Why Rappers Name-Drop BMF in Their Songs So Often

The legend of the infamous drug cartel, the Black Mafia Family or BMF, will go down as arguably the wildest hip-hop-related true crime story in history. Rags to cash, cocaine to comeuppance, it’s a tale as old as the drug trade itself. But no crime conglomerate has impacted hip-hop more than BMF. Such is evident in the dozens of times the infamous group and its founders have been mentioned in rap lyrics through the years.

Born in Detroit, brothers Demetrius “Big Meech” and Terry “Southwest Tee” Flenory founded the drug trafficking and money laundering outfit in 1985. Through direct links to Mexican drug cartels, the group grew to a multimillion-dollar operation and expanded into several states, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.

Around 2000, the group moved its headquarters to Atlanta, attempting to break into the music industry under BMF Entertainment, linking up with artists like Jeezy, Fabolous, Jay-Z, Lil Scrappy and others. They also signed West Coast act Bleu Divinci. BMF became famous for throwing lavish parties and making extravagant spectacles in strip clubs throughout A-Town. Big Meech once even put on a safari-themed birthday party and brought live tigers to the event. Pusha T later mentioned the moment on his 2018 record “If You Know You Know,” rapping, “Where were you when Big Meech brought the tigers in?/’Cause I was busy earning stripes like a tiger’s skin.”

In 2005, things came to a crashing halt when over 30 members of BMF were indicted by the DEA. The Flenory brothers were later convicted under the Continuing Criminal Enterprise Statute and handed lengthy prison sentences.

Despite their bust, the lore of BMF lives on through hip-hop music. Many artists have name-dropped the group over the years, including Lil Baby, 21 Savage, Meek Mill and Travis Scott. “When the story get told/It’s gon’ be BMF (Muchas gracias)/The s**t sound hard/It wasn’t made easy,” Travis rapped on his 2023 track “Thank God.”

The STARZ hit series BMF is executive produced by 50 Cent and stars Big Meech’s son Demetrius Flenory Jr. playing his father. BMF season 3 debuts on March 1 and will detail the crime family’s move to Atlanta, where the allure of glitz and fame kicks off the next phase of their empire’s reign. Dominique “Lil Baby” Jones, Saweetie, 2 Chainz, Ne-Yo and Cynthia Bailey guest star this season while La La Anthony is a recurring character.

STARZ has created an official Spotify playlist curated for the show’s upcoming third season, which can be heard below. The collection of songs features music from the show, including cuts from 50 Cent, Run-DMC, LL Cool J, Eric B. & Rakim, and others.

Watch the video of the 10 best lyrics name-dropping BMF above and check out the official BMF Season 3 playlist below.

Stream the BMF Season 3 Playlist Curated by STARZ

This article is presented by STARZ.