Long before Memphis rap reshaped global hip-hop, before the sound of the underground South travelled from cassette decks into clubs, car stereos and eventually the DNA of modern rap music, there was DJ Spanish Fly. Widely recognized as the Godfather of Memphis rap, Spanish Fly’s raw, bass-heavy tapes circulated hand-to-hand across Tennessee and the wider South throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, helping define the city’s distinctive street sound.