Because of the huge misunderstandings this post has already created, I would like to advice my readers to read my statements very carefully. In NO WAY, I am lacking respect towards Eminem. Marshall Mathers has earned my respect and will always have it. This man changed my life and I am not gonna forget about it easily. However, I always considered constructive criticism as an important part of my writings and I am not gonna change it to please anybody, period!
I have been asked that question by a fellow fan recently. I gotta be honest with all of you readers, I am unable to respond to this question with a firm yes or no.
Since I discovered him as an artist, in 2001, I have always been very supportive towards Eminem, because I strongly believed in his huge skills and creativity.
I have also focused an interest on Eminem as a person, because a lot of details regarding his personal story were available through the numerous details he gave us through his lyrics. As an author, I have been working on a-yet unpublished- biographical essay that I completed since 2002.
At a time Slim Shady was spreading like a virus, I didn ‘t have any problem with Eminem getting so much personal with his fans in his songs. However, what once made the strength of his evil alter ego appears now as a huge weakness in his music.
Those weaknesses appeared in the Encore album. They will still be present unless Eminem decides to work on his themes and renew his style.
In 2005, Eminem declared that he had nothing more to say as Slim Shady and he symbolically killed his evil character.
I found it nice, funny and refreshing in the beginning, when Em introduced himself and talked about his personal problems and his love for his daughter.
I don ‘t think I will buy his next album, though, if it will be fulfilled with the same old references to Kim and to Hailie.
Seriously, this shit is starting to annoy me. I don t care about Em s whereabouts with Kim. It is a never-ending story that needs to be handled privately. Some people might have fun spreading such every day gossips, but I am not one of those, even if I happened to express on the subject.
In the same way, I don t wanna know about how much he loves Hailie. I already know it, and I am not keen on hearing the same old refrain. I do love my kids too. You don’t read it in each of my articles, though.
I wanna hear about hip hop. I wanna hear about good lyrics. I wanna see the passion. I wanna see an emcee who lives for his art.
If he doesn t bring the elements previously mentioned with him, I might lose my interest in his music.
Of course I will always give him credit for his positive impact on my life, but like I said it numerous times before, I refuse to be blind and deaf.
Maybe it is a little bit too early to answer that question: let s see what direction Eminem will give to his music next and I will decide whether I still believe in him or not.
Copyright 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved
10 thoughts on “Do I still believe in Eminem?”
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you have spent so much time on eminem as an artist and as a person. you call yourself a fan of this man. I think you are a fan because its ‘cool’ to fit in and be one. However you judge this man like you know him. You tried to make money off of him (your biographical book of him) and you say you dispise thoughs who have used him in the past. you are a hippocrite. I think you have a obession with him. you call yourself a fan and yet the album his recording hasn’t even been out yet nor has anyone listened to one track of it, and you are so quick to judge. Don’t you think this man has been through so much in his life and some much this year, who the f*ck are you to judge. Fact is you don’t know him, you just wish you did.SAD
Usually I do remove disrespectful comments like this one. Because you allow yourself the right to judge me, I will address your silly comment publicly in front of all the ppl who have been reading me for years.
First of all, I never ever allowed myself the right to judge Eminem as a person. I always stated that I do respect him as an artist (and as a person) and that i don t know him personally.
If i actually tried to make some huge chips out of my biographical essay, i would have had it published since 2002, dontcha think, you moron? the reason why I never published it was all out of respect for Marshall Mathers and I won t publish it unless I get his permission.
I am indeed a huge Eminem fan and I have nothing to justify you. I am who I am and i am entitled to my opinion. I have the right to be tired of some themes Em uses in his music, that doesn t make a worse fan of me. I perfectly know what Eminem has been through lately, thank you. I don t need little arrogant pricks to remind me of events I reported on this blog.
And to your info, I would never be the fan of any artist to “fit” it. I have a genuine love for the music. I never ever faked my like or dislike of an artist. I am not an Eminem fan to sound cool…i don t care about how you or other ppl will perceive me because of the music i like.
I am obsessed with Em, right? that’s why my blog has nothing else to offer, right? I am that much obsessed that i talk about him, Kim and co a 24/7? Or is it you I am just talking about?
You talk about me under the nickname “public opinion”? Damn, i bet you are too much of a coward to say your real name, but pretty much of a nosey asshole to take much info from this blog, am I right?
I also wish you could spell the word hypocrite which perfectly corresponds to you: you don t know me personally, yet you judge me. Who do you think you are?
I have taken shit from ppl for years for being a huge Eminem fan, but I won ‘t allow this any more. From none of you, not on the net nor in real life.
Whatever, nobody will prevent me from stating my personal opinion on Em, nor on any other subject and if you don t like it FUCK YOU!
Isa,
I was shocked when i first started reading this, but i understand where your coming from…and i respect your opinion…
Donna, ppl need to read my article carefully. I am not shitting on Em, i just do consider that he has to renew some of his musical themes if he wants to keep me thirsty for more…no matter if you are Em, Dre, and any other of the big names in the rap game, if an artist is redundant in what he says and the way he says it, the listeners might lose their interest in his music.
I am not saying i am going to lose interest in Em s music, i just said that i expect more on his future album than just stories about Kim and Hailie, because they have been over-used by Marshall…
I have been in touch with people who have followed Eminem since his very beginnings and many agree with me…
Em will always have my respect for changing my life the way he did. I nevertheless allow myself the right to be critical towards his music…and that’s how it should be. I am a music journalist, I am supposed to give good and less good criticism and to state a sincere opinion on how i feel about an artist.
Those who can take my criticism can kiss my ass lol
Like you I am an old school fan and have during the years taken alot of crap for my loyalty and even devotion to both man and music.
Don’t know the man, don’t know the wife, love the music, the passion and the anger.
I do however disagree with the undercurrent of your article. It presupposes that Em has had a conscious and even intellectual approach to his music and themes. I think it is emotional.
I huge part of his appeal and worldwide fanbase is the raw emotion and anger he has alwaysed expressed, eloquent yes, but nevertheless raw feeling. Be it paternal love, Kim, poverty, America, hypocrisy, drugs, his mother or whatever else. It is the plain feel of how he subjectively experienced his life and world around him. That is why the themes have changed from Rock Bottom to dealing with fame and money but also why family members are always present in his lyrics.
I don’t find his music as appealing as I once did. The downfall of the subjectivity of dealing with fame and money is what happens to you if you can’t handle it and that’s where he is right now. (My own very subjective meaning). What is going on in his life right now is still what comes out in his music nothing has changed here. Only the emotion is different, it is – shaking your tailfeather’s music – partymusic and a dime a dozen.
And if I should overanalyze -NO APOLOGIES – I think a part of him knows it.
It is like the emotion that once was raw and real now is dulled and going with the flow.
On that background Kim’s interviews make alot of sense and I even though I wish she hadn’t done it, I understand the feeling that motivates it and don’t see it as any different than Em writing a song about her. It springs from the same well.
We fight with the weapons we have and right now I wish she was the one with the lyrical skills as her emotions seems to be genuine and that would even the battlefield.
I have hopes that he will be back but think that can only happen if there is a change in his current situation.
This is nothing more than yet another fan’s obsessive wish that he will snap out of it.
Sorry for the rant.
LL, thank you for your contribution…I enjoyed reading your comment…i think that you raised some real interesting points regarding Marshall Mathers. I think that you might be right about the emotional part.
Em is very often speaking from his heart and this is also what moved me about his music.
No apologies is probably one of his best recent songs. I think that Encore, besides some powerful songs such as Mosh, was weaker than his other albums. In the Re Up, Em did some tremendous efforts to better himself, musically speaking. Some people say that the lyrics of No Apologies go back to 2003. anyway, i found the song excellent…
My problem is also that Em s music is less appealing than it used to be…since the 8 Mile soundtrack, it looks like it declined.
I know i get criticized for what i say regarding the quality of Em s music, but most “recent” fans haven t even taken time to listen to the early Em, the one who wrote Biterphobia, Murder She Wrote, Infinite etc…
Dear Isabelle,
I’ve been reading your article of Eminem for a while and I would like to share my opinion with you. I’m also one of the “Recent Fans” of Eminem. I’ve heard some of his music since The Slim Shady LP but at that time I really don’t care who he is or what his music was like because when I first hear “The Real Slim Shady”, I was young and naive and his music was nothing but dirty & too many curse words (sorry to say that, but I live in Asian and don’t speak English so I have to admit that the way I used to listen to foriegn musics was usually through the sounds and beats not the lyrics. The rap song is the most difficult to understand its meaning because they speaks too fast.) I really don’t like Em’s songs but he started to get my attention since the release of “Stan”, I remembered the time I’ve read the lyrics I found that his creativity is amazing but that still don’t make me say that I’ll be one of his fan.I think to myself that if he has continued making the quality music then I will give my attention to his music but even when he released Without Me or Just Lose It I still find that it’s too plain and commercial. Until not long ago(I think it’s about mid year 2006)I have time to listen to most of them from the Bad Meets Evil, The Infinite, The Slim Shady EP/LP … to the most recent The Re-Up. From then I become one of his fan and it takes me 4-5 years until I recognized how brilliant his music is at the time he’s on top of his game. So I don’t 100% agree on your view that recent fans don’t even takes time to listen to the early Em because if it wasn’t the fact that I’ve listened to his early (&recent) music, I wouldn’t have become his fan. But sadly, as you mentioned, some of the recent fans don’t. I’ve seen many many people in my countries that loves Celebrities beacuse of he/she is adorable or something like that but in ‘my opinion’ I think it will dishonest to their works.
Love,Saza
Saza,
I wasn’t talking about all of his “recent” fans.but there are some recent fans who don t really care about Em’s former work and who have no idea about the excellent lyricist he actually is…some of those ppl will praise weak songs such as Fack when there are so many good Eminem songs they probably never heard of…that’s what i meant.
Isa
I too liked No Apologies.
It is wallowing, partly self-pity, but it has a nerve and in a way and despite itself it is an apology. A kick towards the kind of criticism this blogentry is all about – speculations that he has lost it, pressure to live up to former greatness. I guess for that there is No Apolgy and no need to apologize.
I guess in a way it is unfair to accuse the artist of the inability to create the kind of feeling in the listener as he once did. People change, circumstances change, listeners change, we evolve and it is unfair to expect that he won’t.
The first thing that came to mind when I first heard No Apologies was – Pirates of the Caribbean – The kiss between Elizabeth and Jack and what she says when she ties him up – I am not Sorry!.
Em’s not sorry left me with the same feeling of defiance and refusal to be sorry – even if the sorrow and pain is quite apparent.
But I do over-analyze 🙂
I am a demanding fan, I expect things, just like you said in your first entry here about expecting good lyrics, passion and living for his art – that’s what I want and for that I accept a few humorous twists like Ass Like That or Fack, but if humor and eloquence is the only ingredienses it won’t be enough.
Other rappers can get away with making good rhymes and dance music only, a good beat and you have a hit.
But because of the tightknit connection Ems music and fans have created over time more is expected of him than others. It must be quite daunting for the man behind the alter egos and almost impossible to live up to.
Even in the MMLP he mentioned not being able to live up to – My Name Is – and the situation today can’t even compare.
Still!!
Till I Collaps is a good song to quote in this context.
– if we stop feeling him than he is not eminem.
In many ways I think that everybody that think that these entries and criticims of Em is harsh should sit down and listen to Till I Collaps.
It explains the sentiment far better than I ever could.
I think that you made some good points about people s and circumstances changes…this is so true, even if i look at my personal life within the last 5 years…I think i have matured on many things and for sure, my circumstances are not the same today than they used to be…there are indeed things human beings cannot have control of and the same rule applies to Marshall Mathers.
However, i didn t make any speculations about his future album, there are just themes i would prefer not to see on it, but well, Eminem will have the last word about it…
I am perfectly conscious that Em goes through immense pressures due to his fame and wealth, and that it must be sometimes too much, but i know (maybe i am selfish in that way) that i wanna see the same flame, the same passion that animated him at the beginning…
Till I Collapse is indeed a strong song and well written in many ways…it is true that fans expect more from Eminem, because he has shown a high level of skills and that he has that special kind of connexion with his fans…something that is hard to define, but Em seems to be closer to his fans than many other artists…