8BALL

American rapper 8Ball, one half of the groundbreaking Southern hip-hop duo 8Ball & MJG, stepped away at intervals to issue solo projects that began with the double-disc set Lost in 1998, while also maintaining a steady presence as a featured artist across numerous rap tracks spanning multiple decades. Born Premro Smith, he spent his formative years in Memphis, Tennessee’s Orange Mound neighborhood and first encountered MJG at Ridgeway Junior High School in 1984. United by an enthusiasm for hip-hop at a time when the genre had yet to establish deep roots in the South, the pair launched 8Ball & MJG. Their initial recording appeared in 1991 as the three-track single Listen to the Lyrics, issued on both cassette and 12-inch vinyl through the independent On the Strength Records; those same early tracks later resurfaced in 1997 under the title Lyrics of a Pimp and again in 2000 as Memphis Under World. The duo next secured a contract with Suave Records, also known as Suave House, the Houston, Texas imprint operated by Tony Draper. Their first full-length effort, Comin’ Out Hard (1993), which included partial production from MJG, served as Suave’s debut release and helped the label rise to prominence among Southern rap imprints throughout the decade. Now viewed as a landmark, Comin’ Out Hard ranked among the earliest Southern rap albums to achieve broad visibility and thereby paved the way for subsequent trailblazers including Three 6 Mafia, Master P, and Cash Money Records.

Throughout the rest of the 1990s, 8Ball & MJG delivered further albums for Tony Draper—On the Outside Looking In (1994), On Top of the World (1995), and In Our Lifetime, Vol. 1 (1999)—while frequently appearing as guests on other Suave releases and thereby contributing to the label’s expansion. Both members also pursued individual efforts, with 8Ball’s Lost (1998) and MJG’s No More Glory (1997) each issued by Suave. In 2000 the duo departed Suave for JCOR Entertainment, the briefly active rap label established by Jay Faires, to release Space Age 4 Eva. That project stood out for its production contributions from Swizz Beatz and DJ Quik, marking a shift away from the regional producers 8Ball & MJG had previously favored almost exclusively. Two modest singles emerged—“Pimp Hard” and “Buck Bounce”—marking the first national rather than purely regional airplay the duo received. JCOR followed in 2001 with two 8Ball projects, the various-artists compilation The Slab and his second proper solo album Almost Famous, before the label encountered difficulties and ceased operations, leaving 8Ball & MJG without a deal. During the same period Tony Draper put out Lay It Down (2001), a collection of leftover Suave-era material featuring 8Ball.

Following a period without a contract, Bad Boy Records under Diddy signed 8Ball & MJG and issued Living Legends (2004), the most star-laden album the duo had yet recorded. Lead single “You Don’t Want Drama” became their biggest success, peaking at number 30 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart, while the album itself also performed strongly, entering the Billboard 200 at number three and eventually surpassing 500,000 units sold. Their next Bad Boy release, Ridin High (2007), proved less commercially potent despite an opening-week position at number eight and the solid lead single “Relax and Take Notes.” Alongside these Bad Boy projects, 8Ball reactivated his dormant vanity label 8 Ways Entertainment—originally introduced with the 2001 various-artists compilation The Slab—and arranged distribution through Navarre. A sequence of associated releases followed, beginning with a 2006 reissue of The Slab and continuing with Montana Trax: The Boy Somethin’ Great (2006), Light Up the Bomb (2006), and the Devius collaboration The Vet & the Rookie (2007).

In 2008 8Ball delivered another joint effort, Doin’ It Big with E.D.I. The 2009 set 8Ball & Memphis All-Stars: Cars, Clubs & Strip Clubs appeared next. After reuniting with MJG for Ten Toes Down on T.I.’s Grand Hustle imprint, 8Ball resumed solo activity with Life’s Quest, his seventh album, released in 2012 on E1. The project entered the Billboard 200 and reached the top twenty of the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, featuring guest appearances from Big K.R.I.T., 2 Chainz, Angie Stone, and MJG. That same year he issued the mixtape Premro, which was followed by the 2013 sequel Premro 2. After contributing to tracks from MJG’s Too Pimpin’ mixtapes, 8Ball returned in 2018 with the singles “Look at Me” and “Room 306.”