Music Export Memphis, or MEM, is a nonprofit and music export office located in Memphis. The organization's goal is to aid Memphis musicians in showcasing their talents outside of the city. They do this through grants, programs and other opportunities. Tomorrow night, the Victory Theater in Rogers will host three Memphis musicians as part of MEM's The New Memphis Sound 2026. Ozarks at Large's Sophia Nourani spoke with Morgan Massey, program coordinator for MEM, and performing artist Dee GOAT, about the showcase and about the significance of providing artists a platform to represent where they came from.
Dee GOAT says his passion for music began with a love for words.
Dee GOAT: I was a super poetry buff when I was younger, and one of my first favorite poets was Langston Hughes. I got super into him, and then delving into the Harlem Renaissance and how there were just so many different people creating art, that led me to actually go more into visual art, and how the words make me feel and how the visuals make me feel also. And so I fell in love with art through there. And then I went through this long life journey where I was just obsessed with slam poetry, because there were just so many ways to interpret it and just be yourself and express yourself throughout those types of things.
And when I actually decided to start to rap, I was probably 12 or 13, and you're just kind of having fun with your friends. My dad did music, so I always kind of had that in my mind. But as a child, just kind of having that fun and being expressive, that's where I started. And going into performing my first, my first ever thing, I was kind of like a gospel rapper. So just performing in church, doing that thing and being the oddball out of everybody, because church people normally sing, and you get up there and I'm like, hey, yo, what's up, everybody? And just going there, I just wanted to be a little bit more expressive. So I kind of shifted the genre. But it's still very much rooted in just being yourself, the typical human struggle, stuff that you can ride to. But it's also stuff that you can just listen to when you just want to kind of reflect.
And the fashion, oh my God, the fashion, that's a completely different world. We would be here all day talking about that. My biggest inspiration for fashion as an artist, I would probably say, is kind of like a mixture of Andre 3000 and Tyler the Creator, because Andre 3000 is one thing where he was like, the music is colorful and beautiful, and I want to dress like the music. And that is something that kind of always has stuck with me, and just being that outwardly loud, and how you can just delve into different personas and characters, and that just be how you're expressing yourself for that day.
Nourani: Yeah, thank you. And I can definitely see how, as an artist, your expression is just flowing into different mediums, like with fashion and with music. So thank you for sharing that. How did you first become involved with Music Export Memphis, and tell me about what it's like being in this program?
Dee GOAT: All right. So I first became involved with Music Export Memphis, I kind of stalked them on social media for about a year or two. Kind of stalked out in the back of some, like some of their Music Export Memphis has different workshops where they just offer a bunch of information to artists, just trying to get some information from anywhere for direction on how they should go in their careers. And the more that I actually looked, and I seen what they were doing and the type of things that they were involved with, I kind of felt like that was something that I wanted to align myself with, as I wanted to upscale and take that big plunge to see, hey, do I have what it takes to actually be a touring artist?
And just getting selected for the Ambassador Access has been like a breath of fresh air. The program has had a bunch of different networking opportunities. I've met a bunch of very established Memphis professionals in the music industry. They come by for workshops to talk to us about various things. We just had one about connecting with fans on tour, got some things from there that I kind of want to institute on this tour. Got one for just live performance in general, different marketing things. Just really had to legitimize yourself and move as an artist and as a touring artist, the steps that it takes to get on the road, stay on the road and make money on the road.
Nourani: This next question can be for both of you, but Dee, you can answer first. How does it feel for you personally to be going out of Memphis with events like these at the Victory Theater, and kind of representing your city and the music and culture that's there? How does that feel?
Dee GOAT: It's great. For me, just the opportunity to get to travel to these different places, I personally have never been to Rogers, Arkansas. So being able to go there, and going to somewhere like the historic Victory Theater, and just being able to be a part of what's going on, being an actor there after the restoration. I love people, I love going around and feeling different energy. I want to see how Rogers shows love, or how Rogers experiences art.
As far as, oh man, we've been preparing like crazy, just a bunch of rehearsals, just hashing different things out, sending a bunch of things back and forth, trying to figure out what we're going to wear, because you always got to look the part when you come to make a big impression and everything like that. And honestly, representing Memphis is something that I've always wanted to do as an artist, because being a part of what Memphis sounds like and what Memphis looks like is very important to me in the broader landscape, because there's a big diaspora of people that exist as artists in Memphis, not just rappers, singers, pop artists, dancers, there's so many different people. And to be a part of that, and being able to represent that on a stage that's not in the city, but to be representing the city, means a lot.
Nourani: Morgan, did you want to add anything to that? I know you're not necessarily on the stage in the same way, but you're a big part of this project. What is that like?
Massey: Yeah. So I am Morgan Massey. I'm the program coordinator at Music Export Memphis. Currently, I am the booking agent and tour manager for the New Memphis Sound, which is coming to Rogers. I've actually been going to Rogers the past three years in the summer working with this program. I typically call this program my baby. I work very closely with the artists. I pour so much energy into bolstering these incredible talents that we have growing in Memphis, and it brings me so much pride to take them out of the city, set them up for success. So Rogers is always one of my favorite stops.
I actually am an Arkansas native, I grew up in Bryant, Arkansas. I went to Bryant High School, and I moved to Memphis to begin a career in the music industry. So it's so amazing to bring all this talent that we've been working with back to my home state. And it's always so exciting to see where we start, and then we go on this tour and they just make it happen on stage. And so I'm really excited for the Rogers residents to come and see some Memphis magic.
Nourani: Awesome. So it's kind of full circle for you. Thank you for sharing that. Tell me more about what the show is going to be like, what people can expect.
Dee GOAT: All right. So the show in and of itself is a fusion performance, I like to call it, because I am a traditional hip-hop artist, I'm a rapper. Demi Laurel, she's more of a pop R&B type of singer. And then we have Keer, she's more indie rock, kind of bubblegum pop-ish kind of vibes. And we kind of mishmash all of that together in our different sets, and we contribute and help each other to just bring together the best show. We didn't really know each other personally before we got selected for the tour, but going through the different workshops and being on this journey, all the prep, I respect them so much more, and I have such a newfound love for each one of their individual songs and what they do musically as artists.
Nourani: Awesome. Thank you so much, you guys. The show sounds amazing. Break a leg out there.
Dee GOAT: All right. Thank you for having us.
Ozarks at Large's Sophia Nourani, speaking with Memphis musicians Dee GOAT and Morgan Massey. Massey is the program coordinator for Music Export Memphis. Dee GOAT will be performing alongside two other artists at MEM's The New Memphis Sound 2026 tomorrow night at the Victory Theater in Rogers. You can get tickets to the show online at TheVictoryTheater.com. You can find out more about Music Export Memphis at MusicExportMemphis.org.
The piece closes with a clip of Dee GOAT's song "Let's Go."
Ozarks at Large transcripts are created on a rush deadline and edited for length and clarity. Copy editors utilize AI tools to review work. KUAF does not publish content created by AI. Please reach out to kuafinfo@uark.edu to report an issue. The audio version is the authoritative record of KUAF programming.
