Southern hip hop

"Dirty South (music)" redirects here. For the Australian DJ and music producer, see Dirty South (DJ).

Southern hip hop
Stylistic origins	Hip hop - Bounce music
Cultural origins	1980s, Southern United States
Typical instruments	Drum machine - Turntables - Rapping - Sampler - Synthesizer - Human beatboxing
Mainstream popularity	High in the 2000s
Derivative forms	Crunk
Subgenres
Bounce - Snap Music - Miami Bass - Atlanta hip hop - Chopped and Screwed (complete list)

Southern hip hop, also called Southern rap, is a genre of American music influenced by hip hop that emerged from a late-1980s club-oriented vibe in southern U.S. cities, including Little Rock, New Orleans, Shreveport, Houston, Dallas, Virginia, Nashville, Atlanta, Charleston, Memphis, Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, Birmingham, Mobile, Orlando, Tampa, Miami, Jacksonville, Jackson, and Baton Rouge.^[1][2][3] The music was a reaction to the 1980s flow of hip hop culture from New York City and California, and can be considered a third major American hip hop genre, after East Coast hip hop and West Coast hip hop.^[4] Many early Southern rap artists released their music independently or on mixtapes after encountering difficulty securing record-label contracts in the 1990s.^[5]

For more information on music from one specific area, see Atlanta hip hop.

History

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, rap music was primarily dominated by artists from the East and West Coasts. Los Angeles and New York City were the two main regions where hip hop was receiving attention. In the 1980s, Southern cities began to catch on to the rap movement. The Geto Boys, a rap group from Houston, were the first rap artists from the South to gain major popularity. After the Geto Boys rose to stardom, Houston became the center for Southern hip hop. In the late 1980s, other rising rap groups such as UGK from Port Arthur, Texas, and 8 Ball & MJG from Memphis, Tennessee moved to Houston to further their musical careers. By the 1990s, Atlanta had become a controlling city in the Southern hip hop movement. Groups like Outkast and Goodie Mob played a huge part in helping the South become a center for hip hop music. Outkast's Big Boi and Andre 3000 became the first southerners to record album sales like the powerhouse rappers on the East and West Coasts. In 2004, Outkast won six Grammies for their album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, including Best Album. Big Boi, Andre 3000 and many other Atlanta rappers played an enormous part in bringing Southern hip hop to the popularity level it has reached today.^[6][7] In 2005, the Houston rap scene got wide audience, and many Houston rappers started to get nation-wide and world-wide audience such as Paul Wall, Mike Jones, Chamillionaire, UGK, Pimp C, Bun B, Lil' Flip, and Slim Thug.

Crunk

Main article: Crunk

The term crunk is used as a blanket term to denote any style of southern hip hop,^[8] but it is mainly used to denote a musical style that originated in Memphis, Tennessee in the mid-to-late 1990s. It was popularised by Atlanta rapper Lil' Jon,^[9] and gained mainstream popularity in the period 2003–04.^[10] A typical crunk track uses a drum machine rhythm, heavy bassline, and shouting vocals, often in call and response manner.^[10]

Notable musicians

• Further information: Category:Southern hip hop musicians
• Memphis Artists include 8 Ball & MJG, Three 6 Mafia and Yo Gotti.
• Atlanta is home to many popular rap artists such as: Ludacris, Outkast, Kris Kross, Lil Jon, Gucci Mane, T.I., Young Jeezy, Jermaine Dupri, Dem Franchise Boyz and many more.
• Houston artists include the Geto Boys,UGK, Mike Jones, Slim Thug, Paul Wall,Lil' Flip, and Chamillionaire.
• New Orleans artists include Master P, Mystikal, Birdman, Mannie Fresh, B.G., Lil Wayne and Curren$y.
• Meridian, MS artist Big K.R.I.T..
• Gadsen, Alabama artist Yelawolf.
• Nashville, TN's most famous rapper is former G-Unit rapper Young Buck.

During the late 90's the dirty south style caught on to the scene thanks to a boatload of rappers from Atlanta and New Orleans (most notabely Outkast, Ludacris, Juvenile, and Lil' Wayne)

References

1. ^ http://www.indexmagazine.com/interviews/dj_deluxx.shtml
2. ^ http://www.spiritus-temporis.com/southern-rap/history-and-rise-to-popularity.html
3. ^ Burks, Maggie (2008-09-03). "Southern Hip-Hop". Jackson Free Press. http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/index.php/site/comments/southern_hip_hop_090308/. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
4. ^ SANNEH, KELEFA (2005-04-17). "The Strangest Sound in Hip-Hop Goes National". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/17/arts/music/17sann.html. Retrieved 2008-09-11. 
5. ^ allmusic
6. ^ Grem, Darren E. "The South Got Something to Say": Atlanta's Dirty South and the Southernization of Hip-Hop America." Southern Cultures 12.4 (2006): 55-73. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 14 Sept. 2011.
7. ^ Westhoff, Ben. "Finger-Lickin' Rap." Utne Reader 166 (2011): 80-83. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 14 Sept. 2011
8. ^ Miller, Matt: "Dirty Decade: Rap Music and the U.S. South, 1997-2007".
9. ^ "Lil Jon crunks up the volume", NY Times, November 28, 2004
10. ^ ^{a b} "Southern Lights", Vibe Dec 2003

External links

• Film New Flavors: The Emergence of Southern Hip Hop (2008)
• News about Southern hip hop artists
• Local Houston Rappers and Hip Hop Artists
• Matt Miller, "Dirty Decade: Rap Music and the U.S. South, 1997-2007", Southern Spaces, 10 June 2008. http://southernspaces.org/2008/dirty-decade-rap-music-and-us-south-1997-2007