Region
South
36 artists
Southern hip-hop, also called the Dirty South, grew from an underdog into the most influential region in rap. Trap, crunk, bounce and chopped and screwed all came from the South.
The story. Every city built its own scene: Miami bass, Houston (Geto Boys, UGK and DJ Screw's slowed-down sound), New Orleans (Cash Money and No Limit), Memphis (Three 6 Mafia) and Virginia (Timbaland, Missy Elliott and the Neptunes). Atlanta became the capital. When OutKast won Best New Rap Group at the 1995 Source Awards, André 3000 told a booing New York crowd that "the South got something to say". They were right: from the 2000s on, T.I., Ludacris and Lil Wayne owned the charts, and in the 2010s Atlanta trap with Migos, 21 Savage and Travis Scott became the sound of the world.
The sound. Heavy 808 bass, bounce and swing, slower tempos and a strong local identity in accents and slang.
Key albums
- Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, OutKast (1994)
- Aquemini, OutKast (1998)
- Trap Muzik, T.I. (2003)
- Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne (2008)
- Culture, Migos (2017)
- Astroworld, Travis Scott (2018)
Southern hip-hop by city
South artists
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