8Ball & MJG

By the time the first legitimate 8Ball & MJG compilation, We Are the South, dropped, the Memphis, TN duo had spent four years off the Koch-distributed Suave House label, having signed to Diddy's Bad Boy imprint in 2004. This 2008 release features no Bad Boy material -- meaning later hits like "You Don't Want Drama," "Straight Cadillac Pimpin," and "Relax and Take Notes" are absent -- but it does a fine job covering their colder, harder, and earlier years by rounding up classics like "Space Age Pimpin," "Pimp in My Own Rhyme," and "Don't Flex," along with their strongest album cuts. Nothing new here save a dramatic, rightfully boastful intro so longtime fans need not worry unless they're looking for a compact, highlight-filled mixtape. This collection is more for the newcomer or anyone who questions the veteran -- 15 years and runnin' -- duo's claim to be "Living Legends." ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide