On November 30, 2004 Jay-Z and Linkin Park dropped their collaborative project, Collision Course, a mini mash-up of some of their most popular songs.

Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park described the project as "fun" in the accompanying DVD to Collision Course, and their ode to the popular rap-rock domination occurring at the time paid off, with the album debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200. The six-track album was a mix of fan service but also a genuine appreciation for one another.

Shinoda initiated the project, according to an interview with MTV News, and mashed up three Black Album songs to pitch Jay-Z on the collaboration. “I didn’t just want to say, ‘Hell, yeah, let’s do it’—I wanted to show him what it might sound like if we did it,” Shinoda explained. “After that, he wanted to talk only by e-mail instead of in person because he thought that would save a little bit of the excitement for when we really got to meet.”

The timing was great for the project. Linkin Park was riding high off their diamond-certified Hybrid Theory, while Jay-Z had solidly entered into the mainstream phase of his career, with eight No. 1 albums under his belt by the time project was released. The world had also already witnessed what a great Jay-Z mash-up would sound like with Danger Mouse's acclaimed The Grey Album, a mash-up of The Black Album with the Beatles' White Album.

While Collision Course didn't hold the same weight as Danger Mouse's effort did, the project was an energetic blend of Jay and Linkin Park's hits: “Izzo” / “In the End"; “Big Pimpin'” / “Papercut"; “Points of Authority" / “99 Problems” and of course, the lead single, "Numb" / "Encore.'

Ultimately, Jay and Linkin Park sold over two million copies in the U.S. and won them a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Reminisce below.