The Hailey brothers have come a long way from their North Carolina gospel-roots. You might remember them when they were in Jodeci, but these days, Joel and Cedric Hailey are known as K-Ci & Jojo, and they are two of the biggest hit makers the R&B world has ever seen: these are their greatest hits.

Their smash debut album from 1997, Love Always, yielded a string of hits, from the deep soul of "You Bring Me Up," and the pure love balladry of "Last Night's Letter" to the pared-down acoustic nature of "Don't Rush (Take Love Slowly)." "All My Life," the pair's big, breakthrough single, was written as a love song for Jojo's daughter; it's a timeless piece of soul music that we can expect to be hearing for the ages.

"If You Think You're Lonely Now" was K-Ci's post-Jodeci cover of the Bobby Womack tune, included on the Jason's Lyric soundtrack, delivered in stone-cold-soul style. K-Ci & Jojo have made something of a between-album career out of contributing to soundtracks. The downbeat "How Could You," about a man who's been done wrong, was featured on the soundtrack to Bulletproof and served as the duo's debut. The yearning "I Care About You," was a collaboration with Babyface originally performed at his MTV's Unplugged concert; you might also remember it from the soundtrack to Soul Food. The super sexy "Never Say Never Again" was perfect for the film How Stella Got Her Groove Back, all about starting over in love. There's the exotic "Through Heaven's Eyes" (which appeared on The Prince of Egypt soundtrack), as well as the serious sentiments of the R.Kelly-penned "Life," from the Eddie Murphy/Martin Lawrence comedy of the same title.

K-Ci & Jojo's second album, It's Real, sported the ballad, "Tell Me It's Real," which is crafted in much the same mold as "All of My Life." They celebrated their 10th anniversary as singers with X (featuring the reconsider-me-baby ballad, "Crazy," the old-school flavored "Wanna Do You Right" and the gospel-stirred, "I Can't Find the Words").

With 2002's Emotional, K-Ci & Jojo got to the heart of contemporary soul with "This Very Moment." "Special" is a pumped-up R&B ballad and "Down for Life" is a silky-smooth piece of sophisticated soul.

It's a bit of an understatement to say there was life for K-Ci & Jojo after Jodeci. Perhaps it's more to the point to ask if they can top their success? It looks like you'll have to wait until 'Act III' to find out.

By Daisy Duarte