:: JCor EntertainmentPEEIMP TYTE! That's the motto of two of Orange Mound's hardest, Eightball & MJG. If these names are new to you, this is your official late pass because long before Three 6 Mafia ever tore a club up these two were putting Tennessee and Suave House on the national map. That's right, they were "Comin' Out Hard" while Juvenile's bling bling was just a gleam in his eye. They hope to do better than last year's poorly promoted "In Our Lifetime Vol. 1" album. They're on a new label (Jcor) now, but it's the same old pimpin attitude.
When you listen to 'Ball and MJG, their experience in the game shows; the lyrics are polished and flows are silky smooth. The subject matter is proto-typically Southern: big-ballin, high-gloss flossin, sexin and money makin - but the difference is that they damn near INVENTED the genre from their neck of the woods. It may be cliche to say it when referring to progenitors of a sound but when you listen to their beats and flows you just know they are at the top of their field. Peep these lyrics from the first single "Pimp Hard":
MJG: "Ya po' dummy, you should be spendin ya hoe money
But if she offered you some, you'd probably tell her 'No honey'
You too slow sonny, what I'm spittin gon' make you know somethin
So the next time instead of just talkin, you can show somethin"
Eightball: "I like them yella thick women given love to me
Hugs and kisses, disrespectin bitches cause of me
Always wanna sex with me no matter where we be
All her friends do my friends and they do it for free"
Although they don't trade off verses quickly in a way that Run-D.M.C. or Latryx fans would relate to (in fact they've each done entire solo albums) their tag team partnership strikes a perfect balance. Eightball's voice is a bassy deep smooth, while MJG's mid-octave twang and drawl is a little quicker but just as smooth musically. Musical production varies from in-house (MJG produces four tracks) to hip-hop's hottest from DJ Quik to Jazze Pha to Swizz Beatz. The diversity of sound keeps it slump from the "Intro" (one that's actually worth listening to for a change) to the groovy "Thingz" with Tiny from Xscape to the Corey Woodard produced "Pimp Shit" featuring guest rapper Thorough to DJ Quik's snappy "Buck Bounce."
It's hard to find negative things to say about this album unless you aren't a fan of the topic matter they discuss - but then you're probably not a fan of a lot of hip-hop in general either. When you hear MJG say on the title tracks first lines "I can make you get buck, even if you don't go to the club that much/I got, so much rhythm I can feel it, MJG and Eightball be the realest" he speaks absolute truth. It's incredible how they can mix a superfast beat and still come off with a smooth slow flow like they do on "Alwayz", or how they can rock an ultra-fat heavy piano beat like the Quik produced "Jankie" and even manage to show love to BDP's old school classic "Jimmy" in the process.
This album is perfectly kin to the music of Youngbloodz and OutKast - beats that roll and rappers that got plenty skill. You might not hear much in the way of spiritual shit other than the closers "It's All Real" and "Thank God" but Eightball and MJG have one quality that I personally find refreshing - gunplay is occasionally mentioned but they aren't obsessed with their tools or bragging and glorifying about everyone they shot. In fact, their attitude seems to be "We have better things to do like eat well, drink good, make love and raise our kids." That's real game - you don't have to brag about being unfuckwittable, you just handle your own. If you're handling yours and you like REAL TYTE Southern rap, then this is the album for you.
Music Vibes: 9 of 10 Lyrics Vibes: 8 of 10 TOTAL Vibes: 8.5 of 10
Originally posted: December 19, 2000
source: www.RapReviews.com