Ying Yang Twins

Ying Yang Twins, featuring D-Roc (born De'Angelo Holmes, February 23,1979) and Kaine (born Eric Jackson, December 16th, 1978) broke onto the airwaves with their first single, "Whistle While You Twurk," (2000), peaking at number 17 on the US R&B/Hip-Hop Chart. Alongside extensive touring, their debut album came out later that year, titled "Thug Walkin'." Their fist-pumping tracks full of party-vibes drew the attention of A&R man Bryan Leach, which led to the duo signing to TVT Records, having already connected with Lil Jon. However, formalities were not completed before the Ying Yang Twins were to release their second record, "Alley: The Return of the Ying Yang Twins" (2002) which was instead released on Koch, achieving significant popularity with hip-hop fans in the South.

Their first record for TVT, "Me & My Brother" was released in 2003, which went on to be certified Platinum the following year, with their three hit songs "Whats Happnin!," "Naggin" and the collaborations with Lil Jon, "Salt Shaker" and "Kings of Crunk." These two tracks were massive hits that year, receiving extensive airplay and establishing both Lil Jon and the Ying Yang Twins in the Hip-Hop world, breaking into audiences outside of the American South.

Following an appearance on Britney Spears' song, "In the Zone," the duo released their next album, "United State of Atlanta (U.S.A)" (2005), which again dominated urban radio stations. Their success continued with 2006's "Chemically Imbalanced" and their legacy was compiled in 2009's "Legendary Status: Ying Yang Twins Greatest Hits" which featured all of their biggest hits.

Born one of eight siblings, Dillard’s first move into the musical came when he joined the amateur rap group GroundHoggz when still in ninth grade. Formed of members Flo Rida, 1Bred, Key Lime and Fist, the four-man group remained together for eight years, until the rapper signed with Poe Boy in 2006. The rapper’s debut single “Birthday” was released in 2006 featuring Rick Ross, and was followed by a guest appearance on DJ Khaled’s album “We the Best” on the single “Bitch I’m from Dade County”.

Flo Rida’s debut album “Mail of Sunday” arrived in March 2008, spawning the singles “Low”, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, “Elevator” featuring Timbaland, “In the Ayer”, and “Roll”. The album featured a host of guest appearances including will.i.am, Sean Kingston and Lil Wayne, and proved Flo Rida’s viability for chart success. Before the release of his sophomore album the rapper made cameo appearances on the singles “Move Shake Drop” by DJ Laz, “We Break the Dawn” by Michelle Williams, as well as “Running Back” by Jessica Mauboy, among others.

“R.O.O.T.S.” arrived in March 2009 and debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200. The album’s lead single “Right Round”, which sampled the Dead or Alive hit “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)”, broke the record for most digital downloads in one week with 636,000 downloads. The rapper subsequently released the singles “Sugar” featuring Wynter Gordon, “Jump” featuring Nelly Furtado, and “Be on You” featuring Ne-Yo. Also in 2009 Flo Rida appeared on the debut single of the UK’s “The X Factor” winning Alexandre Burke, “Bad Boys”, which debuted at No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart.

Dillard’s third full length album, “Only One Flo (Part 1)” was released November 2010 spawning the singles “Come With Me”, “Turn Around (5, 4, 3, 2, 1)”, and “Who Dat Girl”. In December 2010 Flo Rida started his own label International Music Group later signing 18-year-old rapper Brianna and Git Fresh. Dillard has subsequently released the album “Wild Ones” in 2012, which shot to No. 1 in 20 countries and spawned the No. 1 single “Levels”.