Soul Food

“Soul Food” is the debut studio album by Goodie Mob, released on November 7, 1995, through LaFace Records and Arista Records.

The story

The Atlanta quartet of CeeLo Green, Khujo, T-Mo and Big Gipp came out of the Dungeon Family collective alongside Outkast. Sessions ran from October 1994 to August 1995, and the record was dedicated to CeeLo Green’s late mother. Guests included André 3000 and Big Boi of Outkast, Cool Breeze and Witchdoctor. Lead single “Cell Therapy” reached number one on the Billboard rap chart, followed by the title track and “Dirty South.”

Sound and production

Organized Noize produced nearly the entire album, with Mixzo co-producing “Fighting.” The sound leans on live-feeling funk grooves, heavy bass and soulful hooks, carrying lyrics about poverty, faith, policing and life in the Black South. The group’s socially conscious, distinctly Southern point of view set it apart from much of the rap reaching national audiences at the time.

Legacy

The album peaked at number 45 on the Billboard 200 and number 8 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and the RIAA certified it gold in 1996. “Dirty South,” featuring Big Boi and Cool Breeze, popularized the phrase that became shorthand for Southern hip hop. Together with Outkast’s debut, “Soul Food” is widely credited with bringing Atlanta rap to a mainstream audience and is regarded as a Southern classic.

Released November 7, 1995. More from hip hop in 1995.