Lab Raps is released via The Glasgow Barons on 28 February 2025. Produced by regeneration orchestra The Glasgow Barons – Lab Raps is an innovative and experimental project in which the Scottish hip-hop community joins forces with musicians from classical, jazz and folk genres.
On 28 March 2025, for the first birthday party of FREED UP, a performance of the next LAB RAPS album featuring MOG, CCTV and Eugene, takes place at Edmiston House, Ibrox
Freestyle Master
Lab Raps is in part a partnership with FREED UP CIC, the recovery community event provider. Director Donna Boyd worked alongside Paul MacAlindin suggesting hip-hop artists. Two of the tracks, Recovery Stolen and Testify are about the rappers’ experience in recovery from drug and alcohol abuse.
Roo Geddes
Lab Raps was commissioned by orchestral conductor Paul MacAlindin aka The Glasgow Barons. The Scotsman has already described it as an eclectic, ground-breaking 12-track album. From Puirt à Beul (Gaelic mouth music) to songs about addiction and recovery. The coming together of two different musical worlds, backing tracks and synthesised beats are replaced with professional, award-winning instrumentalists.
Evie Waddell
MOG, AjForty7, Evie Waddell, Freestyle Master, SVG, Sweet Rogue are accompanied by instrumental musicians Roo Geddes (fiddle) shortlisted BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year 2025, Neil Sutcliffe (accordion) and Ewan Hastie (double bass), BBC Young Jazz Musicians of the Year, Lewis Banks (soprano saxophone), Zach Ronan (accordionist in Gaelic rock / folk band DLÙ) and Dan Griffin (bass guitar).
AjForty7
The album was recorded in two sessions with two groups:
MOG, Sweet Rogue, and Freestyle Master accompanied by Roo Geddes, Neil Sutcliffe and Ewan Hastie
Evie Waddell, SVG, and AjForty7 accompanied by Lewis Banks, Zach Ronin, and Dan Griffin
Lab Raps –
Ensemble Govan
Lab Raps first appeared in The Govan Music Festival and Govan Footbridge Festival: https://www.glasgowbarons.com/
Ewan Hastie
