Eminem

Eminem’s comeback to the scene after 5 years of absence causes a massive explosion of chain reactions. Never has the press spilled as much ink on the artist as it does now. The mainstream public supports the artist more than ever.

But do you really know what made Eminem and what the recipe of his massive success is? Do you know the story and the culture behind the man?

Who would have thought that this little kid with an unstable life, bullied at Detroit Roseville Elementary, not taken seriously at Lincoln High by his school buddies and teachers would become one of the biggest stars the face of the earth ever carried?

This white kid influenced hip hop to a great extent, not because he was white, but because he was that kind of white kid lost in a black man’s world. Bouncing back from Missouri to Michigan with his mother, he eventually settled in Detroit, living on the black side of 8 Mile, because his mom couldn’t afford to live on the white side. He still carries the strong black accent from the Detroit hood and while the media would wrongly classify him as a part of “white America”, the white kid “who could be one of their kids” was strongly immersed into black music and culture that influenced him to do what he did best: being a rapper.

First influenced by his uncle Ronnie’s passion for the art of rap, Marshall Mathers’ determination to make it in this field grew as the years were passing by.

His skin color, later thought to be an advantage used to be a big disadvantage at the time he was unknown from the public. Bullied at school, experiencing racism on a daily basis, Marshall Mathers had to struggle hard to become who he is now.

His friendship with a cool guy from Osborn High called Deshaun Holton ( Big Proof) formerly known as Maximum would increase his will to do something in rap music. Both friends would meet after school and enjoy rhyming for fun, juggling with syllables like acrobats in a circus.
At the time Eminem was still M&M and Proof went by the stage name Maximum, the two young men shared their common passion for compound rhymes. Overshadowed by Eminem’s overwhelming success, Deshaun Holton happened to be Marshall’s mentor, his guide, his everlasting friend in good and bad times. Proof was the man behind the D12 group along with his fellow friend and emcee Rufus Johnson, better known to the world as Bizarre.

Proof was an expert in freestyling and shared this passion with his friend.

His first experiment with Bassmint productions, an association of white rappers, in which he was trying to emerge wasn’t really successful. Although he already carried some good lyrical skills the emcee needed to be introduced and musically rooted into the black community- which eventually happened thanks to one of his friends, an emcee called Shortcut.

Detroit rapper Champtown who noticed the emcee’s rhyming ability, gave Eminem the chance to be featured in one of his videos named Do Da Dipity that also featured local talent Jermaine Harbin aka Uncle ILL.

Do Da Dipity wasn’t really a great debut, but rather an introduction to the black scene of Detroit.

Champtown is pictured in 8 Mile as the “Wink” character. The story behind the scenes is that Marshall Mathers cut his ties with the local artist because he seemed too much interested in Kim.

Marshall Mathers’ rapping skills in the “pre Infinite” days were really impressing. Anybody who read the lyrics to the Biterphobia song would recognize his astute wordplay.

Discovered by the Bass Brothers who lead FBT productions, the young emcee was striving more and more towards his ultimate goal: be recognized for his talent.

Although the lyrically strong Infinite album that-obviously-lacked some technical means, was rejected by the mainstream public, you could envision some good, promising talent. It was like a demo tape that showed some strong hip hop influences like Nas, for instance. But Eminem had yet to define a more personal style. He also had to drop some of the positive light in which he exposed some of his themes, as it faced rejection from the public.

What did the public exactly want? It can be summarized in two words: shock value.

Influenced by Bizarre and the Outsidaz of New Jersey, Eminem gave birth to a scary alter ego, Slim Shady, who would open up the door to legions of admirers and allow him to stalk the face of the earth with no remorse.

The well constructed Slim Shady Ep would be followed by the Slim Shady LP. Another element, that can be considered as a weakness and a strength at the same time, surfaced in Eminem’s music: the personal dimension.

At the time he wrote his albums, Marshall Mathers was facing a lot of anger in his personal life with his manipulative baby’s mom Kim, who constantly used their common daughter Hailie as a weapon. Piss Eminem off and you’ll be sure to be featured in his songs. That’s how Kim became immortalized in his albums.

Eminem went so personal with his public that he shared his dysfunctional past, the name of his former workplace, friends, wife, daughter…anybody close enough to be part of his life would appear in his songs. Some of them would have to support the artist’s ire.

With his growing success, the release of his masterpiece, the Marshall Mathers LP, some justified fears invaded the artist’s mind. The fear of a mad stalker acting crazy, as it appears in the song Stan is always present, as a dark shadow. Because of his personal approach in his music, Eminem exposed himself to a bunch of mad stalkers who never seem to understand that his warnings are addressed to them personally.

The pressure of the music industry, his hectic life inspired him to write Saying Goodbye To Hollywood in the Eminem Show…some people just don’t realize what an artist’s life is like…many people wish for a big fortune, but do they realize how you must feel when you cannot step outside without wearing a mask and being followed by 150 people…

The Marshall Mathers LP and The Eminem Show carried some genius songs like Drug Ballad that is so complex lyrically and instrumentally that very few people will understand its subtle structure. Some directed and justified anger towards the media and even his own label, made The Way I Am’s
strength.

The Eminem Show went very analytical and political. It punched the Bush administration right in the face. Square Dance carried some Southern rap influences and Till I Collapse was marked by a strong personal determination, encouraging people to carry on strength, no matter what.

While Encore still had some very good songs like Mosh and Like Toy Soldiers, it seemed to show a little bit of artistic fatigue.

Eminem’s pill addiction forced him to stop touring in 2005. A second divorce with Kim and Proof ‘s death in April 2006, a few days later, increased Eminem’s addiction problems.

After five years of absence, we learn from the artist’s mouth that an overdose nearly killed him in December 2007. Pain and artistic creativity often work close together…walking through the dark tunnel of his own addiction, Eminem was inspired to release Relapse.

Although I am not so fond of Relapse, I still value the artist’s narrative skills and his very personal approach of this addiction history.

Addiction didn’t kill him and Marshall Mathers came out stronger out of all this. After all, I am glad he is still kicking and pretty much alive on stage. Shouldn’t we all be?

Copyright© by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

At 14 only, my son Simon has developped some impressing skills…this is a drawing I’d like to share with you all:)

A friend recently recorded and sent me The Jimmy Kimmel Show of May the 19th, featuring Eminem and Mike Tyson. I had a lot of fun watching it. It tends to prove that Eminem hasn’t lost an ounce of his sense of humor. He was in great spirits and in good physical shape too. Being clean suits him well and despite the fact I don’t like his recent album that much, I saw him performing and I do think that he is still a great performer. The show was bananas- for real. I also enjoyed Mike Tyson’s part. On a side note, my prayers go out to the Tyson family: Mike Tyson lost his 4 year old daughter in a tragic accident recently:(

Now I came accross something really funny on Jimmy Kimmel’s website: you gotta enjoy Jimmy Kimmel learning how to rap. Looks like he’s got the right teacher.

Enjoy, folks.

Due to a busy schedule I haven’t been able to write much personal stuff like reviews and articles, but an interesting interview ( with a mystery artist lol) should be in the works and a CD review is coming soon.

Isabelle

Wow…I never thought I’d post so many articles on the “Eminem theme”…but the artist’s comeback has changed a lot of things, there are loads of news and infos circulating on the net…but the most important articles are, of course, the most accurate- like the following one that contains the inside story of what Marshall Mathers really went through since the cancellation of his European tour in 2005…have a look…feel free to comment:)

Isabelle

Read the original article here.

He vanished. He nearly died. Now, after years of drug addiction and a scary overdose, ”Relapse” arrives, and one of rap’s master lyricist’s is back in the game. Will this revealing new album put him on top again?

By Simon Vozick-Levinson

Eminem is running late: 1,200 fans are packed in front of an outdoor L.A. stage for the taping of the rapper’s May 15 Jimmy Kimmel Live appearance, waiting for a set that should have started 45 minutes ago. It’s Eminem’s first major U.S. music performance after a mysterious four-year absence from public view — or at least it’s supposed to be. But hey, what’s a few more minutes when fans have been waiting for this comeback for so long, wondering where the world’s most famous rapper had disappeared to?

At last, Eminem bounds onto the stage, joined by his touring DJ, the Alchemist, and rapper (and longtime pal) Denaun Porter. The crowd chants along as he tears through a few tunes from his long-promised album, Relapse (which will hit stores four days later, on May 19). When Eminem finishes, they plead in vain for ”one more song!”

They’re not the only ones hungry for more. In the weeks leading up to its release, Relapse has been hailed by critics and fans — many of whom heard it when it leaked earlier this month — as a landmark in the 36-year-old rapper’s career, a stunning return to form from the man who is arguably contemporary rap’s most talented lyricist. Even the competition is impressed. ”I think that the ‘Insane’ song is genius,” Kanye West tells EW, referring to one of Relapse’s most outrageous tracks.

Relapse is already shaping up to be one of summer’s most talked-about albums — and, quite likely, one of its biggest. Two early singles have made digital history. In February, ”Crack a Bottle” sold a record 418,000 downloads in its first week. It was Eminem’s first No. 1 since 2002’s ”Lose Yourself.” Two months later, another song, ”We Made You,” racked up 758,000 views on MTV.com in its first 24 hours alone, the highest single-day total by far in the site’s history. The weekend before its release, Relapse was streamed more than 7 million times on MySpace Music.

Yet for all that, the album almost didn’t get made. As Eminem launches into his big comeback, he’s finally opening up about the past four years, when he shunned the spotlight amid dark rumors of drug abuse and depression. The scariest part is how many of those tales turned out to be true. Tonight, Eminem is back. But he had to go through a personal hell to get here.

In August 2005, Eminem was in trouble. Just over a month into the massively successful Anger Management 3 tour, he abruptly canceled all 10 remaining dates. ”Exhaustion,” he claimed at first. But the truth was far more worrisome: Eminem was headed to rehab. All through the tour, he’d been popping dozens of powerful prescription pills every day. ”I was taking Valium, Ambien, and Vicodin,” he writes in a remarkably revealing first-person essay recently published in Vibe magazine. ”And I was taking a lot. If I was to give you a number of Vicodin I would actually take in a day? Anywhere between 10 and 20. Valium, Ambien, the numbers got so high I don’t even know what I was taking.” Alan ”The Alchemist” Maman, a pre-fame acquaintance who started working as Eminem’s DJ on that ill-fated tour, was surprised at the time to learn of Em’s drug abuse. ”That was one of the worst parts of his addiction,” he says now. ”He knew how to disguise it.” Eminem lasted only about two weeks in rehab, ditching the program and diving right back into drugs.

That’s when things got really bad. In the spring of 2006, Eminem’s life seemed to fall apart all at once. First he split up with his wife, Kim, filing for divorce on April 5, just 82 days after their second wedding (they had previously divorced in 2001). Theirs had been a notoriously troubled union, marked by public disputes, lawsuits, and Eminem’s lyrical fantasies about gruesomely murdering her. Eminem agreed to share custody of their daughter, Hailie Jade, then 10 years old.

The very next week, Eminem’s best friend was gunned down during a bar fight on Detroit’s 8 Mile Road. DeShaun ”Proof” Holton was the skilled rapper who’d provided the basis for Mekhi Phifer’s character in 8 Mile. He had been Eminem’s closest confidant since the age of 14. ”I have never felt so much pain in my life,” Eminem wrote in his 2008 memoir, The Way I Am. ”His death brought me to my knees.”

How do you cope with a loss like that? Where do you go after that moment of extraordinary pain? Eminem just hid. More Valium, more Vicodin, more, more, more: Behind the scenes, Eminem’s life had become one long medication binge.

One afternoon around Christmas of 2007, Eminem overdosed on methadone pills, collapsing in the bathroom of his Detroit mansion. Days after leaving the hospital, he underwent knee surgery (for an old injury) and started gobbling painkillers again. ”I thought it was a sign of weakness to have an addiction,” he writes in Vibe. ”I didn’t even want to believe it was a disease. But I realized it when I f—ing almost died and then I still went back to using. I literally almost died.”

In the spring of 2008, Eminem dragged himself to rehab again. With the help of a doctor, a treatment program, and advice from his friend Elton John, who knows a thing or two about recovery, he got clean for good. ”There’s something that triggers in my brain that will not allow me to stop when I take one of whatever it may be,” he said in an interview on his Sirius XM channel, Shade 45, last week. ”I am taking every step every day, which is a lifelong process…. You have to say, ‘I’m an addict. I’m powerless over this s—.”’

Even during his lowest points, Eminem had been working on music constantly. But once he got sober — the date was April 20, 2008, he remembers clearly — the rapper discarded almost all the unreleased tracks he’d made on drugs. In the months that followed, he redoubled his efforts to craft a suitable comeback record. While Eminem had handled the bulk of his last few albums’ production, this time he handed beatmaking duties to his longtime mentor Dr. Dre, giving himself room to focus on honing his lyrics.

Sobriety also made Eminem easier to be around. Gone was the erratic temper of his drug years. Instead, those who worked with him on Relapse describe a total pro. ”He was very focused,” says actor Mathew St. Patrick (Six Feet Under), who voiced the role of an EMT in the skit ”Mr. Mathers” (one of many tracks that dramatize Eminem’s journey to rock bottom). ”He knew what he wanted, and he’s really articulate about how to go about getting it.”

His friends say Eminem is totally changed. ”I can’t even explain how in the zone he is,” says the Alchemist. ”I think some of the drugs make you introverted and antisocial. Maybe everybody got accustomed to that with Em, because that became part of his personality. But now that’s all gone. The funny guy and the creativity are all still there. Maybe he had to almost die for it to happen, but man, he’s on point.”

Finally, on April 4 of this year, Eminem returned to public view. Downtown Cleveland was humming with anticipation that evening, gearing up for his comeback moment: inducting his childhood heroes Run-DMC into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Darryl ”DMC” McDaniels recalls that night as ”a crazed scene. He’s such a large star that the whole buzz is ‘Is Em in the building? Anybody seen him?’ He was trying to be so secretive. After he did the induction, we went backstage and posed for press pictures. The first thing out of his mouth was ‘Yo, I’ve never been so scared in my life.”’

He needn’t have worried. Eminem delivered a moving tribute to Run-DMC that night, and since then he’s wasted no time reminding the world of what they’d been missing in his absence. Three days after the Hall of Fame ceremony, he released a video for first single ”We Made You,” which pokes fun at celebrities from Jessica Simpson to Sarah Palin. The message was clear: The potty-mouthed pop culture satirist par excellence was back. Yet anyone expecting a fun party album is in for a shock. Relapse is Eminem’s darkest work yet, delving deep into visions of violence and mental disturbance. The second single, ”3 a.m.,” finds him rapping maniacally about a drug-fueled killing spree. ”He wanted a performance in a bloody bathtub,” says James Larese of Syndrome, the team that directed the gory ”3 a.m.” clip. ”He’s on a serial-killer vibe, and he wanted to play that up.”

The rest of Relapse is even more grim. Many of Eminem’s new songs depict his drug years in terms that seem to alternate between raw honesty and wild hyperbole. And though rumors have spread that his estranged and reportedly ailing mother, Debbie Nelson, is eager for a reconciliation, a song titled ”My Mom” takes aim at her as viciously as ever. (”Don’t get me wrong,” he said during last week’s Sirius XM interview. ”At the end of the day, she is my mother and I do love her.”) It all adds up to a level of violence, misogyny, and homophobia that can feel as numbing as any of the prescription meds Eminem incessantly raps about consuming.

Yet Eminem’s colleagues believe that Relapse’s shocking subject matter is a key part of his healing process. ”His music is his therapy,” says DMC, who lost a friend of his own to gun violence (Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay was murdered in 2002) and subsequently went to rehab for alcoholism. ”I can relate to everything he’s saying. [Expressing] those dark, depressing times, that’s what rock ‘n’ roll is supposed to do.” ”3 a.m.” codirector Larese agrees: ”He went through a lot of s—, and he’s just now ready to deal with it. This is how it’s manifesting. You can look at this as ‘Man, he’s really dark.’ But in person, he’s such a cool, calm, relaxed guy. This is a catharsis for him.” It might even be helping his recovery. ”I think it’s very healthy,” says Harold Owens, senior director of the MusiCares addiction program. ”That is so far away from being in denial.”

Of course, it’s also pretty distant from typical pop-chart fare, and despite early positive indications, it’s unclear just how huge Relapse will end up being. Though ”Crack a Bottle” hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, it was bumped off the next week by Flo Rida’s ”Right Round.” Relapse’s other singles, meanwhile, have mostly faded at radio. ”Five years ago, if an Eminem record came out, putting it on was a no-brainer,” says Lee Cagle, program director at Atlanta’s 95.5 The Beat. ”Now? Not so much.”

The story is vastly different when it comes to other media. ”He continues to be a staple here,” says MTV executive vice president Amy Doyle, who oversees music strategy for all MTV networks. ”Everything we do with him gets a huge reaction.” And MySpace Music president Courtney Holt says interest in Relapse is even higher online: ”Regardless of where he is in terms of radio chart position, I can tell you that his audience is looking for this record.”

Either way, Eminem may have already scored his most meaningful success with Relapse just by finishing it — and by finally turning his life around and emerging from those desperate few years. ”There’s an enthusiasm in his music that I think he’s been missing, and I think he knows that,” says journalist Sacha Jenkins, who did the interviews that became The Way I Am. ”I get the sense that for Em, he’s happy to be alive.”

Exclusive Eminem Tees from MySpace and ShockHound!

Exclusive tees from our friends at MySpace Music and ShockHound. Quantities are limited. Like, really limited. Once they’re gone, they’re gone for good.

A reader just gave me this link. See how Eminem does his crazy freestyle, teaming up with well known TV moderator Stefan Raab…this is bananas!!!

All credit goes to Mabuse… Many thanks for sharing:)

One of my contacts on my space sent me the snippets to two other Eminem songs…I must say that I LIKE these ones…his style is different and he does some lyrical efforts on them.

Enjoy:)

Eminem/ Relapse/ album review

Global rating of the product : 2 stars

For a first time listener, Relapse shouldn’t be a reference album. Anybody who’d check Eminem as an artist for the first time should really dig deeper into the emcee’s previous work in order to see what he can do. Unfortunately, Relapse is a pale reflection of Eminem’s artistry.
I can tell, because I have spent years enjoying Eminem’s music and writing about it-from his pre-Infinite work till now. Eminem’s music influenced my life tremendously and in a very positive way. So please don’t take my honest critic of his present album as the words from the mouth of a hater. I am definitely not. I still have loads of respect for Eminem and I am still enjoying his former work.
But from a professional’s point of view, I owe the artist the truth about how I feel about his current music. I also owe the truth to all of you readers, no matter if you like to hear it or not.
The first detail that really bothered me while listening to Relapse, is Eminem’s fake accent. I used to enjoy his REAL voice and his edgy spirit. I keep asking me where Slim Shady has gone. Let me guess…oh true, Eminem killed his fictional character in Encore, but was he right to do so?
Not in my opinion. The full mouthed, lyrical, bad spirited Slim Shady had the power to conquer crowds with his creative skills. He has now been replaced by a weak sounding supposedly ironic accent that spoils most songs in the album.
Second detail that really spoils it all: the music.
Hip hop purists will probably agree with me: Relapse sounds more like bad mainstream pop than good hip hop. Eminem takes the role of a random singer. Has he forgotten that he was supposed to rap on a rap album?

While I still appreciate Eminem’s very personal approach in the album and his honesty towards his public about what he has been going through during the last couple of years, I am disappointed with his performance. I think I am not the only critic/ listener to feel the same way.
I was bored, most of the time. Although My Mom recalls some serious drug addiction history in Eminem’s family, the usually brilliant emcee should have chose a less theatrical entry and a more serious tone to talk about such issues. The instrumentals ( horrible tuba sounds) don’t fit with the theme either.
I already expressed about the mediocrity of We Made You. Also, I don’t see the point in dissing so many celebrities while being himself a very famous person.
Despite the fact I don’t like Eminem’s voice in it, 3 AM ( particularly after watching the video) is probably the best song of the album. Eminem has made a good effort on the lyrics, and his video is very imaginative. Plus he keeps being real about his addiction. The instrumentals and vocals manage to create a scary atmosphere here. If he only dropped that stupid accent, the song would have been fine, because I even enjoyed the rapping style in it.

I enjoyed Bagpipes From Bagdad, because I don’t like Mariah Carey and her brand new husband. Nick Cannon is fully ignorant to call a white man who spend most of his life among black folks and whose best friends and collaborators are mostly black – a racist. You go, Eminem, diss them hypocrites!
However, most other songs in the albums are really disappointing.
Crack A Bottle is a nightmare- lyrically and instrumentally as well. Even Dr Dre sets up a very weak performance. The video doesn’t make sense at all.
Old Times Sakes does not enlighten the artists abilities at all.
Globally speaking, Eminem’s new album is a flop. I am really disappointed. Marshall Mathers might be going through a lot at the moment, I don’t know. Hopefully he will come back with something better in the future.

Copyright© by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

Most Eminem songs from Relapse have been leaked on You Tube…I have listened to most of them and VERY HONESTLY I am not feeling Eminem’s album at all…it really makes me sad to listen to low quality music from him…his music resembles more mainstream pop than rap music…and I define myself as a hip hop fan…I’m not in harmony with what he is doing, don’t like what he is doing at the moment.

I don’t care how some people will rate me (oh you are not a fan any more, oh what’s the purpose of your blog, then etc etc…)

Ok…let me clear things once for good…

I happen to be a music journalist and a writer who has explored Eminem’s work in depth. I have ALWAYS been very appreciative of the artist’s lyrics and work in general.

No, I don’t hate Eminem. I am just being honest. I still think that he is an outstanding person and artist. I love his global work and do consider him as a lyrical genius and a major hip hop artist. But I have the right not to feel his current music and the turn it is taking.

I am disappointed of the way Eminem dumbs his music down. I don’t like his current accent and I don’t like when he sings. He is very good at rapping, not at singing in my opinion.

I would tell him face to face the same things I am already telling you all. If you respect somebody, you won’t kiss ass. You will tell the person the truth, That’s the way I view things.

I’d act the same way with anybody else.

I’ll review Relapse as soon as I will be less busy. You might not like this upcoming review, but I promise to be honest about how I feel about this album.

Sincerely,

Isabelle

One of my readers, a German speaking reader of my Eminem blog, gave me a very interesting interpretation in German for the naked manikin man in Eminem’s recent video. She wrote the following comment:

“Zu der Textstelle
“Kiss the naked manikin man again
You can see him standin in my
Front window
If you look in”

Meine Theorie dazu ist, dass der nackte, puppenartige Mann für den Tod steht, der ihm schon so nah war, dass er ihn geküsst/angehaucht hat … der Hauch des Todes … würde auch zu seinem Interview passen, wonach er angibt dass er fast draufgegangen wär wegen einer Überdosis Methaton. Außerdem hatte er sich auch mit Suizidgedanken zu kämpfen nach Proofs Tod – für ihn war das sicherlich ein harter Schicksalsschlag und noch dazu vorher das “Toy Soldiers” Video … da können schon Schuldgefühle hochkommen.

( Vielen Dank noch Nathalie:))

Her interepretation is that the naked man doll is a symbol of death, as Eminem has been that much close to death that he kissed/ breathed it…the breath of death…it would also fit into his interview in which he specifies that he nearly died from an overdose of methadon. Moreover, he also had to struggle with suicidal thoughts after Proof’s death that was certainly a hard hit from destiny…also, if you think that he has released Toy Soldiers before, culpability thoughts must have overwhelmed him too…

Thumbs up to Nathalie for actively contributing to the theme and helping me and other readers on Eminem’s video’s symbolism:)
I really wanted to share this with you, as her interpretation seems original and quite interesting. Feel free to comment…

Isabelle