Jasmine Osby The Godmother of Soul Patti LaBelle, Common, De La Soul and more are headed to MATI (Music at the Intersection) as the festival takes over Grand Center Arts District for its fifth year from Sept. 12-14. “We’re going to take all the best things that we’ve done over the last four years, and we’re going to take all those ingredients and we’re just going to shape it a little bit different,” says Chris Hansen, executive director of the Kranzberg Arts Foundation. Now going primarily by MATI, a nickname given by locals and festival organizers, the event has become a summer staple for St. Louis music lovers, bringing acts like Chaka Khan and rapper Big Boi to past events. MATI stands for Music at the Intersection and the pillars of the festival: music, art, thought and innovation. This year, Hansen says the festival is remaining dedicated to bringing the best R&B, soul, jazz and hip-hop acts to the city. “It’s truly remarkable to have authentic diversity,” he says. “Not forced integration, not contrived ways of saying you’re diverse. But for people of different backgrounds, ethnicities, socioeconomic means, to be able to all show up in one place and celebrate their community.” Performances will be spread out over 15 stages and venues, with headlining sets from three-time Grammy-winning rapper Common and super producer Pete Rock, the incomparable Patti LaBelle, R&B newcomers Lucky Daye and Leon Thomas, hip-hop legend De La Soul and jazz star Branford Marsalis. Returning this year is a slew of St. Louis-based talent, making MATI the ultimate mix of mainstream and independent acts. Ferguson native and Grammy nominated trumpeter Keyon Harrold returns for his fourth MATI performance, along with singer Ryan Trey, Frankie Duwop and the Thundacats, the Ish Ensemble and more. Hansen says involving more local acts in the festival is critical to the MATI mission. Whereas more mainstream acts might sell tickets faster, the festival is built on creating opportunities for the artists that reside in the city. “The entire purpose for this is to celebrate and elevate St. Louis’ art and culture community, and the practitioners,” he says.”They’re at the core of what this is ... and we want artists to feel like there’s opportunities here for upward mobility.” MATI is also rolling out new changes at this year’s festival aimed towards making the event more accessible and to create more engagement with the surrounding neighborhood. After year’s of multi-tier tickets, festival organizers decided to ditch the VIP ticket. Hansen says this year, everyone is VIP. Instead, organizers rolled out the MATI Movement, a membership program where community members can support St. Louis arts year-round. “We’ve now created a completely unique experience that hasn’t strayed from its roots, and everybody that shows up is having a comfortable, safe and connected experience, and everyone’s a VIP,” he says. With MATI Movement, music lovers can purchase one of four tiers ranging from $200 to $2,500. In addition to access to the festival, members of the movement can enjoy perks that include early bird pre-sale access to all MATI branded events, exclusive merchandise, artist meet-and-greets and access to the new Champions Lounge at the festival, depending on what membership is selected. “We want to look back, and we want to see generations of families that have been taking their kids (to MATI) and identifying with this being one of the things that makes them excited and proud to be here, and we want other people from around the world to come here, because you can only experience this here.” Tickets for MATI go on sale on Friday, April 18 at matistl.org. General admission tickets are $150.