PIMPIN AIN'T DEAD

Do Or Die: Nard, Belo Zero, Ak-47. Additional personnel includes: White Folks, Twista, J.P., Traxster, Dun D, Navee, Z-Ro. Producers: The Legendary Traxster, Mr. Lee. Recorded at Smoke CWAL Mob Studios, Chicago, Illinois and Noddfactor Studios, Houston, Texas. This is an example of the Southern Rap "screwed" mix style. Personnel: The Legendary Traxster (vocals); Richie Davis (guitar). Audio Mixer: The Legendary Traxster. Recording information: NoddFactor Studios, Houston, TX; Smoke CWAL Mob Studios, Chicago, IL. From a little before that time somewhere in the 1980s when Big Daddy told the world "it ain't easy," pimpin's been both a prime image and a way of life in the hip-hop world. Who better than Chi outfit Do Or Die to remind the world two decades later that PIMPIN AIN'T DEAD. After all, the talented tongue-twisting threesome scored perhaps the biggest crossover hit on the topic with the breathy, catchy 1996 surprise top 40 hit "Po' Pimp." Fairly productive and remarkably consistent (if not exactly prolific) since then, Do Or Die now present their fifth record--a satisfying collection of smooth braggadocio that transcends the same cliches in which it revels. PIMPIN' AIN'T DEAD opens hard and strong with the relentlessly bumping "One More Way 2 Die" featuring delicately twisted prose and an unforgettable left hook of a chorus. Then the boys show off their gentle pimp side, riding on two straight slow grooves on the pure new jack of "Do U?" and the sheer melodicism of "Fantasy." Later on, the trio veers acutely in the other direction channeling Rap-A-Lot label godheads the Geto Boys on tracks like "Stateville" and "In A Minute." Do Or Die have done classy pimps proud for over a decade, and PIMPIN AIN'T DEAD continues that legacy.