KC Hip-Hop Artist Les Izmore On Live Performing, KC Pride, Apples

By Suzanne Hogan,

Published May 2, 2013 at 9:53 AM CDT

During any given week, local hip-hop artist Les Izmore may be found free-styling in the Crossroads, fronting an 18 piece afro-beat/funk dance band, or opening for big acts coming through, like Kendrick Lamar and next week, Talib Kweli.

Izmore's work often references his love of Kansas City and the Midwest:

Izmore is now out with a new album, Heartfelt Anarchy--a friendly public radio warning, the album does contain explicit material. This is his second album, with the first one released five years ago. This new project involves the beats and production design of Kansas City-based D/Will.

Les Izmore speaks with about his childhood, his love of Granny Smith Apples and the hip hop culture of Kansas City.

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Central Standard hip-hop/rap

Suzanne Hogan

Every part of the present has been shaped by actions that took place in the past, but too often that context is left out. As a podcast producer for KCUR Studios and host of the podcast A People’s History of Kansas City, I aim to provide context, clarity, empathy and deeper, nuanced perspectives on how the events and people in the past have shaped our community today. In that role, and as an occasional announcer and reporter, I want to entertain, inform, make you think, expose something new and cultivate a deeper shared human connection about how the passage of time affects us all. Reach me at hogansm@kcur.org.

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Matthew Long-Middleton

Matthew Long-Middleton has been a talk-show producer, community producer, Media Training Manager and now the Community Engagement Manager at KCUR. You can reach him at Matthew@kcur.org, or on Twitter @MLMIndustries.

See stories by Matthew Long-Middleton