The Running Mule
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Screwed in Houston (The Story of Third Coast Rap)
Today’s bubblegum rap may rule the charts, but at VBS we prefer our beats harder and more innovative. Follow along as we head south to the Third Coast
to groove on one of the most original rap scenes ever realized. Houston is a
city defined by its geography Âlow and slow, hot and hard, bayous and
parking lots spreading for endless flat suburban miles. But a lack of
citywide zoning creates pockets of distinct communities within Houston’s
sprawl, and in these unofficially cordoned-off neighborhoods, Dirty Southern
rap was born.Initially characterized by the hard-charging Geto Boys, Houston’s style was
based on life in the 3rd and 5th Wards as well as South Park. And when DJ
Screw emerged from the shadows, his Screwed and Chopped sound created a
sub-genre of rap that would soon take the music world by storm. Bundled with
DJ Screw’s sound was the controversial romanticizing of Syrup, a drug almost
solely associated with Houston rap. The Bayou City has since blown up as a
Mecca of the new southern style, and the slow sticky sound of Screwed and
Chopped has come to dominate the public’s perception of the Houston scene.
VBS gambled that the story of Houston Rap was more fascinating than
mainstream media’s simplistic version. So we dusted off our
straightest-laced correspondent, VBS Producer Trace Crutchfield, and sent him to find out what the hell had happened in this place lost in America between east and
west, this Third Coast.As you’ll see, layered between hard-working dedication and street-smart
hustle, Houston is a distinct world. A music scene accented with the
homegrown trappings of Slabs, Grillz, cumulous-sized clouds of marijuana
smoke and the ever present aura of syrup, yields a swangin’ vibe that could
have only been Third Coast Born. Watch as a host of Houston MCs, led by the
Screwed Up Click, Devin the Dude, The South Park Coalition and Bun B, lay
this rags-to-riches story out for the whole world to see in simple black and
white.
Click here to see Screwed in Houston - Part 2 of 5
Click here to see Screwed in Houston - Part 3 of 5
Click here to see Screwed in Houston - Part 4 of 5
Click here to see Screwed in Houston - Part 5 of 5
