It's this kind of self-aware, real/fake interplay that fuels the best parts of Marshall Mathers. Not to mention talking about how he "became a commodity/because I'm W-H-I-T-E 'cause MTV was so friend-ly to me." He even bites the Public Enemy lyric "once again, back is the incredible/the rhyme animal." Then there's Snoop on Eminem's own album, calling him the great white American hope. Just to prove he doesn't give a fuck, on "I'm Back" he also disses Puffy and raps about fucking Jennifer Lopez. Dre's dead/he's locked in my basement." That independent spirit doesn't prevent Em from including "Bitch Please II" with Dre and Snoop on The Marshall Mathers LP. That's why it's funny when Em takes them on, imitating them in one of his wonderful whiny, funny voices: "Dr. And remember, Dre?arbiter of real niggahood?was behind him, which led a lot of people to give him a chance. That's why it was so important to get the fatherless, trailer-trash backstory into heavy rotation, to counter all the people who either don't or can't listen and so thought (still think) of Eminem as just another whiteboy rapper. Don't the biggest bullshitters you know talk a lot about keeping it real? Eminem had a strike against him when it came to being accepted as real by certain segments of the record-buying, review-writing public. "Realness" is the commodity in rap these days but it's in short supply. Not to mention the way he played with what was real and what was not. But if he's not real, why bother? What was so compelling about Eminem when he first blew up was his mix of recognizably authentic fucked-upness and razor-sharp commercial smarts (okay, the smarts were just as much Dre's and Paul Rosenberg's and Jimmy Iovine's). This is like saying that Olivier playing Archie Rice in The Entertainer was art, but what Archie did onstage was entertainment. Slim Shady is a character, he's not real. Of course, you're saying, Eminem's just about entertainment, not art. It was also one of the greatest albums of the last 10 years. The Slim Shady LP was a calculated bitch-slap across the face of popular culture. If the artist is interested in maintaining his commercial viability and making what the Kinks called some real money?the kind of money you make after you're number one?then he knows he's gotta spin too. people and critics start working overtime to convince us that it's all "just" fantasy, "just" the creative imagination at work, a persona, an alter ego?nothing to worry about, folks, move along, move along?this isn't real. How many times have you heard someone try to defend what people consider harmful or dangerous art by explaining it away? An artist puts his rawest stuff out there, it disturbs someone, maybe many someones, and immediately the managers, p.r. Previously: Every Eminem Feature: 1996-2000.The Marshall Mathers LP Eminem (Interscope) Today, in Every Eminem Feature, we conquer 2001-2005. The dude was liable to go off, during this period as much as ever, making this week’s journey into Every Eminem Feature Ever as juicy as all hell.Įvery Monday, we'll be reviewing another four-year period of Eminem features, until we reach present day. If anything, Eminem’s success, filtered through his angst over the constant scrutinization of his work, made the Detroit emcee even more of a threat on a guest track. Although having little left to prove in the way of self worth, Em would still cut his teeth on numerous tracks as a guest player. For every sold out concert tour, there was a protest in his name.ĭespite polarizing opinions of him swirling, Eminem was still a scolding hot commodity and an oft sought-out collaborator. Detractors like the FCC and GLAAD had emerged, vexed by his controversial lyrical content. As Em accrued critical acclaim, he garnered high profile enemies, too.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |