Southern Rap Essentials

Once the underdogs of the rap game, the South is now the centre of the hip-hop universe, and it's not just 808s and trunk-rattling bass. Raunchy party-starters of ‘80s Miami bass (The 2 Live Crew), screwed-up Houston anthems for grippin' grain and riding on chrome (UGK), New Orleans' flashy rags-to-riches rap empires (the Cash Money and No Limit crews), Memphis' gothic-club chants (Three 6 Mafia), Atlanta's sonic soul food and trap innovations (Outkast, Gucci Mane), and everything in between: Southern rap has it all.