September 30-October 6, 2004

musicpicks

Okayplayer Sundays

Hip-hop

Still recuperating from their crowded-ass premiere party last month, the Okayplayer crew is taking over Manayunk once again. The former meat market known as Chemistry has been remodeled into trendy hot spot Grape Street Pub (not just for Grape Street any more) and Okayplayer is using it as an outlet for under/middleground artists from Philly and beyond. North Carolina trio Little Brother, which just inked an extensive recording contract with Atlantic, bring their jazzy, soul-influenced hip-hop. After the release of their debut album, The Listening, in 2003, Little Brother generated a buzz that has carried them to successful solo careers—which includes production for well-established artists (9th Wonder), mix tapes (Big Pooh) and the Foreign Exchange project (Phonte). Both Little Brother and Foreign Exchange (above) perform on Sunday. In addition to their popularity, members of their Justus League crew have gained minimal fame including Away Team + L.E.G.A.C.Y. and D.C. songstress YahZarah, all of whom will be joining their fearless leaders on stage.

Sun., Oct. 3, 8 p.m., $12, with Little Brother, Foreign Exchange, Cirius B, Reef the Lost Cauze, Sound Advice Players, Yameen, Mike Nyce and Skratch Makaniks, Grape Street Pub, 4100 Main St., 215-483-7084.

—Deesha Dyer