Guest spots from Criminal Manne and The Dayton Family's Bootleg are welcome, but can't save stereotypical tracks. The album ends with more predictable tracks dedicated to ladies, the block, and 26 inch rims. "Down For Life" finds DJ Squeeky delivering an upbeat mixture of R&B and club music, but overall the track sounds too much like every other ladies track done by a rapper. Over a soft track with a funky drum beat, Pastor Troy flexes his storytelling skills well and delivers one of the album's better tracks. "Vegas" is interesting as it strays from Troy's usual synth and bass heavy crunk tracks. "Drop That Ass" is unoriginal and makes it painfully obvious Troy needs some help with the hooks. "I Like All That" suffers from the same shortcomings and while the beat is interesting considering it is a strip club anthem, overall the track is nothing special. "Pop a Few Bottles" features a less than stellar hook which isn't as catchy as it needs to be and a beat that isn't original enough to make it stand out. Outside of staying true to his street roots, Troy spends the other part of the album trying to craft another hit for the clubs with limited success.
![pastor troy we ready i declare war bootleg king pastor troy we ready i declare war bootleg king](https://images.genius.com/8a4db319b1ab3a082dc5901fabc40840.300x298x1.jpg)
Troy does throw in an occasional diss on standard street tracks like "Represent This" and "I'm the Shark in the Water." Thankfully this is the only track overtly dedicated to the beef.
![pastor troy we ready i declare war bootleg king pastor troy we ready i declare war bootleg king](https://images.genius.com/5b7b2cc12eb081fc5c59e26543a0bc75.300x300x1.jpg)
While the track's hard beat works well, Troy's threats are not fresh in the rap sense because anyone angry enough could probably come up with the same standard obscenities and threats. Y'all pussy-ass niggas can't fuck with me!" Outside of the club with my tucked in gun Troy has never been the one to hold his tongue, but "Murda Man 2" doesn't do much to explain his problem with BME or add anything new to the standard diss:Ĭause you pussy ass niggas can't fuck with me Pastor Troy also goes after his newest foes viciously on the album using "Murda Man 2" to diss Lil' Jon and his BME click. Absent from "By Choice or By Force" are members of Troy's Down South Georgia Boyz, who were featured prominently on previous efforts. Since the last time we heard from Pastor Troy it seems a lot of his relationships have soured. In 2006 the Pastor is back with distribution from Koch and plenty to say about his experience in the industry.
![pastor troy we ready i declare war bootleg king pastor troy we ready i declare war bootleg king](https://images.genius.com/a3ae37ebdd6a910a491cb5acf25c5ec8.300x300x1.jpg)
His deal with Universal didn't work out as the Pastor didn't move enough units to please the media giant and since then it seems he's bounced from label to label. Yet after his national success Troy faded out of the spotlight again and only showed up for the occasional guest spot.
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For the street fans Troy had "Vice Versa" in heavy rotation, one of the deepest tracks to come out in the new millennium. "Are We Cuttin'" was a hit and was featured on the XXX soundtrack. Later Troy secured a major label deal with Universal and was back on top once again. Despite a strong independent following, Pastor Troy failed to make a nationwide impact. Originally one of the first ATL crunk artists to make noise, Pastor Troy's "We Ready – I Declare War" is considered to be a classic by many a southern fan. Pastor Troy has experienced both ups and downs in his lengthy rap career. Pastor Troy :: By Choice or By Force :: Koch RecordsĪs reviewed by Pedro 'DJ Complejo' Hernandez