Eminem

Crazy and calculating.  Cynical but sensitive.  Passionate but private.  Staunch rebel yet fiercely loyal.  Recovering addict and loving father.  The dichotomy, or trichotomy (if that is a word, which it isn't) that is Marshall Mathers aka Slim Shady aka Eminem is what has made him one of the most intriguing figures in hip-hop since he first appeared.  We tried everything we could to put a disclaimer on this white boy's unparalleled ability as a rapper, but he proves time and time again that he deserves his page in the annals.  If he is not/ will not be the greatest, I promise he is the most-feared.

7. “Infinite” from Infinite

This is the first track from Eminem’s first album, and it drew a lot of criticism because it closely parallels Nas’ style of rhyming.  You can definitely hear Nas’ influence on Em at this stage in his career, but I'm reminded of the widely-accepted opinion about the song “Notorious Thugs” on Biggie’s Life After Death when everybody said that Biggie wrecked Bone on their own style.  I always thought that was a bit of an overstatement; in fact, I think Eminem came closer to perfecting Nas' style than B.I.G. did to mastering Bone's.  This song is pure lyrical wizardry. 

6. “My Dad’s Gone Crazy” (3^rd verse) from The Eminem Show

Eminem has a knack for making the last verse on all of his albums stick with you - I don't know if he tries to do this on purpose or not, but I wouldn't be surprised if he does.  This verse in particular has always stuck with me because of the first few bars… “My songs can make you cry, take you by surprise at the same time/ then make you dry your eyes with the same rhyme/ See what you’re seeing is a genius at work, which to me isn’t work, so it’s easy to misinterpret it at first…”  That’s tough to top as far as opening lines go…

5. “Lose Yourself” from 8 Mile Soundtrack

This song gets me crunk, hyphy, amped, whatever you wanna call it; I love it conceptually, lyrically and musically.  It’s the story of Marshall Mathers and Eminem rolled into one, similar to the entire concept of 8 Mile the movie.  Just like the character of B. Rabbit, Eminem shows his vulnerability and insecurity when describing his life before becoming famous, but ultimately his drive, killer instinct, and love for hip-hop helped transform those would-be weak points to his primary tools for successful song-writing and relating to his fan base.

4. “I’m Back” from The Marshall Mathers LP

This song includes all sides of Em’s on-the-mic personality – the cutthroat battle rapping, the grotesque and violent imagery, the candid and inappropriate teasing of other celebrities, just any and everything that his imagination can conjure.  Yet every line is carefully crafted with a high-level of lyrical skill and cleverness.

3. “Til I Collapse” from The Eminem Show

If there was ever any doubt that Eminem had the utmost respect of his peers in the rap game, I feel like it should’ve disappeared once this song was heard.  The beat has that epic feel to it, like the apocalypse is about to come, and Em plays the role of the 4th Horseman.  He lists (in order) his favorite rappers while simultaneously shooting the middle finger at any haters, whether they be rapper or critic, who choose to slander his name.

2. “Renegade” (his 1^st verse, 2^nd on the song) from Jay-Z’s album The Blueprint

Nas was the first person to say it publicly, but we were all thinking it.  Yes, Eminem clearly murdered Jigga on his own sh!t.  But it’s not surprising because the concept of the song is more suited for Slim Shady than Jay, in my opinion.  Em's best conceptual writing is done with him as the underdog, and in this song he retorts against an American society who has labeled him the bad guy rather than taking responsibility for our own lives and children.  Artistic freedom of speech at its finest (and most scathing).

1. “Stan” from The Marshall Mathers LP
These verses, this story, is one of the most compelling rap stories ever recorded.  I almost want to call it the greatest, but I won't because I don't believe in devaluing thoughtful storytelling through the imposed objectivity of rankings.  But the beauty of the story combined with Shady's unique ability to tell it so masterfully and with such ease of expression REALLY tempts me to want to say it is the best story ever told on wax.  I'll just say this: there isn't a better one.  This solidified Eminem's place in the history of not just hip-hop, but music in general.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyHwM8WP0Z4

Eminem-Recovery

If you like rhyming at its finest, you will treasure this…

When I first heard about Eminem’s drug addiction, I thought to myself, “Oh, that explains it then.”  I chose to believe that the reason most of his work since The Eminem Show had been of average quality was due to the serious pill-popping problem he had.  However, when I heard him speak about his commitment to sobriety prior to the release of Relapse, I have to admit in the back of my mind I still felt skeptical.   I always worry when rappers want to reinvent themselves, because it seems hard to relive the hunger that is felt when you are on the come-up or in your prime. So when I first heard Relapse, I let out a small sigh of relief. Luckily for us, Em never planned to change his persona, he just kicked a bad habit.  He returned to the lyrical excellence that he is capable of, and that made me happy.  Not completely satisfied, but not disappointed either.

If Relapse was Eminem’s return to form, Recovery is his return to depth.  Em has been sober for over two years now, but he’s still the illest MC, and with Recovery he shows us that there may be no cure for that disease.  He actually sounds hungrier than he’s ever been – he goes in on pretty much every song.  What I respect most about this effort from Shady is that Lil’ Wayne is the ONLY featured rapper on the 17-track album.  I haven’t actually counted, but if you calculated a standard 16-bar verse for a 3-verse song, that’s at least 816 bars of mass destruction from Eminem on one CD.  And it’s all quality music, not some 27-track mixtape with 13 features and 12 interludes, an intro and an outro.  Yes, I’m hopping on my hip-hop purist soapbox, because this is how rap is supposed to be done.  Recovery is trademark Eminem – he showcases his ability to rhyme multiple syllables and deliver nasty punchlines better than anyone, he raps with a complete disregard for political correctness and is no respecter of persons (Michael J. Fox takes Christopher Reeves’ place as his new punching bag), and he speaks candidly and thoughtfully about his personal life and shortcomings.  “Talkin 2 Myself” featuring Kobe will be the track the media talks about, because he admits to thoughts of dissing Wayne and Kanye, openly stating that lashing out in beef when your career is going sour is a punk move (hint, hint, 50 Cent – listen to your boy).  Other personal cuts include a love-hate tribute to hip-hop called “25 to Life,” a dedication to Proof in “You’re Never Over,” another frustration song about an unsuccessful love life in “Love the Way You Lie” featuring Rihanna, and of course his ode to overcoming addiction and his naysayers in the first single, “Not Afraid.”

There is nothing bad that I want to say about this album.  Well…he sings a little too much for me – pretty much every chorus that doesn’t have a feature artist has Eminem singing it.  It’s also important to note that the production on the album went in a completely different direction than albums past.  Eminem has only one track from Dr. Dre and none of his own.  He uses Boi 1da (thank you, Drake, that’s what you wanted right? haha), DJ Khalil and Just Blaze for most of the album.  I’ll say that sometimes he seems to be trying to find his rhythm and footing with some of these tracks, but that could just be my ears because I am so used to hearing Eminem’s voice marching to the beat of Dre’s or his own drum only.  But I can honestly say I’m satisfied with Recovery; Eminem got clean and as a result gave hip-hop its fix.