Pastor Troy's 'Universal Soldier'; Classic, Dope, Regular, or Garbage?

By the early 2000, Pastor Troy had made a name for himself on the Southern Hip Hop scene. His two releases, We Ready (I Declare War) and Face Off, which consisted of an ATL-styled gangster rap and Crunk, garnered a loyal fan base throughout the region. Just like any artist, Troy wanted to expand beyond his home region, which in terms, birth Universal Soldier. Let’s chop it up.

As I aforementioned, PT wanted to expand his horizons, which he acknowledge in a 2002 interview with MTV.

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“I had to come with something more club, more radio-friendly,” PT Crusier says. “I accomplished that with a joint produced by Timbaland.”

The joint Troy was referring to is “Are We Cuttin,'” the first single from Universal Soldier. It was somewhat of a contrast in comparison to Troy’s previous tracks.

“I needed that to do exactly what it’s doing: broadening my horizons,” Troy admits. “Pumping me up in different areas.”

With tracks like the aforementioned “Are We Cuttin’,” in addition to “If I Wasn’t Rappin'” and “You Can’t Pimp Myself,” it’s obvious Troy scaled back a little rawness for a broader appeal.

However, it wasn’t a PT Live in Wimledon Pop album. “Who, What, When, Where,” “If They Kill Me,” and “No Mo Play in G.A. PT 2” showed Troy in the form his loyal fans were accustomed to.

“This for all those n****s that be poppin’/Seein’ me in ‘6s, I don’t never be stoppin’/Most n****s be watchin’, other n****s be hatin’/Hangin’ out their partner car, askin’ me what’s shakin’/Ain’t nothin shakin, notin’ but this mula/I see that you know me, but I don’t know who you are.” – Pastor Troy in “No Mo Play in G.A.PT 2”

Universal Soldier did what it was designed to do: it reached a wider audience. It peaked at number 2 on Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and number 13 on the Billboard 200. However, it would be delusional to think some of PT die hard fans weren’t piss.