Released:  September 23rd, 2003

Recorded:  2001 – 2003

Genre:  Hip-Hop

Record Label:  Shady / Interscope

Duration:  74:27

Producers:  Eminem, Dr. Dre, Mike Elizondo, Luis Resto, Timbaland, Emile, Denaun Porter, Fredwreck Nassar

Personnel

Track Listing

Singles

Why Cheers is One of My Favorites

In 2003, I was staring to get really, really into rap.  Back when I couldn’t stand rap, I did like Eminem, so as I dug deeper into the genre, naturally I followed Em’s trail at some point.  For most people, this led to 50 Cent and G-Unit, or maybe even D-12, but somewhere in there, I landed on Obie Trice, and it turned out be one of my favorite collections of rap both back then and even now.

Cheers give us one of our first demonstrations of what Eminem has learned about hip-hop on the other side of the mic, and the results are impressive.  He’s got a real knack for creating quirky and unique beats and also using live instrumentation to give them less of a processed, artificial feel.  Dr. Dre handles a number of songs as well, with guest production from artists including heavyweight Timbaland.  Beats-wise, Cheers is a spectacular album where all the tracks have been given careful thought.  There are obviously songs which I prefer more than others, but none of the beats have the “throwaway” feel that tends to pop up on rap albums.

Obie has his share of guest artists to help him carry the weight of his debut, though in an era when rap albums were becoming more akin to compilations and collaborations, Obie keeps the number relatively small.  He tackles the majority of the tracks on his own and does so in fine form.  Seventy four minutes is long for any album, and even though it is a long listen, it stays strong and consistent throughout due both to Obie’s strength as a rapper and lyricist and a solid foundation from Em and Dr. Dre.  Eminem’s playful nature on his own albums shines through on Cheers; Obie often keeps his lyrics humorous and uses his skill at wordplay to tell funny stories and twist common events around comedic comparisons, similar to what has kept Em’s style so unique.  He also shares Em’s approach to rhyming, weaving several rhymes together at once for a complex delivery

One thing that struck me about Cheers is its decreased reliance on lyrics reflecting “hardness” and “toughness.”  Obie puts his share of gangsta-related material into his music, but he also keeps himself grounded with other subjects like relationships and lost friends, and even asserting that he’s simply an “average man” in the first song.  He certainly doesn’t glamorize the lifestyle, which is always refreshing.  There is only so much I can take of artists thinking that there is some glory or honor in killing, exploiting addiction, and being feared.

“Average Man” starts the album with a suspenseful piano riff and contains one of the record’s best hooks.  As Obie raps “Your heart rate’s like…”, a noise like a heart monitor flatlining is played to awesome effect.  His internal rhyming is at a high point here as well: “Niggas get it twisted / liquor make ’em envision / that gangsterism is disrespectin’ a niggas wishes.”  “Cheers” is another catchy cut that celebrates the fallen along with a guitar lick that compliments the booming beat.  “Got Some Teeth” features whimsical percussion, some of Obie’s best rhymes, and tells a hilarious story to boot.

A steady, rolling beat drives “Lady,” as Obie delivers his expert flow, rising and falling hypnotically and with perfect timing.  Eminem jumps in at the end adding his signature “over-the-top-ness.”  Sometimes what bugs me about multiple artists on one tracks is that they adopt different timing patterns as they rap over the beat, giving the song a certain disconnect.  On “Lady,” Obie and Em seem to be on exactly the same page.  It’s a great example of how similar the two’s styles are.  I’m not sure if this is due to Eminem’s influence, or if Obie’s style is what caught Eminem’s attention and encouraged him to get personally involved; either way, the similarities are just that – similarities – and it’s not as if Obie sounds like a clone of Em.  Rap fans should note the beginning where Obie references the opening phone call of B.I.G.’s “Nasty Boy” from Life After Death.  Piecing together these nods from inside the industry is always fun.

“The Set Up” tells a fairly ordinary tale of betrayal in the streets.  Dre’s minimalist production lets Obie shine, and it’s his matter of fact delivery that keeps this one so interesting.  I especially love the way he says, “treat the bitch too fuckin’ good ‘n my opinion.”  “Bad Bitch” is Timbo’s contribution, with a blazing beat composed of buzzing, guitar-like synth (or perhaps there is a mutated guitar in there).  In fact, this might be my favorite beat from the album, and it is certainly the one that initially drew me into Cheers.  It’s offbeat, courtesy of Timbaland’s usual flair for rhythm, and Obie nails it.

“We All Die One Day” is the obligatory posse track, leaning further into “gangsta” territory than any other song.  The beat is eerie and threatening; bass rumbles throughout while high pitched synth perks up at intervals to give it a dramatic feel.  Obie has a short but strong verse at the beginning, proving that he can pull off the angry tough-guy persona when the need arises. Lloyd Banks and then Eminem get a piece of the action, rounded off by 50 Cent at the end.  50 isn’t exactly my favorite “artist,” but I can’t deny the catchiness of Get Rich or Die Tryin’ and the effect that his lazy, almost slurred rapping style has on it.  He delivers a particularly powerful verse here at the end of “We All Die One Day,” reminding me a lot of the unreleased track “Drama” from Timbaland and Magoo’s Indecent Proposal which features an equally dark and show-stealing verse from Petey Pablo just before its closure.

“Hands on You” sees Obie effortlessly rap over a fast, jumpy beat, again with precision flow.  This is the rare upbeat and even positive rap song on the subject of women, celebrating what seems to be a reasonably healthy relationship.  “Oh!” features a surprisingly catchy hook from none other than the gruff-voiced Busta Rhymes.  A few of the tracks are attacks aimed at some of Shady/Aftermath’s rivals of the time (Ja Rule, Benzino), including the aforementioned “We All Die One Day,” “Shit Hits the Fan,” and “Outro.”

When it comes to popular/commercial rap music, artists have continually struggled to master the format of the album.  There are good albums out there, but there are far too many that are generic, mediocre, and even bland.  Maybe it’s the creative process, or the recording process, or the reliance of MCs on producers for their “music”…or maybe it’s something else altogether.  Whatever it is, the genre does an excellent job of producing singles but had a harder time crafting cohesive and consistent artistic statements in the form of an album.  With digital music becoming so popular, it’s possible that we’re no more than a generation away from seeing the death of the album, but that’s another story.  My point is that a far greater percentage of rap albums than those of other popular genres fail to live up to the quality of their singles, and Cheers is a notable exception.  Usually we think of the truly great hip-hop albums coming from 2Pac, Jay-Z, Biggie, Wu-Tang, OutKast, Nas, and other less-mainstream artists like Common and The Roots.  A newcomer with over an hour of quality rap all packed onto one album?  It may seem nigh paradoxical, but Obie pulls it off with the help of seasoned veterans Eminem and Dre.

Cheers is top shelf stuff to be sure.  Some are likely to complain that it’s too commercialized or too much like Eminem 2.0, but where they see imitation, I see influence, and there’s nothing wrong with being influenced by one of the best.  Obie takes bits from Em’s style and makes them his own and proves to be one of the more capable and consistent mainstream rappers that I’ve ever heard.  It also doesn’t hurt that this album is filled with excellent beats; beats with rhythmic variety and complexity to accentuate Obie’s flow, beats with original instrumentation to add to their distinctiveness, and beats that work in infections hooks often imbued with a touch of melody.  A fantastic album that deserved/deserves way more credit than it ever got.

Written by The Cubist

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