up in terms of support for female artists.”
The first Femfest was held in 2015 at Blank Space. The last Femfest took place in 2019 at Fubar.
Originally, plans were in place for a Femfest in May 2020 at the now-closed Monocle, but the pandemic took care of that.
Leethal the Poet
Organizers considered bringing back the event in 2021 but decided not to because of COVID precautions in effect at the time. Plans in 2022 also didn’t work out; Ford had a new baby and was running Blank Space, and Bates went back to school and was busy with her band.
“My daughter’s older now, I’ve got some free time, Blank Space isn’t open right now,” Ford says. “We already had the formula of what to do. Bates talked to the people at HandleBar and got them on board.”
Femfest’s return follows a blow-up over an event in August at Off Broadway. TikTok rapper Britt Barbie of St. Charles had been booked as the headliner for Queens of the Lou, and many, including Bates, took exception. Britt Barbie had been seen as mocking Black women and people with disabilities, and critics said she had no place headlining Queens of the Lou. She was removed from the lineup, and Bates was bumped up to headliner.
”The show was lit,” Bates says. “It was a bunch of new female artists and the new waves of how the women are rapping now.”
Organizers say more than 70 artists applied to be considered for the Femfest lineup; the majority of them made the cut.
Performers include Bates, Cedes, G.A. Barz, Katarra Parson, Davyne Truth, Shai Lynn, Leethal the Poet, Bun, Alli Mayes, Big Girl, Dynasti Red, Asiaa Marie, Amaris J, Miss Fluid, Jalisa Renay, Mz. Tigga, LL Manny and Honey Banks. DJs include Shay Money, Menti Fresh, Stormm, Makeda Kravitz, MAXA and Zari Ferrari. Mz. Tigga and Precious J will host.
In lining up the acts, organizers looked at the artists’ musical content, production, video quality and stage presence.
Since announcing the return of Femfest, it was clear that people had been waiting.
“The ladies really had been asking me about it consistently,” Bates says. “Everyone was asking me what the hell was going on with it and ‘you gotta bring it back.’”
The goal is to eventually expand Femfest to other cities.
What Femfest • When 5:30 p.m. Oct. 14 • Where HandleBar, 4127 Manchester Avenue • How much $15 • More info eventbrite.com
