Stacy Epps

By Harold Zimm

Atlanta has been at the forefront of hip-hop for many years. ­Superstars like Atlanta natives T.I. and Yung Joc follow a long line of innovation and accomplishment that dates back much farther than the ubiquitous “crunk” and “dirty south” movements they followed.

Through the 1990s, Atlanta-based producers like Jermaine Dupri, Babyface, and L.A. Reid forever changed pop music by weaving hip-hop culture with R&B; and, though LL Cool J’s “I Need Love” is proof that they weren’t the first to do so, they were certainly the most successful. TLC, Toni Braxton, and even Philadelphia’s Boyz II Men were popularized through Atlanta’s producers and writers; and, ever since, music industry execs have had their heads turned toward Georgia for the latest urban trends and the freshest talent. Though it has been a slow process, the city has finally caught up with the demand for venues, events, and public outlets to nurture its future generations of urban music stars.

While Atlanta’s hip-hop heavyweights have kept the city nationally renowned, its independent hip-hop community has kept the art form evolving. This is where Stacy Epps resides.

An Army brat who went through four elementary schools, two middle schools and two high schools, Epps sampled much of the country before attending the University of Virginia. Having started freestyling in her teens, Epps was still learning her craft when she became active in UVA’s hip-hop scene.

“We really shared the art,” says Epps, who eventually advanced from participant to event host. “It was all for the love.”

When Epps would periodically leave Virginia to visit her parents, who had freshly settled in Atlanta, she began to form bonds with Georgia up-and-comers who shared her passion.

“I connected with some artists from Atlanta; some artists called Hemisphere, and Survivalist, and I actually brought them to UVA for a show. We did a show called Hip Hop Heaven.” Due to Epps’ promotion and the show’s ideal demographic, Hip Hop Heaven was a success, and it gave Epps the experience she would later need to organize events on a much grander scale.

“I loved doing events,” she says, “creating a vibe.”
“After I graduated from college I moved to Atlanta,” she says. “[It] was really my growing ground, where I collaborated with a lot of artists like Scienz of Life, Stahhr Tha Femcee, Hemisphere, Survivalist, Prophetix.”

She adds, “There was a whole underground movement at that time, from, like, 01 to 03. That was a time we were doing a lot of shows, Angie The Hip Hop Angel [promoter/radio personality Angie Griffin] was organizing a lot of events; it was just a really nice, open vibe.”

Due to her interest in more than just self-promotion, Epps found satisfaction in helping entertain and enlighten the public, and she found Atlanta particularly accommodating for her causes. She also surrounded herself with a raw talent, of which Atlanta has a plethora. Shortly before moving west to attend law school at University of Southern California, Epps paired up with critically acclaimed Georgia artist MF Doom for his much-hailed Madvillain project.

“I did something on the beat, and it ended up being “Eye” on the Madvillain record,” she says. “It was weird because it was so different than the rest of the record. but to this day, there are so many people who tell me that’s one of their favorite songs.”
Epps also kept organizing public events, including a Hurricane Katrina benefit called Unite.

“Between each live performance, we had community activists speak,” she says proudly, “and in the crowd we had two-year-olds to 80-year-olds.” By the time her stay in Los Angeles had run its course, she had personally helped make its independent arts community a little more like those she had joined in Virginia and Georgia.

Although most aspiring MCs would have considered California a final destination, Epps reversed the formula.

“I always thought of L.A. as just a stop, you know what I mean?” she recalls. After completing law school, she returned to Atlanta and nestled back into its tightly knit fellowship of artists. Epps felt as if she was helping to build something, and that while Atlanta’s scene had plenty of talent, it still needed more outlets through which that talent could shine.

But Let’s Go Back...
First, a little history lesson on those who founded Atlanta’s first such outlets. In 1949, Jesse B. Blayton, Sr. became the first black radio station owner by purchasing Atlanta’s WERD. Though this was a milestone for African-Americans, Atlanta spent the next several decades in the shadow of Tennessee’s black music scene. It has been a lengthy process, but things have changed.

Nearly 20 years ago, around when Babyface and L.A. Reid first began to rule the pop charts, local legends Talib Shabazz and Randall Moore put together Atlanta’s first radio hip-hop show, now known as Rhythm & Vibes, on Georgia State University’s WRAS/88.5 FM. Thanks to Shabazz and Moore, the underground was one step ahead - and the major radio stations followed. Presently, there is a smorgasbord of hip-hop programming on Atlanta’s airwaves — WRFG/89.3 FM and WREK/91.1 FM both feature lively local hip-hop programming. LiquidSoulRadio, a cutting-edge online broadcast from Atlanta, has also incorporated both Atlanta’s underground and mainstream hip-hop into its rotation.

When Shabazz and Moore first began broadcasting their hip-hop show, there were nearly no venues in Atlanta that supported the genre. As Atlanta’s listeners grew more hip-hop savvy, however, its establishments began to change their bookings. Eventually, clubs such as Out Of Control (which went on to become 688) and The Somber Reptile hosted full-blown hip-hop concerts, as did The Cotton Club, but all three have since closed. Now, The Drunken Unicorn, Django’s, The 5 Spot and Cenci not only fill the gap left by the fallen venues, but provide more opportunity than ever. One of the most vital spots for Atlanta’s independent hip-hop artists is The Apache Café, which hosts the “I Do Music” networking mixer, an event which allows producers, artists, and local scene supporters to connect. D.R.E.S. Tha Beatnik, one of Atlanta’s most prolific and enduring underground hip-hop artists, founded The Apache Café’s “World Famous Mic Club” as a means for local talent, including himself, to shine. At six years, it’s the city’s longest-running event of its kind. Even venues that have mostly hosted rock shows through the years, such as Lenny’s and The Masquerade, now hold high profile hip-hop shows. For those who love the culture but don’t rap, Atlanta hosts “Breaklanta,” a tournament for breakdancers and graffiti artists.

Says D.R.E.S., “I feel like Atlanta’s a great place to cut your teeth. This is the place where you find your voice, you figure out if this is what you want to do, you find out what works, you find out what doesn’t work, there’s a lot of experimentation. It’s a great breeding ground, cause there is that room for experimentation. Which kind of helped, for a long while, helped us keep our innocence.”

Nevertheless, the interesting thing about Atlanta is that, like Stacy Epps, a surprisingly high percentage of the city’s musicians are not natives. It has a certain magnetism that draws talent from all over, and many who leave end up returning.

ATLANTA TODAY
“It’s kind of an interesting melting pot,” says Atlanta independent artist Elemental Emcee, “because we have a lot of friends here who are from other places, or have moved back from other places.” The city is what Elemental describes as a “really big small town. Once you start digging out and start fucking with shows and battling,” he says, “everyone knows everyone.”

“There’s a bit of a formula,” adds D.R.E.S. “You hone your talent in Atlanta, you go to New York to get the deal, you go to L.A. to shoot the video, then you tour the world. That’s the formula.”

According to D.R.E.S., the formula isn’t necessarily a bad thing, either.
“We’ve had some wonderful things happen and it’s fallen in line with the formula.” Beneficiaries include multi-Platinum artists Ludacris, Soulja Boy and Usher, all of whom moved to Atlanta during their formative years and went on to shake up the music industry as adults. Atlanta-based LaFace Records, founded in 1989 by L.A. Reid and Babyface, broke now-infamous Georgia artists such as TLC, Outkast, and Youngbloodz. LaFace also signed artists who weave between underground legendry and mainstream stardom, such as Goodie Mob and their alumnus Cee-Lo. Eventually, even LaFace itself went through the formula: in 1999, 10 years after its inception, it was fully absorbed into Los Angeles-based Arista Records.
Atlanta’s web of venues, events, labels and artists has never been stronger; and, according to D.R.E.S., its sense of community is one of its best and most unique qualities.

“I tell a lot of people in my travels,” he says, “that Atlanta, pound for pound, is the greatest independent scene, and this is across the board. Not just hip-hop, but we can go drum and bass, we can go jazz, we can go rock, we can go alt-rock, we can go any way, and it’s the greatest scene ever.”

With an intimate scene, it was only a matter of time before D.R.E.S. and the rest of Atlanta discovered Stacy Epps, hanging around all the usual haunts.
“When Stacy comes in, and puts a little paint where it ain’t, the room is definitely left a little brighter and a little bit more beautiful than how it was before she got there.”
D.R.E.S. sees Epps as another innovator keeping the Atlanta scene moving forward.

“Her words and her music inspires not just women but people, but humans,” he says. “She’s definitely managed to find a way to tap into the consciousness of her listeners and I think that is a very, very rare quality in today’s music. I believe it‘s a quality that gets overshadowed a lot by industry insiders. She’s the next generation’s Amel Larrieux.”

Although her upcoming summer tour will keep her moving, Stacy Epps still considers Atlanta the home to which she’ll return.

“I’ve lived all over, so for me, each place has beauty, and what we contribute to that beauty is what matters. Rather than what we can get out of it, what can we give to it? And so, for me, [Atlanta] is a place of growth. You have L.A., and it’s a beautiful place, but it’s pretty much built up. At the same time, Atlanta is still building; and we’re building on what we want it to become, what it’s gonna be. You can be a part of building something, part of the foundation, instead of being on top and trying to dig in and get something out of it.”

www.myspace.com/stacyepps