Three 6 Mafia show feels like historic homecoming at Beale Street Music Festival

Memphis’ most iconic rap act and the city’s most iconic music event made a triumphant return Friday night as Three 6 Mafia headlined Beale Street Music Festival.

The opening night of music fest — back for the first time since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic — was capped by a performance by Three 6. Led by Juicy J and DJ Paul, the concert captured the comeback spirit of the evening at the Fairgrounds in Liberty Park, with a set that electrified an enthusiastic crowd and delivered 30-plus years worth of crunk classics — all of it backdropped by a playoff series victory by the Memphis Grizzlies that ended just as the group's set began.

Following a long hiatus, various solo pursuits and partial group team-ups, Three 6 reunited in earnest in 2019 and made a triumphant appearance in the region that fall with a show at Landers Center.

Although the group’s touring plans for 2020 were thwarted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the reunion momentum seemed strong during a Friday late show that had the feeling of a historic homecoming.

BEALE STREET MUSIC FESTIVAL 2022: The music and fans are back — along with a Ferris wheel

That in itself is something of a shock considering the group’s relationship with Beale Street Music Fest. Back in 2007, fresh off their shocking Oscar win, Three 6 Mafia was booked for the fest. It seems almost quaint now, but their appearance on the bill was cause for much hand-wringing and protest from various Memphis civic leaders and media members who were aghast at the very idea that an “offensive” rap act should be featured as part of the Bluff City’s most prestigious musical showcase.

Fifteen years on, rap music — from Memphis and beyond — is the main engine driving the Beale Street Music Festival, with headlining and hotly anticipated appearances by Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Wayne, Moneybagg Yo and many others scheduled for the weekend.

Three 6 Mafia's show started just as the Memphis Grizzlies' series-clinching game against the Timberwolves was winding down. A chunk of the crowd was fixed on the television screens in the VIP area, watching the final minutes of the Grizz win. The crowd erupted once the victory was sealed, with Three 6 playing a celebratory "Tear Da Club Up."

GRIZZLIES VS. TIMBERWOLVES: Three 6 Mafia celebrates Grizzlies win during Beale Street Music Festival performance

"First off I want give shout out to the Memphis Grizzlies," Juicy J said. "We gon' win a championship — say what?!"

As the final act on the Bud Light Stage Friday, Three 6 Mafia pulled out all the stops for their first proper Memphis show in "over a decade," as DJ Paul noted.

The group worked up fan favorites from its catalog like "Azz and T*****" and "Sippin on Some Syrup” while making room for Juicy J and DJ Paul solo hits, and crowd-pleasing appearances from the extended Hypnotize Minds family.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Beale Street Music Festival 2022: Three 6 Mafia pulls out all the stops