Second Round’s On Me - OBIE TRICE
Back in 2002, it looked like Eminem was going to do for Obie Trice what he’d already done for mother-son lawsuits and Christopher Reeve jokes. But then 50 Cent brought his bullet-riddled, nut-shrivelled muscles and chorus-ready charisma to Shady. Fiddy blew up and Obie’s disappointing debut was quickly forgotten. Some things have changed since then. One: Obie’s publicist arranged for him to receive a few non-lethal bullets to the head. And two: the real Slim Shady sat down as the artist’s primary producer. There are still a few of Em’s pensive, plodding productions, but there are also diverse up-tempo tracks like the guitar-fuelled “Wanna Know,” which samples Detroit rockers Power Of Zeus. More importantly, Obie proves for the first time to be a truly skilled, sincere lyricist. James Simons
