Hip-Hop History; Take Home An Oscar

By: Allen Starbury
Monday - March 6, 2006

Three 6 Mafia made history on Sunday night (March 5), when they became the first hip-hop artists ever to perform during the Academy Awards ceremony.

Not only did they make a first in hip-hop, they also were put into a category with Eminem and Issac Hayes, when they also won the Oscar for Best Song for the song “It’s Hard Out Here For A Pimp,” which they also performed, beating out Dolly Parton’s “Travelin’ Thru” from the transsexual road comedy-drama “Transamerica,” and Kathleen “Bird” York and Michael Becker’s “In the Deep” from the best-picture Oscar winner “Crash.”

The Three 6 Mafia track was performed in “Hustle & Flow” and on the soundtrack by the movie’s main character, pimp-turned-rapper Djay, played by Terrence Howard.

The trio, consisting of Jordon “Juicy J” Houston, Paul “DJ Paul” Beauregard and Darnell “Crunchy Black” Carlton”, feel the win further concretes hip-hop position in entertainment.

“Right now, when you look around and listen to radio and watch television, hip-hop is taking over,” Juicy J told Reuters.