Obie Trice
Album: Cheers
Release Date: September 23, 2003
Label: Interscope Records

Customer Review:
It’s great when a guy like Obie, who’s been rapping just trying to survive, get hooked up with a tremendous team of musical talent of Aftermath. On underground tracks like "Dope, Jobs, Homeless" you almost felt the urgency of his raps, like he didn’t know if he would ever make it. On "Well Known A**hole" a braggadocios and comical Obie, let you know of his raw talent. Both Obie Trice and rap fans should be eternally thankful that he somehow drew the attention of Eminem. This album is the result of what happens when you take an underground talent & match him with production fit for only the mainstreams best.

Throughout the album Em gives his best effort production wise. People more & more lately criticize Em because his production "all sounds the same" (and even fans are starting to agree). Well, that could not be more untrue for this album, as every song he does the beat for sounds different from anything ever heard from him. Obie is definitely more than lucky that the production team for this album practically set him up for a perfect score. However, Obie doesn’t just let the production carry the album and really steps up to some huge expectations.

Starting off the album with a statement "Average Man" is a nice ominous track with a hard thumping beat designed specifically to let Obie carry the track. He shows from the beginning that he may be an average man, but he’s no average rapper: ("I ghost ya, I bring ya much closa to Jehovah/ Definition of a soldjah, I told ya/ I .. hold the toast when I approach/ It’s close at all times by my side in the holsta/ O-sta roast ya, make me blow my composure/ Pop (*gunshot*) it’s all over, when the fo’ fo’ blows and goes a ... ").

An obvious theme for the album is alcohol. Well, it doesn’t take too long for Obie to have two great drinking songs with "Cheers" & "Got Some Teeth". The first sounds like an old time bar chant, while "Teeth" (the album’s single) is more of a hilarious drinking song for all those mishaps at the club. Obie’s humor is a great aspect to his style that shows up throughout the album, but the cartoon sounds effects on this track only make it funnier.

Eminem makes his first lyrical appearance on "Lady". Em’s flow on this album is beyond ridiculous; he sounds light years off the hook on "Cheers" than he does on "Encore". The nice handclap beat with subtle strings and keyboards are just infectious. Obie more than holds his own, but Em steals it with the last verse, which should make any groupie think twice.

"Don’t Come Down" is a simply a honest & depressing song about Obie’s relationship with his mother. Trice really shows his capable of some nice story-telling rapping in addition to getting pretty sincere and open with his actual life. Em brings some appropriate cinematic type production with a real nice guitar like synthesizer in the background. In addition the pre-Kanye West like hook works extremely well. This song is an album highlight and only further shows the diversity in Obie’s style.

Dre’s long delayed `Detox’ effort gets continually delayed for two reasons: 1) He keeps taking on new projects (ex. Game, Busta, & Eve). 2) He keeps giving away his best tracks reserved for `Detox’ to everyone else (ex. In Da Club, Higher, Poppin Them Thangs, Not Today). Every track on "Cheers" that Dre produces was slated for `Detox’ which is good for Obie cause they are some of Dre’s best ever.

"The Setup" is the first incredible Dre track (with signature Nate Dogg hook) and Obie definitely doesn’t waste it. It’s hard to describe the track, with the dark keys, bell tolls, snare drum and what sounds like a drippy faucet. It’s defiantly a Dre classic (don’t sleep on the posse remix either with Llyod Banks, Jadakiss, & Redman).

There were many disses in the Murder Inc./Source vs. Aftermath beef but "S*** Hits the Fan" put an end to it all with a verse from Dre himself (think "Say What You Say" from Eminem show). The fact is Dre only drops like one verse every two years and it always closes the door on critics and haters. Obie’s verse on here is also vicious making it for XXL’s version of a Hip-Hop Quotable: `Train of Thought’ ("I’m tryin to be as bleak with my speech as possible/ Just in case a n***a tryin to throw me an obstacle/ N***a, I’m not boxin you, I’m hospitable/ I put you in a hospital, that’s how I get at you"). All this over a classic Dre beat means this song really just can’t get any better.

"Bad B****" may be Timbaland’s best production EVER. The hook is also great, you gotta love the fact it sounds like Timbaland gave up at the end (like it was already too good and didn’t need anything else) and it’s funny how it comes off. A club song that still maintains its dignity, why do songs like this never get popular??

"Follow My Life" is a Ready to Die esq. robbing style track. The dark beat with the guitar loop and pounding chorus fits the subject matter quite well. The hilarious use of the "Big Poppa" sample only adds to this great track. Although it’s only two verses and the track is not even in the same league, Kool G Rap & Cube would be proud of this one.

"We All Die One Day" had already shown up on mixtapes before the release of the album, but is welcome nonetheless. It defiantly didn’t grab me on the first listen, but the lyrics for each rapper really carry an otherwise simple beat. Once again, Em gets absurd with his flow and really should have been last to wrap up the track ("We are not killers, my vato will have you shot though/ Drag through the barrio and f**** like Kim Osario/ Little sorry hoe a**, go ask B-Real/ We burn Source covers like f***in Cypress Hill/ Did in the 90’s when you was in diapers still/ Shady Records you better believe the hype is real!!/ This is no joke, I don’t smoke/ But I toke enough secondhand to make my f**in P.O. choke!!").

Kon Artis of D12 produces "Spread Yo S***" which is a surprisingly great track. It’s a bouncy, head-nodding beat, with a nice flute loop. This will definitely be thumping in your car when you cruise around. Obie does a great job of complimenting a more `single’ quality track, showing he’s got some versatility with more playful lyrics instead of the same underground flow.

"Hands on You" is another great track produced by Em with some nice low key beat-boxing in the boackground. While 50 Cent, JA Rule, Game and almost everyone falls back on the typical Thug Luv sappy song, here Obie Bring a 2Pac style "Me & My Girlfriend" where the relationship is more complex and free of lyrics to make the ladies smile and say `awww’. However while Obie starts off strong lyrically on the track, he also displays only lyrical misstep on the album at the end of the second verse. It just shows you how nice Obie has been flowing the rest of the album because when this comes up it’s more than obvious. Luckly he begins the third verse by tearing it up and gets back on track.

The only less than stellar track on the album is "Hoodrats". The production is solid and the concept is pretty good as well. Something just doesn’t seem to work right, but that could be just me.

"Look in My Eyes" is pretty average as far as Dre tracks go, but both Obie and Nate Dogg bring some intensity that make this a better track. The real gem here is "Oh!" which is flat out the best track on "Cheers". It took even me a little time to really appreciate it, because it’s so unique in the way it sounds. Dre gets crazy and uses EVERY element in an all out orchestra... including some wild haunting sound that is completely unrecognizable. Lyrically, Obie is pretty strong on the track ("Obie Trice, real name no gimmicks/ I came in the game, profane no image/ I came in the game with a name/ I was given from a mayn who ain’t give a f** about his child’n "). Yet, the defining element is the killer chorus from Busta Rhymes ("OHH! I had you yellin out when I bag the 30-30 Rifle/ OHH! Too late for n***z to get religious and start readin they Bible!!"). That’ll get the most lifeless person you know amped to this track. This is a classic track; Obie owes Dre his pay-check for the next 10 years for the opportunity to rock on this track.

"Never Forget Ya" is as good as dedication tracks get. Trice gives props to everyone who’s helped him along the was without sounding overwhelming. The production is somber, yet it never sounds lazy. The soft guitar jam in the background is another nice touch by Eminem and the bass strings really add a lot as well. You really get the feeling that Obie loves rapping on here, that he’s not just doing it to make money. You can’t help but almost feel like a proud parent for him after hearing this track.

Em & D12 close out the album with the straight up rap track "Outro". Every one who gets on the mic hear really brings it, but after Eminem’s verse it was done. It really is almost too good to be at the beginning of the song, cause you’re just too in awe from the beginning to appreciate the rest. It should have been the climax at the end to put a period on the album. Regardless, the track an exclamation point on an amazing album. It’s at this point it really hits you, this album truly is great.

It’s hard to understand why this didn’t get more hype or acclaim. Obie’s skills are leaps above than anyone in D12, G-Unit (yes definitely 50 and even Game) or anyone else not named Eminem or Dre on Aftermath. The production on this album is certainly better from start to finish than almost anything since 2001. "Cheers" is only missing the hype that surrounds the extremely extraordinary albums. It’s so hard not to call this a classic, because something inside tells you it shouldn’t be, but honestly you couldn’t think of one good reason why it shouldn’t be. The production is perfect, the guest appearances just right, lyrical quality is incredible, mistakes almost non-existent, and it’s playback quality is a 10. Perhaps Obie is missing that gimmick that so many rappers (and even his label mates) have. He’s prolly not too upset about maintaining his credibility though, from the first moment he let everyone what he was about: "Obie Trice, real name, NO gimmicks."

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