Three 6 Mafia

For one reason or another, the southern hip hop sound that Three 6 Mafia helped to pioneer in their native Memphis never quite crossed over into the mainstream here in the UK; to be fair, though, the fact that they would often blend that approach with elements of gangsta rap and - ill-advisedly - the short-lived crunk fad might have had something to do with that, especially given that the latter craze emerged at around the time that the group would have been at their most commercially-viable, the mid-noughties. It was then, in 2005, that they won an Academy Award for ‘It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp’ from Hustle & Flow; a year later, they featured on Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveSounds, on ‘Chop Me Up’. Hopes of a rare Three 6 tour in the UK, are likely to have been dashed by numerous recent events, including Juicy J’s increasing focus on his solo career and the death of Lord Infamous late last year. The remaining members though - minus J - have reformed as Da Mafia 6ix and toured the U.S. to a fervent reception, with setlists largely comprising Three 6 classics; if they can make it over here, they might just prove to be the next best thing.