Hip-Hop/Rap
United States
8Ball & MJG
More albums from 8Ball & MJG
About 8Ball & MJG
Hometown
Memphis, TN, United States
Formed
1991
Genre
Hip-Hop/Rap
8Ball & MJG are Memphis rap pioneers who achieved enduring success beyond the mainstream radar.
⢠The pair met as seventh graders at Memphisâ Ridgeway Middle School in 1984, sharing a love of hip-hop.
⢠In 1991, they released a three-track project that included the song âListen to the Lyrics.â They sold vinyl and cassette copies around Memphis.
⢠They signed to Houston label Suave House Records for their 1993 debut album, Cominâ Out Hard. The H-Town skyline is pictured on the cover.
⢠While moving from Memphis to Houston, âBall and âG brought a suitcase containing records by Simply Red, Issac Hayes, and Booker. T & The MGâsâall of which are sampled on Cominâ Out Hard.
⢠The duoâs third album, 1995âs On Top of the World, went Top 10 on the Billboard 200 and went gold.
⢠After success at Suave House, 8Ball & MJG signed with Bad Boy Records in the early â00s and released two albums that were executive produced by Diddy. They later briefly signed to T.I.âs Grand Hustle imprint.
⢠In 2005, the duo scored the biggest hit of their career by guesting on âStay Fly,â a No. 13 hit for fellow Memphis rappers Three 6 Mafia.
⢠8Ball & MJG have appeared on No. 1 albums by Foxy Brown, Ma$e, and Ludacris.
⢠In 2018, the duo was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.
Influenced by 8Ball & MJG8Ball & MJG has influenced the music of Big K.R.I.T., Freddie Gibbs, Boosie Badazz and more.
