The high-octane sound of crunk was hip-hop’s mosh-pit moment, an unapologetically aggressive call to go crazy, spill drinks and throw elbows. Memphis’ hard-hitting Three 6 Mafia and their aptly named project Tear Da Club Up Thugs provided some of the earliest crunk records in the late ’90s. The sound would find its explosive voice, though, in Atlanta producer Lil Jon, who screamed a path across hip-hop that was influenced by both Miami bass and hardcore punk. Atlanta dominated crunk in its 2000s heyday with artists such as Ying Yang Twins, Bone Crusher, Trillville and Crime Mob. Even R&B artists like Ciara couldn’t resist juxtaposing their crooning with these bursts of mayhem, peaking with the success of Usher’s “Yeah!”—the No. 1 song in the U.S. for 12 boisterous weeks in 2004. Though classic crunk faded from popularity by the decade’s end, its energy and aggression live on in much of today’s raw, internet-traded hip-hop.