Saying that Murphy Lee loves the Midwest is an understatement. The hip-hop artist rose to fame in the mid 90s with the group The St. Lunatics, which consisted of members Ali, Kyjuan, City Spud and rap star Nelly.
Murphy Lee still calls St. Louis home and still has an influence in Midwest style hip-hop. Most importantly, he maintains a vested interest in uplifting the community. He is bringing that positive energy to Indianapolis.
He will host “Murphy Lee’s Block Party in the Park,” Aug. 17 at the Midwest Sports Complex, 7509 New Augusta Road. The party will have food trucks, a kid’s zone and a backpack giveaway, as well as basketball and beach volleyball games.
Closing out the event at 7 p.m. will be performances by three-time Grammy winner Nelly; Murphy Lee and members of the St. Lunatics; and fellow Missourian, Chingy. Local performers include Radamez, Yung Tone, Marcyana, and Shadow. B-Swift of WHHH-FM (96.3) and Reka of WNOU-FM (100.9) will serve as hosts of the concert.
Tickets for the event are $25 and can be purchased at CircleCityTickets.com. Proceeds from the Murphy Lee Block Party in the Park will benefit Helping Hands For Freedom, a nationally recognized non profit providing financial support to the families of fallen or injured members of the military.
The Recorder recently sat down with Murphy Lee to find out what he’s been doing since being in the national spotlight and why he loves the Midwest so much.
Indianapolis Recorder: Your roots are in St. Louis but you’re throwing your first “Murphy Lee Block Party in the Park” in Indianapolis. Why?
Murphy Lee: I play professional softball in a Black softball league. We were throwing a tournament in Nap Town so it was perfect timing to do something special. Initially, we were also going to do a concert, but when I thought about it, I said why don’t we do a block party. We can call up Nelly and all those guys and see if we can make this happen.
And I stay in Nap town. I’m in Nap Town at least two or three times a quarter.
Nelly, Chingy and the St. Lunatics are performing. Were they excited to help you out?
They wanted to help me out, but when I told them it was for Helping Hands for Freedom, they were like ‘let’s get it.’ They’re just proud brothers. I’m the youngest member of the St. Lunatics so anything I do, they come and support me.
I had a show with Chingy and Nelly a couple weeks ago. I told them, ‘man we need to take this show on the road,’ so this is a perfect situation. Chingy gets down, you know Nelly is the king of the Midwest so it’s going to be crazy.
It’s good to hear you all are still friends.
We’re family. We’ve been friends since we were like six-years-old. Our moms went to school together and our kids go to school together so ain’t no getting away from it.
You mentioned you just performed at a show. What else have you been up to?
Working like crazy. I haven’t been on the big screen because a lot of things I do is independent or online. You can find me on NewMurph.com or iTunes.
I never stopped working. I drop mix tapes quarterly and new videos online. I’m city to city, so Thursday through Sunday I’m in somebody’s city and Monday through Wednesday I’m in St. Louis.
I also have my own wine called Freaky Moscato. We been going in with that for the past year and we have a new wine coming out soon. Indiana will be a part of that.
Have you always had an insight for business or is this something you learned during the peak of your rap career?
I’ve been a nerd and a businessman all my life. I was the kid selling Now And Laters from the back of the class. I was always good at it and I like business.
I also have an air freshener. Go to AirPlayFresh.com. We just got into Walmart so we’re making big moves.
We’re also doing straight to DVD short films for youth. You know how you’d be in class and they’d show films about staying off drugs. We’re updating that because a lot of parents don’t really know what’s going on. And we use local youth to star in the films.
When conducting business, why do you choose to stay in St. Louis as opposed to relocating to a bigger city?
I’m an LA type of guy, but I love St. Louis. It’s nothing like the Midwest. It’s not too slow or fast. You still can make money if you’re thinking. I love it here.
You’re a man of many talents. Tell us more about your softball league.
Yes, it’s called the Black Softball Circuit and it has lots of teams across the country. Mike Epps from Nap Town has a team, rapper E-40 has a team, lots of football players have a team. It’s like a gang of grown men that didn’t make it to the major leagues but still know how to play ball. (Laughs) Every weekend it’s a tournament in different cities. This particular tournament that will be in Indy is called the Midwest Swing. My team is called “U C Me.” It’s will be about 30 teams so we’re going to be out there all day. The block party is all day and the concert starts at 7 p.m.
This weekend is definitely going to be Midwest strong. Are you excited?
Yes! People should come and bring their energy! We’re going to be out here having a good time.
For more information on, call Amber Strong at (317) 529-7681. For information on Helping Hands For Freedom visit HelpingHandsForFreedom.org.
