Memphis Phonk
Located in 1 route
Memphis Phonk is phonk that stays closest to its Memphis rap source: dusty samples, horror-film moods, chopped Three 6-style vocals, cowbells, cassette hiss, low fidelity, repetitive hooks and beats that feel recovered from an underground tape box. It is darker and more sample-based than drift phonk, less polished than gym phonk and more invested in occult, street and lo-fi atmosphere than clean dance utility.
History
The style draws directly from 1990s Memphis tapes by DJ Spanish Fly, DJ Squeeky, Three 6 Mafia, Tommy Wright III, Kingpin Skinny Pimp, Playa Fly and Gangsta Pat. SpaceGhostPurrp and Raider Klan helped revive the sound online, while DJ Smokey, Soudiere, DJ Yung Vamp, Roland Jones, Inteus and many SoundCloud/Bandcamp producers codified Memphis phonk as a beat scene. Its ethics are archival and transformative at once.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- Memphis rap and phonk histories
- cassette rap discographies
- SoundCloud phonk retrospectives
- artist discographies