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Southside JD 1st Celeb to Make It Rain ... But ATL Gangstas Really Started It!!!

Super-producer Southside thinks Jermaine Dupri's claim of pioneering "making it rain" in the club needs an asterisk because the Atlanta he knows has been enjoying the pastime for eons!!!

We caught up with the 808 Mafia Boss at LAX and he tells us he was just in the club with JD and Nelly -- and neither could weather the money storm he summoned. In fact, he says they eventually tapped out.

Southside acknowledged the So So Def rapper as royalty in the realm of shutting down strip clubs but suggests he adopted it from elder OGs -- like Southside's pops -- who didn't have celebrity status ... and didn't want it, due to certain business ventures in which they might have engaged.

JD was recently a guest on R&B star Estelle's Apple Music show where he recalled having to convince strippers at Magic City that tossing money in the air -- and picking it up off the floor -- was actually a good thing!!!

The veteran music exec also flagged his 1998 "Money Ain't a Thang" hit with Jay-Z as the entry point for making it rain in music videos ... which speaks to Southside's point.

It's been a relatively light year for hip hop heat but we also got Southside's pick for "Beat of the Year" ... a totally bias, yet still solid, choice in his fam Metro Boomin's "Superheroes" instrumental.

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