The mesmeric, beautifully sluggish crawl of Houston rap has made the music world think a little harder and spin a little slower. In the late ’80s, pioneering independent label Rap-A-Lot Records started releasing the deeply evocative music of the Geto Boys, marking the birthplace for hip-hop’s violent horrorcore nightmares and introspective emo-rap vulnerability. In the early ’90s, the cool game-spitting and lush production of UGK became a key component in the Dirty South’s rise. By the 2000s, Houston rap was a national concern thanks to hitmaking diplomats like Mike Jones, Chamillionaire, Paul Wall, and Slim Thug. However, it was perhaps the innovations of DJ Screw—the late mixtape DJ who slowed records into a hypnotic slurry—that ultimately became Houston’s biggest gift to music. The “screwed” sound would continue to be heard in movie soundtracks, on Beyoncé albums, and in the sound of later superstars like Travis Scott.