Houston has its fair share of signature moments that solidified it as one of the major destinations in rap music. Those moments are what shaped the city from an underground movement organically created out of local culture to the chart-topping mainstream juggernaut it became in the early 2000s. As we drift further from these nostalgic times, there is a time capsule of sorts, preserving these landmark media moments—and it’s YouTube.
Being there in real time for these landmark events, seeing how the city responds or what it was really like being in the mix, was something to behold for those lucky enough to be there. There is an effort to preserve the feeling and vibe of a Houston music scene long gone.
A classic Rap City episode highlighting Houston is a perfect example of rap nostalgia.
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Rap City was BET’s influential music show that ran from 1989 to 2008 and served as a cultural cornerstone for rap music. It showcased music videos, freestyles and interviews with rappers and producers, delivering an uncut gateway to hip-hop culture across the country. It was a big part of an ecosystem of music shows that just doesn’t exist anymore, but thankfully, some people have uploaded these rare gems to the internet.
Check out a young Bun B
The episode titled “Third Coast Underground,” hosted by Bun B, was released in 1999, exploring Houston’s underground rap movement and its rise to the mainstream. It kicks off with a jarringly young Bun B getting a haircut in a Houston barbershop. We’ve become accustomed to a seasoned and stately Bun B who owns and operates Trill Burger—seeing a younger him is an added feature of the time-capsule videos.
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Bun B starts properly in Fifth Ward at Jammin Records and Tapes, and then takes us throughout the city to show off how Houston gets down. It features appearances from the Southside Playaz, Big Hawk, DJ DMD, members of the Screwed Up Click and more.
The episode takes place three years after Ridin’ Dirty cemented UGK as southern rappers who broke into the mainstream. It’s also a few years before “Still Tippin’,” which announced the city to the world as a region that can go toe to toe with other rap strongholds. The channel that uploaded the episode, 4Theculture TV 713, has dozens of clips featuring Scarface studio session videos, rare videos of DJ Screw, behind-the-scenes of music video shoots, and much more.
MTV took notice of Houston
It’s not the only channel hosting these videos preserving moments in Houston’s rap history. There are random videos all over that harken back to the golden age of Houston rap. Like MTV My Block: Houston, which aired in 2005. The episode is an investigative look at a city on the precipice of blowing up nationally as artists like Paul Wall, Slim Thug and Mike Jones helped make Houston a national phenomenon. (It also serves as a reminder that MTV used to make shows that were actually centered on music.)
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Journalist and radio personality Sway Calloway calls Houston the new capital of Southern rap as “Still Tippin'” plays in the background. He gives viewers a history lesson and the lowdown on how the city has risen to national prominence and how it differentiated itself from other movements in the South. The episode captures a moment that forever changed Houston rap, preserving the era for nostalgic fans to revisit or, hopefully, younger music fans who are in search of some cultural history lessons.
Mike Jones performs “Back Then” and “Still Tippin'” at the 2005 BET Awards. The song helped put Houston hip-hop on the map.
L. Cohen/WireImage for BET Entertainment
And of course, Johnny Dang was there
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Another gem, “Music World” Screwed in Houston, a 2007 documentary produced by Vice, fits a similar bill and is readily available on YouTube. Reporter Trace Crutchfield talked to Houston figures around the city exploring Chopped and Screwed music, diving into the world of codeine syrup, and visiting with Houston’s premier diamond grill salesman Johnny Dang.
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The proliferation of old Houston rap media being preserved in a way on YouTube is a worthwhile endeavor. Now and then a video gets recommended through the algorithm, and it sparks a sense of nostalgia for a time of some true cultural touchstones. They are a reminder that Houston had a hard rise to hip-hop recognition, then to total mainstream dominance. With how much rap is less regional these days, it’s nice to be reminded of when Houston stood out.