Three Six Mafia Interview, i-D

pop collars @ power summit '05
Originally uploaded by hattie collins.

There are few that might have predicted this years Oscar’s would have been overtaken by pimps, prosituties But then, their success is no great surprise to hose in the know. At last year’s Mixshow Power Summit, the Tennessee trio stole the spotlight from under the nose of superstar attendees like Kanye and Common with a live set that saw a multitude of mountainous men storm their stage-show in a fit of excitable get-buck-tasy. Little people were flung about, bottles were popped, records were wheeled and re-wheeled and ‘bows were thrown as three tatted-up rappers sporting candy-coloured sunglasses spat their dark tales of gothic ghetto gospel. It was, in a word, ridonkulous. Propelled to an almost orgiastic encore by hit-single-in-waiting Stay Fly, the mixture of grimy bass-driven beats and humongous hooks cemented the fate of the Memphis music makers.

“We let everybody know that it’s the Dirty South time and we’re here to stay,” grins the gold-grill of founder member DJ Paul. “A lot of DJs there had heard of us but never met us, so when they saw that we had a hit waiting to happen, plus they saw we’re down-to-earth, they got behind the record; there wasn’t one radio station we didn’t get played on. We’ve been around a long time and now it’s our time,” he says with no small amount of satisfaction.

A sonic staple of the South’s rap scene, Three 6’s career trajectory is succinctly surmised by the title of their latest album Most Known Unknown. As years of gold and platinum plaques testify, they’ve been far from ignored, yet success on an international scale seemed to elude them. But while Master P had everyone saying ‘Ugh’ to the tune of millions, Luda was getting hoes in different area codes and Lil Jon was ushering in widespread use of the word crunk, Three 6 were steadily inspiring the art of everyone from Dizzee Rascal to Harmony Korine. Granted, it’s taken till now and the success of Stay Fly for the world of MTV, BET and even, bizarrely, the Oscars to finally sit up and take notice of Three 6, but it seems to bother them not.

“A lot of people didn’t understand our music, they were scared to play our records,” shrugs a nonplussed Juicy J, who alongside Paul is CEO of Hypnotize Minds, the production team behind tracks for everyone from Ludacris to Ying Yang Twins, Mike Jones to Remy Ma. “They felt like it might cause somebody to get shot or cause somebody to tear the club up.” Beginning life as Backyard Posse, former DJ rivals Juicy and DJ Paul - aka The King of Memphis –and Paul’s brother, Lord Infamous began making their macabre music as early as 1993. Crowning themselves Triple 6 with the release of their first official album, ‘95s Mystic Stylez, the crew grew to include Gangsta Blac, Skinny Pimp, Koopsta Knicca, Playa Fly and Crunchy Black as well as one of rap’s fiercest ever females, Gangsta Boo. Their sinister, malevolent metaphors and raw-as-they-wannabe lyrics that dissected such darkness as rape, porn, drug dealing, beat-downs and death were backed brilliantly by Paul and J’s stirring, cinematic style of production. So dark were their sinister similes and sadistic sound that many questioned the satanic significance behind their name. It’s a charge the 666’ers have heard before, chuckles Paul, a man with a shrivelled hand. “We started out with three people, then we added three more, so we said Three 6 Mafia.”

Over the years the line-up has been loose, and many of its original members, the brilliant Boo included, haven’t been heard of since. “You know how that go,” grins J. “But obviously we wish them the best.” Regardless of who was in or out, a smash single proved elusive until that standout showcase at last year’s Summit saw DJs get behind Stay Fly. “When you come with that right song and nobody’s afraid to play it,” points out Paul. “That’s when the thing bust wide open.” Add in the success of film Hustle & Flow, for which they wrote the soundtrack (including the Oscar-nominated It’s Hard Out Here For A Pimp) and it seems it’s finally Mafia Time.

“I think our sound is a Memphis sound, it’s gangsta walk, get-buck music,” says Paul. “We kept it gutter,” adds J. “We got our core fanbase in the streets. When Stay Fly hit, it opened up a lot of other doors to people who never had heard the music; they’re hearing it now and catching on to us.”

While Stay Fly is lyrically a little softer on the ears, Most Known Unknowns is as grizzly as ever; from the trillish Poppin’ My Collar to the sizzurp-sipping Swervin’, it’s vintage Triple 6. “ We ain’t try and change nothing, we just keep it like we been doing it,” says Paul. “We might change a snare or two or a high hat here and there but we ain’t trying to change our style ‘cos Three 6 Mafia is for Three 6 Mafia. It’s Three 6 Mafia at its best, fo sheezy!”
Most Known Unknown is out now on Sony BMG.