You will find that people are successful in every market you mentioned but depending on your cash position, a successful rental in one location or the other might not be as ideal for you. 

I think too many people move on to property number two and three before property number one is really in good shape and later they regret it.

I have been working with many people who are just trying to get started with real estate investing.

Don't let them choose for you.Just inspect what you expect....Also I would talk to housing office in Memphis to get a feel of how many people are on the Section 8 waitlist, what kind of rents they pay, what zip codes are they targeting, see if they have any stats about how long tenants stay and average rent.While a lot of people try to look at google street view to get an idea of the neighborhood, there is no substitute for visiting in person.

People can watch/listen to podcasts, but the only way to get into RE is making that leap.Just shot you a message!

Offer to help with lead generation, driving for dollars, cold calling, or even administrative tasks.

Thanks Ryan Dossey I also like to see the before and after pics that people are willing to share. 

Uncertainty leads to higher interest rate expectation.  

Depending on the type of commercial you want to get into my suggestion is to go work for a company that does commercial real estate as learning from people who do it and getting paid at the same time is not a bad strategy 

I think when you start you need to make sure you work with people who are reliable.