SLCL Director Kristen Sorth said, “'Listen Up STL' is a unique opportunity for local musicians and SLCL patrons. We are proud to celebrate our community's creativity through 'Listen Up STL' by introducing our patrons to talented local musicians in our community. We are also thrilled to assist these musicians in building a bigger audience.” The library is always interested in adding interesting digital content to its collection.

Twice a year, the library solicits music for inclusion in the "Listen Up STL" collection. Any St. Louis area musician with original music of any genre is encouraged to participate. This summer we began hosting a series of free, outdoor concerts called "Listen Up STL Live." All of the bands featured in the concert series also participate in "Listen Up STL." We continue to schedule concerts.

We were recently named St. Louis’ best Local Music Initiative by St. Louis Magazine. Melinda Cooper, a contributor, notes, “Making local music available for streaming through the library not only helps artists here, it helps out our venues as well. When you expand your music's availability you not only have a better chance of selling your records, you also have a better possibility of getting bodies into clubs to see a show.”