Why Three 6 Mafia and 8Ball & MJG were crucial to the development of Memphis rap

Like all musical forms, no one person can definitively say they started or invented Memphis rap, though there are plenty of seminal figures who were crucial in the development of the genre, from DJ Spanish Fly to DJ Squeeky, Gangsta Pat to Playa Fly, Al Kapone to Tommy Wright III.

But arguably two acts loom largest, in terms of reputation and influence, on the whole of Memphis rap: Three 6 Mafia and 8Ball & MJG.

Given its many members over the years, and its numerous affiliates, the Three 6 Mafia collective remains a historic force in Bluff City hip-hop.

Formed in 1991 — by DJ Paul, Lord Infamous and Juicy J — Three 6 Mafia put out nine full-length LPs (as well as myriad mixtapes, collaborations and side projects) during their initial 21-year run, during which they helped define the sound of the Dirty South.

The group — which has sold more than 5 million albums — hit the charts in the mid-2000s, with singles "Stay Fly" and "Poppin' My Collar," off their "Most Known Unknown" LP. Released in 2005, the disc would become the band's biggest seller, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard pop charts, a portent of even bigger things to come.

In 2006 — 34 years after Stax legend Isaac Hayes earned an Oscar in the same category for "Theme from Shaft" — Three 6 Mafia won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. The group nabbed the trophy for "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" — co-written by Hypnotize Minds artist Frayser Boy — their contribution to writer-director Craig Brewer's made-in-Memphis "Hustle & Flow." The group's performance on the Oscar telecast and their unexpected win suddenly made them household names.

The band would eventually follow with the 2008 album "Last 2 Walk" (another top five-charting LP), their own MTV reality show "Adventures in Hollyhood," and plans for a series of Three 6-branded films and other multimedia content.

After a period of slowing activity, in 2012 it was formally announced Three 6 Mafia was going on an indefinite hiatus. This was largely owing to co-founder Juicy J's decision to focus on his solo career. Juicy J would enjoy a second career success thanks to a platinum-selling single ("Bandz A Make Her Dance"), some high-profile pop collaborations (with Katy Perry and Justin Timberlake), and a pair of albums in "Stay Trippy" and "Rubba Band Business."

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Meanwhile, DJ Paul engaged in a variety of solo and remix projects, before convening several original Three 6 members, including Crunchy Black, for a new group under the Da Mafia 6ix moniker, which produced 2015's "Watch What U Wish" album.

The group’s legacy was confirmed when it was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame, as part of its inaugural class in 2012.

Along with Three 6 Mafia, the dominating duo of 8Ball & MJG certainly have had the deepest and most profound impact on Bluff City hip-hop.

Marlon Jermaine Goodwin and Premro "8Ball" Smith were raised in Orange Mound and met while being bused to Ridgeway Middle School in the mid-‘80s. Forming an instant bond over their shared loved of the then still-fledgling art of hip-hop, the two developed their signature style, which debuted to the world — or at least the underground — with 1991’s “Listen to the Lyrics.”

Their proper run of studio LPs in the ‘90s began with the 1993 classic “Comin Out Hard” and continued with the following year’s “On the Outside Looking In,” before the group went gold and hit the Billboard charts with 1995’s “On Top of the World.” In between separate solo projects, the pair ended the ‘90s with another gold seller in 1999’s hip-hop album chart topper “In Our Lifetime.”

Having helped make Southern rap a viable — both creatively and commercially — alternative to the West and East Coast scenes, 8Ball & MJG entered the 2000s by signing a deal with P. Diddy's Bad Boy record label. Their 2004 Bad Boy debut “Living Legends” took the group to new heights, landing the pair at the top of the rap chart and at No. 3 on the album chart.

Their 2005 collaboration with Three 6 Mafia on the double platinum “Stay Fly” would mark a kind of zenith for these progenitors of the Memphis rap. The pair has continued to flourish, leading their own record labels, reuniting to sign to T.I.’s Grand Hustle label and releasing “Ten Toes Down” in 2010.

8Ball & MJG would follow Three 6 Mafia into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2018, making them the second hip-hop inductees.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Who started Memphis rap? A look at pioneers Three 6 Mafia, 8Ball & MJG