Crunk

Epitomized by thumping, bass-heavy beats (often times the classic 808 drums), raucous keyboards (KORG Tritons are a favorite), and shouted, highly repetitive chant-raps, crunk music came out of the South in the mid-1990s, but didn't really get popular nationally until after the millennium. Memphis' Three 6 Mafia were amongst the first groups to really rock it (see "Tear Da Club Up"), but Atlanta's Lil Jon is probably most responsible for crossing it over to the mainstream, thanks to his run of hit singles and trademark yelling. Spawned from old school Southern bass music, the crunk style is everywhere in 2005, and artists from both coasts are now embracing it hoping to score bigger hits. Like the post-Chronic G-Funk explosion of a decade ago, it will likely die down once it gets completely played out, but in the meantime its growing popularity has made superstars out of groups like Trillville, Youngbloodz, Ying Yang Twins, and many others.