Me & My Brother [Clean] [Edited]

Performer: Ying Yang Twins
Artist: Juvenile; Trick Daddy; Fat Joe; Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz; Bonecrusher; Killer Mike; Hitman Sammy Sam; Khujo; K.T.
Engineer: Devin Johnson; Jonathan Cantrell; Carlos Francisco Hernandez; Billy Hume
Distributor: TVT Records (Dist.)

Notes: This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files. The Ying Yang Twins: D-Roc, Kaine (rap vocals). Additional personnel: Trick Daddy, Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Bone Crusher, Sammy Sam, Khujo, K.T., Ms. Flawless, Tha Rhythtum. Producers: Beat-In-Azz, Lil Jon, Derrick Williams. Recorded at Collipark, College Park, Georgia; The Zone, Norcross, Georgia; Sound Lab Studios, Smryna, Georgia; TDD, Miami, Florida. The Ying Yang Twins: D-Roc, Kaine (rap vocals). Additional personnel: Trick Daddy, Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Bone Crusher, Sammy Sam, Khujo, K.T., Ms. Flawless, Tha Rhythtum. Producers: Beat-In-Azz, Lil Jon, Derrick Williams. Recorded at Collipark, College Park, Georgia; The Zone, Norcross, Georgia; Sound Lab Studios, Smryna, Georgia; TDD, Miami, Florida. Personnel: Billy Hume (guitar). Audio Mixers: Ray Seay; Billy Hume; Derrick Williams. Recording information: Collipark Studio, College Park, GA; The Sound Lab Studios, Smryna, GA; The Zone, Norcross, GA. Introduction by: Bizaar. Photographer: Benjamin Wheelock. ME & MY BROTHER, the third album by Atlanta's Ying Yang Twins, follows the duo's prominently featured role on the Lil Jon & the Eastside Boys top 5 crossover hit "Get Low." In fact, the album capitalizes on that success immediately with "Georgia Dome," a sound-a-like sequel to that inescapable, infectious single. Crown Princes of Crunk, the Ying Yang Twins, Kaine and D-Roc, are all about following their ids, creating pared-down songs about sex, alcohol, blunts, and more sex--a formula the Twins use well. Kaine and D-Roc understand that there are values in simplicity and, indeed, the most memorable song is the catchphrase-worthy anthem "Hanh!" Making the most of their guest appearance on ME & MY BROTHER, Lil Jon & the Eastside Boyz return a favor to the Twins, while adding one more song to the booty canon as they implore the ladies to shake it like a "Salt Shaker." And, in an inspired collaboration, two of the strongest, brashest voices to break out of the South--Killer Mike & Bone Crusher--trade rhymes on the predictably unchallengable "What The F***!" ME & MY BROTHER rolls on like that--a straightforward, raw, danceable record. With their unabashedly hedonistic raps and signature chanting style, the Ying Yang Twins rose to the upper levels of the crunk world and became one of the most sought after guests on other hip-hop albums. The brothers from Atlanta were rather ubiquitous by 2004, following up their notable appearance on the Lil Jon smash "Get Low" with their own hit "Salt Shaker" off of the platinum ME & MY BROTHER, in addition to guesting on about as many records as there are weeks in the year. At the end of 2004, they came out with the mixtape-style MY BROTHER & ME, featuring remixes and one new song. The unpredictable carnival atmosphere suits the Ying Yang Twins perfectly, as MY BROTHER & ME may be their strongest album yet. They open with previously unreleased single "Halftime (Stand Up & Get Crunk!)," featuring a marching band, dizzying bass lines, and the usual fun-seeking lyrics, before easing the beat back with a hypnotizing remix of Juvenile's crossover hit "Slow Motion." The duo's perfect female foil, Jacki-O, lays down a hyper-sensual flow on a remix of "Georgia Dome," while numerous superstars drop by on a rousing extended remix of "Salt Shaker" to close the record. For a New York-based label, TVT has certainly put out a lot of Dirty South releases -- some of them violent, totally thugged-out gangsta rap, some of them party music. One might wonder why a company with a Manhattan address would be so into the Dirty South; after all, some Northeastern hip-hop heads can be quite provincial and act like they're oblivious to rappers who live below the Mason-Dixon. But then, the folks who run TVT are entrepreneurs, and they obviously realize that the Dirty South market is huge -- and that Southern rappers can make a fortune from the Southern states alone. How well Me & My Brother does in Brooklyn, the Bronx, or Philadelphia is almost irrelevant; this 2003 release is primarily aimed at Dirty South audiences, and the material has the familiar crunk elements -- barking vocals, chanted choruses, and explicit lyrics celebrating the pleasures of sex, decadence, intoxication, and hedonism. Occasionally, the Ying Yang Twins get sociopolitical; the Atlanta-based duo addresses inner-city problems on "Hard" and the rock-edged "Calling All Zones" (which aims to be a regional theme for Atlanta the way that Petey Pablo's "Raise Up" was for North Carolina). But for the most part, Me & My Brother is a party album, and exuberant, hook-filled tunes like "Salt Shaker" (which features fellow Atlanta resident Lil Jon) and the single "Naggin'" are straight-up club-bangers (that is, crunk jams aimed at Southern hip-hop clubs). And even though the Ying Yang Twins aren't terribly original -- countless other Dirty South artists have done this type of thing -- Me & My Brother is a cut above most of the crunk-oriented releases that came out in 2003. The duo is entertaining more often than not, and the jams are generally infectious on this fun and likable, if derivative, effort. [Me & My Brother is also available in a clean version.] ~ Alex Henderson

Dirty South duo the Ying Yang Twins wallowed in obscurity for some time before the turn-of-the-century Crunk explosion pushed them into the limelight. The duo, with production from Beats-In-Azz, crank out frenetic, hands-in-the-air party jams; their 2005 full-length UNITED STATES OF ATLANTA is nearly a hip-hop epic, featuring guest shots from Anthony Hamilton, Missy Elliot, Bun-B, and Adam Levine of Maroon Five, among many others.

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