Season Three Final Episode Of Mogul: The Birth Of A Sound In Houston And The Death of Its Creator

 If you're a hip-hop fan, then you should check out Spotify/Gimlet’s popular podcast “Mogul.” 

 

This is a capsule of an incredibly important time in hip hop - of a man who created that signature chopped and screwed sound, and a city that continues to define it. 

 In Season three of the podcast, Spotify / Gimlets tells the story of DJ Screw, a reclusive genius who changed the sound of music forever. An auteur who created his own genre — Chopped and Screwed — Screw slowed music down until it sounded like syrup coming out of your speakers. It quickly became the soundtrack to the city of Houston, before influencing an entire generation of rappers. But the man behind the beats was a mystery to all but his closest collaborators, and to this day remains one of hip-hop’s greatest enigmas.

For the last six weeks, host Brandon “Jinx” Jenkins has taken listeners deep into Houston to explore the life of hip hop pioneer DJ Screw, from solidifying his own slowed down Chopped and Screwed genre, to creating his legendary mixtapes, to struggling with addiction and sinking into reclusiveness.

Screw’s addiction to the opioid lean caused him to spiral, and eventually led to a deadly overdose in 2000. In the final episode, Jinx takes listeners to Screw’s funeral in Houston, where the city mourns its fallen son. Jinx explores how Screw’s sound has lived on beyond his passing, becoming a cornerstone of hip hop culture. Screw’s legacy inspired a Houston sound that is recognizable in the music of so many artists today like Drake, Solange, Megan Thee Stallion, Travis Scott among many others, all of whom credit Screw for originating this slow, syrupy genre. 

You can check out the finale HERE, and all six episodes of the third season of the podcast HERE.