Sometimes, a playa keeps it so real that life gets in the way of success. More hip-hop fans would have heard of the duo known as Playaz Circle sooner if they hadn't run afoul of the law so early in their career, effectively holding off their debut release. But their street cred is still good in the hip-hop market, and they have every intent to cash in.

The Playaz Circle (previously known as the Duffle Bag Boys) is made up of rappers Tity Boi (Tauheed Epps) and Dolla Boi (Earl Conyers), who grew up together in College Park, GA. The childhood friends traded mixtapes from an early age, sharing similar tastes in rap and hip-hop. They and their crew eventually dubbed themselves the Playaz Circle. "Playaz" is actually an acronym standing for "Preparing Legal Assets for Years from A to Z" ("A to Z" meaning "beginning to end"). Their intention was to stay alive and stay out of jail through "legal hustles," meaning making it in the rap game.

They pooled some money together and produced their first independent release, passing it among friends and finding the positive reception encouraging. Not long afterward, they met a charismatic MC named Chris Bridges--the man now known throughout the hip-hop world as Ludacris. They were ready to start recording and hit the big time, but life intervened. Dolla Boi was sent to prison for two years and Tity Boi got shot. Both eventually recovered from their experiences, regrouped and recorded their first record, Supply and Demand. Their understanding of economics as well as hip-hop was aired on that record, earning them some recognition from those who love the music of the Dirty South. Their debut was a big hit in 2007, shooting up the Billboard Top Rap Albums chart to number one. Several of their singles rocketed up the charts as well.