MGF Reviews Obie Trice – Second Round's On Me

Reviews


Obie Trice – Second Round’s On Me
Shady Records (released Aug. 15, 2006)
Hip Hop

The sophomore CD for Obie Trice (real name, no gimmicks) was actually one of the albums I was most anticipating this year. His debut joint, Cheers, went in several different directions, but between the surprisingly strong Eminem production (yeah, I said it) and Trice’s lyricism, it was one of my favorite CDs of 2003.

Unfortunately for Trice, it didn’t sell.

Trice and anyone else you ask will blame the cartoonish first single “Got Some Teeth”. While that may be true, it’s also true that Trice and Shady Records never found an effective second single for Cheers, either.

So, Obie Trice has promised a grittier sound more in line with his G-Unit stablemates on Second Round’s”¦.

The end result has forced my hand.

So, without any further ado, here are a handful of things that must stop in hip hop:

More Than One Intense Autobiographical Track on an Album: OK, Obie”¦we’ll all spot you the ridiculous, repetitive “Ballad of Obie Trice”. You’re kind of pushing it with the maudlin “Mama”. But, then, by the time you finish up with the very strong “Obie Story”, I’ve run out of patience. If you’re under the age of 30, you don’t get to tell three life stories.

50 Cent Hooks: The pain began for all of us with the commercial release of “Wanksta”. 50’s mealy-mouthed hook work then hit it big with the off-key craptacular classic that was “Magic Stick”. After that, the epidemic had spread pretty much everywhere. This time, he’s on the hook for “Everywhere I Go” and, true to form, he torpedoes this one, too.

Eminem’s Beats: I wasn’t kidding when I said that Em’s beats were actually solid on Obie’s Cheers album. The problem is that Em has been making the same beat for five years. “Wake Up” starts out strong, lyrically, as kind of a call-to-arms cut, but Obie is forced to speed up his flow to keep up. It all hits a brick wall when Em comes on at the end for the inane “Wake Up” hook. Meanwhile, tracks like “Lay Down”, “There They Go” and “Violent” are all instantly identifiable as Eminem production (goofy snares, redundant staccato) yet aren’t strong enough lyrically to distinguish themselves.

Really, REALLY Gratuitous Violence: In defense of Obie, “Kill Me a Mutha” isn’t exactly “Natural Born Killaz”, but c’mon now. Trice has more money than God and probably drives a better car. Does anyone really believe that there’s a lick of sincerity anywhere to be found on a track that involves the plotting of his enemies’ demise? He’d sooner sue someone that crossed him or have his “security” deal with it.

The Stop Snitching Movement: Tell you what”¦rap fans everywhere will concede that “snitching” is problem worse than crack and VH1’s Flavor of Love put together, if you rappers all agree to quit telling us so. Deal? Deal. As a bonus, I’ll even say that the Akon-assisted “Snitch” track here is actually pretty decent.

Actual Al Pacino Dialogue From Scarface on an Album: Is this really asking too much, Obie?

Unfortunately, Second Round’s On Me is a serious step backwards for a rapper who showed so much promise just a few years ago. The themes are almost identical from one cut to the next, while the production drags things down, top to bottom. Obie has inadvertently been hurt more than any other Shady artist with the rise to power of Eminem and 50 Cent and would be advised to find greener pastures if he hopes to have a real career.

Rating: