Southern hip hop, also known as Southern rap, South Coast hip hop, or dirty south, is a blanket term for a regional genre of American hip hop music that emerged in the Southern United States, especially in Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Florida—often titled “The Big 5,” five states which constitute the "Southern Network" in rap music.
Three 6 Mafia is an American hip hop group from Memphis, Tennessee, formed in 1991. Emerging as a horror-themed underground hip hop group, they went on to enjoy mainstream success. The group's 1995 debut album Mystic Stylez became an influential cult classic. They have released music on independent labels such as Prophet Entertainment and their own Hypnotize Minds label, as well as Relativity, Loud, and Columbia Records.
Paul Duane Beauregard, known professionally as DJ Paul, is an American rapper and record producer. He is a founding member of hip hop group Three 6 Mafia and the half-brother of rapper Lord Infamous. DJ Paul is also the half-brother of convicted drug lord Craig Petties. He is also a part owner of FaZe Clan.
John David Jackson, better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper. Raised in Brooklyn, he first gained recognition for his ability upon performing live on DJ Clue's Hot 97 radio show. Jackson then signed to Clue's record label Desert Storm Records, in a joint venture with Elektra Records. He rose to further prominence with his debut studio album Ghetto Fabolous (2001), which spawned the hit singles "Can't Deny It" and "Young'n ." Adopting a further commercially-oriented approach, his second album, Street Dreams (2003), was supported by the singles "Can't Let You Go" and "Into You" —both of which peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100.
Bernard James Freeman, known professionally as Bun B, is an American rapper. He is best known as one half of the southern rap duo UGK, a group he formed in 1987 alongside Pimp C. Aside from his work with UGK, Bun B has released five solo albums, including 2010's Trill OG, which received the rare 5-mic rating from The Source.
Jayceon Terrell Taylor, better known by his stage name the Game or simply Game, is an American rapper. Born in Compton, California, he initially released a series of mixtapes under the wing of fellow West Coast rapper JT the Bigga Figga. After releasing his debut album Untold Story independently in 2004, he was discovered by record producer Dr. Dre and signed to his Aftermath Records label imprint. The Game rose to fame in 2005 following the release of his major-label debut album The Documentary, which peaked the Billboard 200 along with its 2006 follow-up, Doctor's Advocate. The former album received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and two Grammy Award nominations—Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for its single, "Hate It or Love It".
Torence Ivy Hatch Jr., better known by his stage name Boosie BadAzz or simply Boosie, is an American rapper. Hatch began rapping in the 1990s as a member of the Southern hip hop collective Concentration Camp, eventually pursuing a solo career in 2000 with the release of his debut album Youngest of da Camp. After leaving the label the following year, he signed with Pimp C's Trill Entertainment to release his second studio album, For My Thugz (2002). One of the most prominent figures of Southern hip hop, Hatch has gone on to release thirteen solo studio albums, as well as seven collaborative albums and 44 mixtapes.
Ramone Johnson, better known by his stage name Cashis, is an American rapper who was born and raised in Chicago, but moved to Irvine, California. He was most notably featured on the Shady Records album Eminem Presents: The Re-Up with Eminem and the record label, and released The County Hound EP in 2007. The County Hound EP sold 6,700 copies in its first week and debuted on the US Billboard 200 at number 106. He's best known for appearing on Eminem's song, "You Don't Know", featuring 50 Cent and Lloyd Banks.
Kisean Paul Anderson, known professionally as Sean Kingston, is an American reggae fusion singer and rapper. He signed with J. R. Rotem's label Beluga Heights Records to release his 2007 debut single, "Beautiful Girls", which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100. Preceded by the song and its top 20 follow-up single "Eenie Meenie", his eponymous debut studio album (2007) peaked at number six on the Billboard 200, and spawned the top 40-single "Take You There". His second album, Tomorrow (2009), was supported by the top five-single "Fire Burning", and met with moderate commercial response. His third album, Back to Life (2013), failed to chart and served as his final release on a major label, but spawned the moderate hit single "Beat It".
Lawrence Carl Demetrious White, better known by his stage name 40 Glocc, is an American rapper.
Gerald Earl Gillum, better known by his stage name G-Eazy, is an American rapper and record producer. Based in Oakland, California, he began his career in 2006 and released two independent studio albums until signing with RCA Records to release his third album, These Things Happen (2014). It peaked at number three on the US Billboard 200 and spawned the single "I Mean It", which received triple platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and marked his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100.
Gilbert Anthony Milam Jr., better known by his stage name Berner, is an American rapper and entrepreneur signed to Wiz Khalifa's Taylor Gang Entertainment. He has released over 50 albums, several of which have charted on Billboard's "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums" chart. As an entrepreneur, he created the Cookies brand of cannabis products and clothing wear that formed out of San Francisco in the early 2010s. The company has grown to include dozens of dispensaries across the United States and abroad, along with multiple clothing stores.
Tavares Lamont Taylor, known professionally as Lil Reese, is an American rapper. Hailing from Chicago's drill scene in the early 2010s, he is known for his collaborations with fellow rappers Chief Keef, Fredo Santana, and Lil Durk. In 2012, Taylor was featured on Chief Keef's single "I Don't Like", which peaked at number 73 on the Billboard Hot 100, peaked at number 20 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and peaked at number 15 on the Hot Rap Songs chart. His debut mixtape, ‘Don't Like’ was released later that year. Since the first mixtape release, Taylor has gone on to release six mixtapes in total, including the 2013 ‘Supa Savage’ mixtape, as well as three EPs, including the 2017 collaborative project ‘Supa Vultures’ EP with Lil Durk.
Trap God 2 is a mixtape by American rapper Gucci Mane, released on February 12, 2013. The mixtape features guest appearances from Young Scooter, Wiz Khalifa, Lil Wayne, Young Thug, Big Bank Black, OG Boo Dirty, Waka Flocka Flame, PeeWee Longway, Young Dolph, Rulet 1017, Verse Simmonds, Rocko and Lloyd.
Kenneth Edward Bailey, better known by his stage name Young Scooter, is an American rapper from Atlanta, Georgia. He was among the first artists to sign with fellow Atlanta rapper Future's record label, Freebandz in 2012, having known its founder since childhood. The following year, he jointly signed with Waka Flocka Flame's Brick Squad Monopoly, an imprint of Gucci Mane's 1017 Records. He first gained regional recognition for his collaborations with the rappers, as well as his mixtape Street Lottery (2012) and its lead single, "Colombia". His guest appearance on Future and Juice Wrld's 2018 song, "Jet Lag" marked his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100.
Adolph Robert Thornton Jr., better known by his stage name Young Dolph, was an American rapper from Memphis, Tennessee. He first garnered mainstream attention for his guest appearance on O.T. Genasis' 2015 single "Cut It", which peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. The following year, he released his debut studio album King of Memphis (2016), which peaked at number 49 on the Billboard 200. His fifth album, Rich Slave (2020) peaked at number four on the chart. Young Dolph founded the independent label Paper Route Empire.
Richard Welton Morales Jr., better known by his stage name Gunplay, is an American rapper from Carol City, Florida. He is best known for his association with fellow Florida-based rapper Rick Ross, with whom he formed the hip hop group Triple C's in 2005, along with rappers Torch and Young Breed. Following their debut album, Custom Cars & Cycles (2009), Morales signed a solo recording contract with Ross' Maybach Music Group, which entered a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings in July 2012. His debut studio album, Living Legend (2015), narrowly entered the Billboard 200 and served as his only release on a major label.
DeMario DeWayne White Jr., known professionally as Moneybagg Yo, is an American rapper. He is known for his melodic trap and Southern hip hop music style.
Gloria Hallelujah Woods, known professionally as GloRilla, is an American rapper from Memphis, Tennessee. She first became known for her 2022 single "F.N.F. ", which peaked within the top 50 of the Billboard Hot 100 and led her to sign with fellow Memphis rapper, Yo Gotti's record label, Collective Music Group, an imprint of Interscope Records in July of that year. Released that same month, her follow-up single, "Tomorrow" spawned a remixed sequel that peaked within the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 and received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Both songs, along with the gold-certified single "Blessed", preceded the release of her debut extended play (EP), Anyways, Life's Great in November, which entered the Billboard 200 at number 11.
This article summarizes the events, album releases, and album release dates in hip hop music for the year 2023.
