How Memphis Rap Started: From Street Tapes to a Stolen Legacy

The Beginning

Back in the late 1980s, Hip-Hop was just beginning to break into the mainstream. Artists from New York like Run-DMC and LL Cool J had already laid the groundwork for what would become a global phenom

 

enon. But in 1988, when N.W.A dropped Straight Outta Compton, the West Coast officially stepped into the spotlight and gave birth to a new subgenre: Gangsta Rap.

At the same time, down South in Memphis, something special was bubbling. A local rap scene was starting to take shape, thanks to pioneers like DJ Zirk, DJ Squeeky, and Spanish Fly. These early figures began by scratching records and performing in rap battles — but one name stood out more than the rest: the legendary DJ Spanish Fly.

The Rise of DJ Spanish Fly

Born on January 12, 1970, DJ Spanish Fly is widely considered the godfather of Memphis Rap. He didn’t just influence the sound — he created it. Around 1989, Fly was already a respected DJ in the local scene. After rocking a party, he’d take note of which songs and ad-libs got the biggest reaction, and the next day, he’d turn that into a cassette mixtape. At first, these tapes were mostly live mixes and tracks from artists like the Geto Boys and Too $hort. But it wasn’t long before others in Memphis followed his lead.

One duo that elevated things further was DJ Zirk & DJ Squeeky. They took Fly’s mixtape model and pushed it forward by including original rap tracks — and the city loved it. These tapes weren’t just mixes anymore; they were full-on underground albums with their own identity.

 

From Local Legends to National Blueprint

While DJ Spanish Fly laid the foundation, he wasn’t the only one driving the movement. Artists like Gangsta Pat and Eightball & MJG proved that Memphis Rap could go beyond local fame and generate real success. By 1991-1992, both acts had started to gain serious recognition, setting the blueprint for what Memphis Rap could become.

Whether artists were in it for fame or simply doing it for the love, one thing became clear: the underground Memphis Rap scene was exploding. A new generation of rappers and producers emerged, from DJ Paul to Tommy Wright III, hustling cassette tapes for $5–$10 at schools and in neighborhoods all over the city.

 

A City Rooted in Music

Memphis has always been a musical city — home to icons like Elvis Presley, Al Green, and Isaac Hayes. Many Memphis rappers in the ’90s came from musical families, or had early experience performing in church choirs or talent shows. DJ Squeeky, for instance, played drums at church before ever touching a beat machine. DJ Paul learned about the music business from his uncles, who were part of a gospel group called the Bogard Brothers.

That deep-rooted musical background helped shape the Memphis sound — a sound that would eventually influence Hip-Hop worldwide.

 

Low Budgets, High Creativity

If you’ve ever wondered why many old Memphis tapes sound rough, it’s because nearly all of them were recorded independently. Unlike New York or L.A., Memphis didn’t have major record labels or distributors in the ’90s. By that time, even powerhouse labels like Stax Records were long gone.

Artists had to become their own producers, promoters, and distributors. Cassettes were often duplicated at home or pressed at local spots like H&W. Copywriting and publishing were rare, and bootlegs were common. Still, this DIY ethic led to some of the most creative strategies in the game — like hanging promo posters in neighborhood stereo shops such as Mr. Z’s Sound Express in North Memphis.

The gear was often cheap — drum machines like the Boss DR-5 and DR-660 were used to mimic the more expensive Roland TR-808. Microphones were bought from Circuit City or RadioShack. But these limitations sparked innovation. What came out of it was a gritty, hypnotic sound that became iconic in its own right.

The Memphis Sound

 

The raw, eerie Memphis sound wasn’t just a byproduct of cheap gear — it was intentional. Artists like DJ Zirk and DJ Spanish Fly knew that originality was key in Hip-Hop. They didn’t want to copy New York or the West Coast. And in an era when mainstream rap dismissed anything outside the norm, Memphis carved out its own lane.

In fact, people from Memphis at the time will tell you they rarely listened to anything but Memphis Rap. If you walked into a club in the ’90s, odds are you’d hear nothing else. That intense local pride even made it hard for out-of-town acts like Bone Thugs-N-Harmony to perform in the city.

Legacy and Preservation

 

Once a market for Memphis Rap was established, it took on a life of its own. By 1993, new rappers and producers were emerging every month. Most never imagined their music would live beyond those original cassette tapes. But with the rise of the internet, Memphis Rap has found new life.

One of the first sites to help preserve this legacy was MTownBound, founded around 2000 by rapper B-Low. The goal? To digitize and sell classic Memphis tapes online. I was too young to get involved back then, but I always wished for a dedicated Memphis Rap archive.

After my YouTube channel, The Rap Collector, was taken down in 2023 due to copyright claims from Sun City, I made a promise to myself: to build something better. My own website — my own archive — where the legends of Memphis Rap won’t be forgotten.