Shit, That Song’s Good: International Players Anthem
‘Shit, That Song’s Good’ is an occasional series of articles based around some of my favourite tracks; how they came about, why they’re special and what they mean to me.
UGK ft. OutKast — International Players Anthem (I Choose You)
About a week ago I decided to start an occasional series of articles about some of my favourite songs. I thought it would be a great test of my writing and a chance to share some great records with you. The hardest part however was deciding what song I should profile first.
There are tracks that are more historically important than UGK’s International Players Anthem and plenty that mean more to me on a personal level, but there’s something about this record that has had me coming back, again and again, for the best part of a decade. Wherever I find myself, whatever I’m doing, there’s a strong chance that I’ll suddenly find Andre 3000’s opening bars creeping into my mind.
The story goes that before its release in June 2007 the track was originally a link-up between UGK and Three 6 Mafia, who were riding a wave of success after Stay Fly. The release got held up because old red tape from Three 6’s record label, in which time the track got heard by OutKast who asked if they could hop on the track and the rest is history.
There’s only one place to start with this song and that’s Andre 3000's opening verse, it’s the highlight of the song and possibly the best verse of his career.
One of the most interesting things about the verse is just how different it is to the 3 which follow it. Whilst Pimp C, Bun B and Big Boi spit bars about pimping, Andre 3000 takes another route, and inspired by the song’s Willie Hutch sample he focuses on commitment and marriage. In an interview with XXL he said “I just wrote what I thought “choosin’” for real meant to me. Since the sample in the record said, “I choose you”. I don’t know why I went to marriage as a topic, but I guess that’s the ultimate version of “choosin’.” The marriage and the reaction from guys and girls was the focus.”
Andre’s wordplay is one of the things he is known for but the first verse features some of his most quotable lines.
“So, I typed a text to a girl I used to see
Saying that I chose this cutie pie with whom I wanna be
And I apologize if this message gets you down
Then I CC’ed every girl that I’d see-seed ‘round town”
The juxtaposition of this verse in contrast to the tone of the others only serves to further heighten the sincerity in the words. His delivery is emotive and his unconventional rhyme scheme is even more apparent against the sparse backing music. By avoiding drums it leaves him to rap over just horns and the choir-like sample, creating something resembling a capella.
“Like a preemie out the womb
My partner yelling, “Too soon
Don’t do it!
Reconsider, read some liter-
-ature on the subject
You sure? Fuck it”
The drum track kicks in after Andre 3000 and beckon in Pimp C’s verse which acts to both kickstart the song and symbolise the tonal change from the bars about marriage to those about pimping.
On a personal level I have always loved that first verse from Andre 3000. I love how it sounds and the way that the rhyme scheme is so expertly crafted. It’s great to listen to and enjoyable to mouth along with. I also find myself impressed with just how relatable the opening bars are, especially given that it’s a track largely about pimping out women. We’ve all experienced that moment when you hit a time in your relationship with somebody when you don’t want anybody else, whether that’s a week in, six months or a year. That level of honesty was refreshing in amongst the bravado of hip-hop at that time and is one of the reasons that Andre 3000 has set himself apart from so many of his peers.
Jeff Sledge, A&R at Jive Records, told Spin about the reaction from an angry Pimp C when he first heard the Andre 3000 verse minus drums.
“When André sent his piece back and had no drums, Chad [Butler, Pimp C’s given name] was pissed off. He was like ‘Fuck Andre, man. How the fuck is he gonna send my shit back and take my drums out?’ Fuck that.’ He was going off about Andre taking the drums out.”
“I was like, ‘Chad, hold up fam. Let’s rock it like that because when André’s doing a capella and then when the beat drops, that’s when your verse drops. And then you, your verse is gonna lift the record up because now the beat is rocking and your verse is kicking. And he’s like ‘Alright, Jeff. I’m gonna give it a shot. If it fucks up, it’s on you.’”
Now the decision to open the song without drums looks like a masterstroke especially given the iconic nature of Andre 3000’s opening verse. One of the side effects of such a great verse is that the song has become memorable for one person’s bars, much in the same way as Kanye’s Monster is remembered largely for Nicki Minaj. To overlook the rest of the song is almost criminal with Bun B and the other half of OutKast, Big Boi, delivering some great lines that deserve to be remembered themselves.
The track has achieved a legendary status and is arguably the career highpoint for both OutKast and UGK but to me International Players Anthem is always going to be that song that puts a smile on my face whenever I hear that first verse.
