Municipal Auditorium will host The Legends of Southern Hip-Hop tour for the second straight year—same month, different day. The event stops here on March 31. It features a stacked lineup of legitimate hip-hop royalty: Scarface and Bun B, two key members of two legendary Texas Gulf Coast rap acts; the prolific duo, 8Ball & MJG, who hail from Memphis; a pair of performers from New Orleans in Juvenile and Mystikal; Magic City’s own Trick Daddy; Project Pat; and even Augusta, Georgia native Pastor Troy was added to the roster this go around.
Though Brad Jordan got his start as a DJ, as Scarface he went on to be a key member of the legendary Geto Boys. Born Bernard Freeman, Bun B and childhood friend Pimp C (Chad Butler) teamed up as the great UGK from Port Arthur. Project Pat, who’s mostly known for being Juicy J’s brother, is a Memphis legend. Although Bun B hasn’t been hustling as hard since the death of his partner Pimp C, he’s one of the finest rappers in the game and a huge part of the reason why the South continues to reign over what hip-hop is today. 8Ball & MJG, who have toiled in the underground for decades, did achieve commercial success. They featured on Three 6 Mafia’s hit song ‘Stay Fly’ in 2005. The song peaked at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100, which is the biggest hit of Three 6 Mafia’s career and the biggest hit for 8Ball & MJG. The song was a collaboration between two of the most successful rap groups from the state of Tennessee. Mystikal has been circling a comeback since his funky 2012 cut ‘Hit Me.’
The majority of people that will attempt to pack the house are sure to be well into our 30s and older, and at least a generation removed from the digital natives thumbing through apps for new music. There’s no doubt that this line-up was the inescapable American Graffiti soundtrack of most of these fans’ teenage years. This ain’t skinny jean music. Some of these guys had cassette tapes, literally!
Trick Daddy is sure to flex through a block of his Miami classics. Like last year, Juvenile will probably open with the title track off of 400 Degreez staying true to his name, roasting his own hooks with plenty of animation simultaneously across the stage. ‘Ha,’ arguably the best song Cash Money ever put out, is sure to be on the rundown. Grind classic ‘Slow Motion’ and ‘Back That — Up’ are sure to be as well. Scarface, no doubt will sound great and precise when dominating the occasional 16 acapella.
This is sure to be an interesting night. If you love old school hip-hop, you will be in the house.
