Three Six Mafia f/ K-Rock, MC Mack & ScanMan “Be A Witness” (1995, Prophet Entertainment)
Last Triple Six record from me comes via the forgotten Live By Yo Rep (B.O.N.E. Dis) EP. Something about the Cleveland collective stealing Three 6’s style of lo-fi blunt raps, rapid-fire delivery and macabre lyrics. I always saw DJ Paul and Juicy J as much more versatile artists than B.O.N.E., or at least, had a greater ability to surround themselves with rappers who brought a variety of styles and deliveries — while staying close to the subversive approach — to the early Three Six sound (cf. Project Pat’s unrestrained violence, Lord Infamous’s homicidal fantasies, and Prophet Posse’s death-metal-like infatuation with gore, etc.).
With B.O.N.E., it was album after album of the same ebbs and flows of the emcees, and beyond the novelty of the speed rapping and “Notorious Thugs,” I don’t find that their material has stood up particularly well, especially when contrasted with 3 6 tracks from the same period. Also, when I was in middle school, I found Three 6 to be legitimately terrifying in a way that B.O.N.E.’s melodic, often R&B-tinged records never could.
But the real point of this song is K-Rock murdering the first verse.
-SM
