Young Gunz TOUGH LUV (EXP.)

Young Gunz: Young Chris, Neef (rap vocals).
Additional personnel includes: Jay Z, Cam'Ron, Chingy, Beanie Sigel, Denim, Juelz Santana, Sparks, Freeway.
Producers include: Bink, Chad Hamilton, Just Blaze, Scott Storch, Ruggedness.
Young Gunz: Young Chris, Neef (rap vocals).
Additional personnel includes: Jay Z, Cam'Ron, Chingy, Beanie Sigel, Denim, Juelz Santana, Sparks, Freeway.
Producers include: Bink, Spunk Digga, Chad Hamilton, Ryan Press, Just Blaze.
Recorded at Sony, Baseline, Quad, New York, New York; Homebase, The Studio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Young Chris and Neef, the Philadelphia duo who make up Young Gunz, are just emerging from their teens, yet the pair betray hip-hop wisdom far beyond their years on their highly anticipated debut, TOUGH LUV. The two were showcased as part of Beanie Sigel's State Property crew, and managed to stand out in a talented crowd, scoring a most-deserved hit from the excellent STATE PROPERTY VOL. 2 with the playful "Can't Stop, Won't Stop." TOUGH LUV contains a fun, funky remix of that song (featuring Chingy), along with 16 other lyrically skilled tracks of varying styles and shades.
The tag Young Gunz, while seemingly reflecting the violent world in which the duo grew up, is actually a reference to basketball, a fact revealed in both their lyrics and rhyming style. While the words are aggressive in a fun-loving, freewheeling manner, their rhymes are passed off from one to another in easy and inviting flows. After opening with a few modern R&B-infused anthems, Young Gunz kick back into a pitch-perfect old-school throwback on the beat-box propelled "Friday Night," before flawlessly sampling fellow Philly natives Hall & Oates on "$$$ Girlz." When label icon Jay-Z drops by on the commanding "Never Take Me Alive," the die is cast, and Young Gunz have scored an impressive debut.

• RSD Release Date: n/a
• Released: 2/24/2004
• Genre: Pop
• Format: CD