Memphis Dust & Digital Gold
Micro-Chop selects 105 SouljahFromTheNorth songs.
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On April 22nd, 2009, the YouTube channel SouljahFromTheNorth posted a music video for “I Got That Drank (Remix)” by Frayser Boy featuring Mike Jones and Paul Wall. Over the next six-plus years, the account posted nearly 300 videos.
The early uploads were exclusively Three 6 Mafia-related, including live clips and the group’s legendary pre-Three 6 solo tapes and collaborative projects. Lord Infamous’ Freestyle-sampling, DJ-Paul produced classic “South Memphis” from his Solo Tape project is a standout moment from this part of the collection.
As the SouljahFromTheNorth archive grew, so did its scope, expanding to include songs by luminaries like Al Kapone, DJ Squeeky, and Tommy Wright III.
The channel also features lesser-known cuts that have become more broadly known with time, like The Legend Lady J’s hypnotic 1996 gem “Chronic Dope,” which is long overdue for a proper reissue and a film and/or TV placement ASAP.
Whoever curated the page also selected several rare, little-know instrumental tracks from this era of Memphis rap, which enrich the archive as a whole.
SouljahFromTheNorth also pulled several late-‘90s and early-2000s tracks that fall outside the typical ‘90s underground tape canon on YouTube. However, much like the instrumental tracks, they add valuable layers and textures to an already remarkable collection of music. One of my favorites is Shank and Chrome’s excellent 2000 effort “North M.E.M.P.H.I.S.”.
SouljahFromTheNorth’s final upload, posted on October 1, 2014, is a DIY blend video featuring mostly Memphis artists rapping over alternate beats and classic Memphis production. It’s a great way to cap off a remarkable run and an indispensable digital archive.
There is no doubt that the person behind SouljahFromTheNorth helped a lot of Mempis artists find a wider audience. It’s remarkable that songs like Lo Key’s “On That Devil Shit” has over 1.4 million views considering the channel hasn’t uploaded anything new in over a decade.
To give people a point of entry into this essential collection, I sifted through hundreds of uploads and compiled a 105-song playlist of some of my favorites. Click here to listen. Let me know what you think if you decide to give it a spin. And make sure to his the SouljahFromTheNorth archive so you can do your own digging.
oh... my... god... What an archive! Whew! Thank you!