Memphis, TN. (Top40 Charts/ Bad Boy Records) - Legendary Southern rap duo, 8Ball & MJG will release today their highly anticipated 12th studio album, Ridin' High on Bad Boy South. The album features collaborations with Diddy, Oscar and Grammy winners Three 6 Mafia, Bad Boy hit maker Yung Joc, producer Jazze Pha, fellow
Memphis native
Project Pat and former Bad Boys 112.
The first single from Ridin' High, the club hit "Relax and Take Notes," features The Notorious B.I.G. and Project Pat and the current single, hitting radio now, is the R&B collaboration "Crusin'," featuring Three 6 Mafia and Slim of 112 .
Ridin' High is 8Ball & MJG's second release on Bad Boy South. Their first was the notable 2004 gold-certified Living Legends, which enjoyed mainstream exposure with a No 1 Billboard R&B Albums Chart debut. The album also spawned the hits "You Don't Want Drama," "Don't Make," and "Straight Cadillac Pimpin'" as well as the major club hits, "Buck Bounce" with DJ Quick and "Stay Fly" with Three 6 Mafia (2005).
Ridin' High is proving to be the groups' strongest work ever with hard-hitting hip-hop and a respectful nod to R&B and the blues on tracks like "Runnin' Out of Bud" with Killer Mike, the steamy "Take It Off" featuring Poo Bear and the addition of Jazze Pha's smooth R&B flavor on "Pimpin' Don't Fail Me Now," featuring Juvenile. 8Ball & MJG also work with label mate Yung Joc to heat up the party with the track "Clap On."
This dynamic duo has engaged web users at a very high level with this release with the online video premiere of "Relax and Take Notes" on Allhiphop.com and their current daily video blog which is hosted by leading lifestyle site SOHH.com. The living legends will be blogging daily for the duration of march and the beginning of april while on their promo tour throughout the south and midwest.
Now 15 years after their first release, the Indy label debut "Comin' Out Hard," Memphis, Tennessee natives, 8Ball (Premro Smith) and MJG (Marlon Jermaine Goodwin), are still making their innovative brand of soul music, purveying a sound that has been emulated and appreciated more than a decade later. "It's just always been about the music with us," says MJG. "We've seen a lot of people come and go and I don't think any of the ones that stayed around sat down and mapped out a game plan to be around that long. It's just living and learning and sticking to the format. We always just do us and you call it what you want."