Who is the Queen of Memphis rapper? Gangsta Boo left lasting legacy as a hip-hop pioneer

The late Lola Chantrelle Mitchell made her mark as pioneering rapper Gangsta Boo. With a career spanning nearly three decades, she also was known as the Queen of Memphis.

Born on Aug. 7, 1979, Gangsta Boo was raised in Whitehaven and joined Memphis rap collective Three 6 Mafia as a 15-year-old MC phenom in 1994. She turned heads with her work on the group's classic 1995 effort, "Mystic Stylez." Her solo debut, 1998’s "Enquiring Minds," would feature her best-known track, “Where Dem Dollars At," and mark the start of a long and colorful career as a lyrically fluid and stylistically innovative rapper.

Deeply respected among hip-hop heads and by her fellow artists, Gangsta Boo would go on to collaborate with multiple generations of performers including Eminem, E-40, OutKast, Lil Jon, Krayzie Bone, Gucci Mane and Run the Jewels, among others.

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After a quiet period in the 2010s, Boo returned to the spotlight in recent years. Reuniting with Three 6 Mafia — including playing a headlining set at the Rolling Loud festival and a much publicized Verzuz performance with the group — she also made appearances on the “Drink Champs” podcast and Uproxx Sessions, and released a spate of singles in 2022 including “Sucka Free” and “4Eva Crunk.”

Tragically, Boo died in early 2023 at the age of 43. The remarkable outpouring that followed Gangsta Boo’s passing reflected her status as a pioneering rapper and an artist that continues to exert a profound influence on contemporary hip-hop, including “new queens” like Memphis star GloRilla, who marked her passing by calling her the “Queen of Memphis FOREVER.”

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Who is the Queen of Memphis rapper?