Photograph by McKendree Walker.
Al Kapone
Editor's Note: Go to any Memphis Grizzlies home game, and before long, the chant "Whoop That Trick" breaks out in the crowd and fills FedExForum. Alex Greene spoke with Memphis musician and producer Al Kapone about the song's origins, and how it became the anthem for the team.
Alex Greene: You hear "Whoop That Trick'"all the time at Grizzlies games now. How did it come about?
Al Kapone: I know it was in 2011, 2012. That was at the time the Z Bo and Brian Fowler, when we had that lineup. It was around the playoffs, when they were playing the Clippers. And in some kind of way, "Whoop That Clip" was said, or posted on the internet, and a few people decided to chant it at the game. And of course, "Whoop That Clip" came from "Whoop That Trick" and at some point people said, "Okay, we're going to go with the real thing," and they started chanting "Whoop That Trick." The bottom line was, it came from the people. It didn't come from me or the Grizzlies, it came from the people. They started chanting it. And once the people adopt something on their own, it's only natural for the Grizzlies to go with what the people want. From that point on, "Whoop That Trick" was in there.
And let me say this: I remember when somebody first contacted me and said, "Man, you won't believe this! We're at the game and everyone's chanting 'Whoop That Trick'!" I didn't believe it! It was so unbelievable. I was like, Man, come on. There's no way that's happening. And then I got a couple more texts about the same thing, and I thought, well, maybe it is happening. And then somebody sent me a video clip and I was like, Holy crap! This is for real!
So I was caught off guard by it. But once I found out it was real, and it was organic, I was like, All right. Of course I was very happy to be a part of that. And I love the fact that "Whoop That Trick," the meaning of it, especially when it correlates with sports, is about chanting your team on to win. Chanting your team on to beat the other team. It took it away from some of the earlier meanings to something that could be used in a more positive manner. I was happy it went in that direction.
photograph by McKendree Walker.
It's cool how a track can take on new meanings that you, as a writer, may not have thought about when you wrote it.
Well you know, the truth of the matter is, it's a fighting back song. Even in its raw state. "Whoop That Trick" was all about fighting back against somebody that's picking on you. "Don't sit there and get picked on; you've gotta fight back." That's the essence of what it meant. So it made sense for them to pick it up for the sports arena. It's all about beating the team that you're up against. It still has its core meaning in the sports arena.
It makes sense. The song is for when DJay is the underdog in the film, right?
Right, but hold on! Most people know that Hustle & Flow is what brought that song to the masses, but 'Whoop That Trick' was actually my original song. I didn't write that song for the movie. I wrote that song for me to perform in the hood clubs. I never wrote that song for the movie. It's just that they ended up hearing it when I was playing them my mix tape, and they asked me if I could adapt it for the movie. But it was my song, and my original meaning was about fighting back.
That's great to know. Do you recall when you first wrote it?
I wrote that song in at least 2001. It was a song that I knew I'd be releasing on a mix tape at some point. Way before the movie.
Nowadays, have you opened Grizzlies games, performing it live?
Pretty much from the time they started playing it in the arena, on up to the last playoffs, every year I've been asked to perform it at certain games. I perform the song live and it helps elevate the crowd to a different level. Just to get everybody in that spirit of, you know, we came to win and we're gonna route our team on to win. So since 2012, I've been performing that song every year.
I totally respect that fact that once hip hop started getting played more, they decided to represent Memphis hip hop specifically. They could have gone with a lot of national artists, but they specifically made sure that they kept it Memphis-based. And the beauty of that is, when people put the hometown first, it gives you that hometown feeling.
I read an article about Nathan Black and Justin Baker, who run the sound and do the music programming. Do you know those guys? Do you ever talk to them about music?
Oh yeah. Me and Nathan go way back, because he did a lot of video production early on. For a lot of artists, like Three 6 Mafia and a lot of different artists. And I did a lot of work with him on video production. He was always tapped into the Memphis rap sound, and Memphis music in general. Me and Justin have been communicating since I started performing at the Grizzlies games. So I know both of those guys.
They seem pretty dope. They've got a good mix going on.
Yeah. Again, Nathan has always been tapped into the music scene, and specifically the Memphis rap scene. So he's always had an ear. That's part of the sound they've got.
It seems like the Grizzlies and the hip hop scene go hand in hand.
At this point, yes, 100 percent. But I remember some of the earlier games. Just think about when the Grizzlies first came to Memphis, when they were playing at The Pyramid. And then eventually moved to the Forum. There was a lot more rock and pop-oriented music. There wasn't that much hip hop played in the game. And it kind of evolved into more hip hop being played. I totally respect that fact that once hip hop started getting played more, they decided to represent Memphis hip hop specifically. They could have gone with a lot of national artists, but they specifically made sure that they kept it Memphis-based. And the beauty of that is, when people put the hometown first, it gives you that hometown feeling. You've got Memphis hip hop playing at the games, and people who come get the whole Memphis culture. Not only from the basketball team and what people are wearing. You also get the feeling through the music.
If you hear Memphis hip hop playing at an NBA team game, It helps you to feel the culture of Memphis. It's perfect. It's almost like when we had an NBA team in the ’70s, and you heard a lot of Isaac Hayes and Al Green. That was the sound of that time. Memphis hip hop is the sound of the time now. And I think they did the right thing, as far as representing the most popular sound of Memphis music right now. It gives you an overall experience, feeling the whole culture and vibe of Memphis. If you go to another NBA game somewhere else, whatever they're doing there, whatever they play there, it's just what they play there. But you come to Memphis, you know you're in Memphis.
And yet they still play a good amount of blues and soul and funk.
Yeah, exactly. Even though Memphis hip hop is the most popular sound of Memphis today, they make sure they incorporate a lot of the legacy sounds from soul to blues to whatever other genres and artists represent Memphis. You get those elements as well, which is the right thing to do. There's a whole spectrum to Memphis music. It's not just the hip hop, it's not just the soul or the blues or whatever. It's a whole spectrum of Memphis music. Even though hip hop is the most popular, the other sounds never went away. They're still here. And they give you the full Memphis experience. You've got to think about this too: Not only do you get the Memphis music experience, you get local foods, too. Locally owned. When you go to a Memphis Grizzlies game, you're really getting a taste of Memphis culture. I think the Grizzlies do a better job of that than a lot of NBA teams around the country.
Embracing local culture?
100 percent. And I gotta say, I love how Royal Studios does a great job with having Memphis artists from all genres perform live at the big games.
Celebrating local culture gets people fired up, doesn't it?
It's a great move on their part. And I want to say this, too. It's not only "Whoop That Trick" that's one of the songs featured at Grizzlies games. I've got another song that starts off a lot of the games, called "Memphis Pride." That's an Al Kapone song that they've used for many years now. They know it when they're there and they hear it, but a lot of people don't know it's my music.
Was that another one you wrote for yourself, and then they adopted it?
Exactly. I wrote it back in 2012, and it was about having pride in Memphis music. At that time, the fans of Memphis weren't embracing the local artists like they used to. We were more into out-of-town artists than we were local artists, at that time. And I noticed that, and I'm like, Man, I need to make a song to remind people to have more pride in Memphis artists. And when I wrote it, I mentioned a lot of Memphis hip hop artists who paved the way for the new generation. It was before the new generation came! It was all about, 'Don't forget to have pride in Memphis music.' Because we did have that at one point, and we lost it around 2012. And I wrote "Memphis Pride'"for that reason. Of course, it connects with the Grizzlies, or any Memphis sports team. The whole point was to have pride in reppin' Memphis. It's culture, sound, music, food, and everything. So it made sense to use it for the Grizzlies.
I love how you express that so often in your music and attitude.
Yessir! "M's Up!" That's another song I wrote, back in 2014. "M's Up!" I don't think there was too many people throwing up the M. Then I started the "M's Up" challenge. To have people throwing up the M. And now it's a real thing. People throw up the M now. But they weren't doing that before I made my song!
You ought to make an album with the Grizzlies!
I would love to! But if I did it, it would be a perfect blend of the new generation and the generation before. That's exactly like what the Grizzlies do at the games. It's a perfect blend of the new generation and the older generation. They're all representing Memphis. If I were to do a Memphis Grizzlies project, that's what it would be. A perfect blend of generations, and a blend of all sounds. There would be some Memphis rap, but there would be some soul, some blues, some rock, a little bit of everything.
You're the one to do it.
I would love to do it! I gotta rep Memphis til the wheels fall off, and the wheels ain't fallin' off anytime soon. Go Grizz! Go Grizz!
