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Eminem

Eminem

A protégé of Dr. Dre, rapper Eminem emerged in 1999 as one of the most controversial rappers to ever grace the genre. Using his biting wit and incredible skills to vent on everything from his unhappy childhood to his ... A protégé of Dr. Dre, rapper Eminem emerged in 1999 as one of the most controversial rappers to ever grace the genre. Using his biting wit and incredible skills to vent on everything from his unhappy childhood to his contempt for the mainstream media, his success became the biggest crossover success the genre had seen since Dre's solo debut seven years earlier. The controversy over his lyrics was the best publicity any musician could afford, and being the first Caucasian rapper to make a significant impact in years may have given him a platform not afforded to equally talented African-American rappers. A gifted producer as well, his talents always seemed overshadowed by his media presence, which was a mix between misunderstood genius and misogynistic homophobe. Both may be true, but his message spoke to legions of disaffected youth who had few role models in the rap world who could relate to the white lower-class experience.

He was born Marshall Mathers in St. Joseph, MO (near Kansas City), spending the better part of his impoverished childhood shuttling back and forth between his hometown and the city of Detroit. Initially attracted to rap as a teen, Eminem began performing at age 14, performing raps in the basement of his high school friend's home. The two went under the names Manix and M&M (soon changed to Eminem), which Mathers took from his own initials. Due to the unavoidable racial boundaries that came with being a white rapper, he decided the easiest way to win over underground hip-hop audiences was to become a battle rapper and improv against other MCs in clubs. Although he wasn't immediately accepted, through time he became such a popular attraction that people would challenge him just to make a name for themselves.

His uncle's suicide prompted a brief exodus from the world of rap, but he returned and found himself courted by several other rappers to start groups. He first joined the New Jacks, and then moved on to Soul Intent, who released Eminem's first recorded single in 1995. A rapper named Proof performed the B-side on the single and enjoyed working with Eminem so much that he asked him to start yet another group. Drafting in a few other friends, the group became known as D-12, a six-member crew that supported one another as solo artists more than they collaborated. The birth of Eminem's first child put his career on hold again as he started working in order to care for his family. This also instilled a bitterness that started to creep into his lyrics as he began to drag personal experiences into the open and make them the topic of his raps.

A debut record, 1996's Infinite, broke his artistic rut but received few good reviews, as comparisons to Nas and AZ came unfavorably. Undaunted, he downplayed many of the positive messages he had been including in his raps and created Slim Shady, an alter ego that was not afraid to say whatever he felt. Tapping into his innermost feelings, he had a bounty of material to work with when his mother was accused of mentally and physically abusing his younger brother the same year. The next year his girlfriend left him and barred him from visiting their child, so he was forced to move back in with his mother, an experience that fueled his hatred toward her and made him even more sympathetic toward his brother. The material he was writing was uncharacteristically dark as he began to abuse drugs and alcohol at a more frequent rate. An unsuccessful suicide attempt was the last straw, as he realized his musical ambitions were the only way to escape his unhappy life. He released the brutal Slim Shady EP, a mean-spirited, funny, and thought-provoking record that was light years ahead of the material he had been writing beforehand. Making quite the impression in the underground not only for his exaggerated, nasal-voiced rapping style but also for his skin color, many quarters dubbed him the music's next "great white hope."

According to legend, Dr. Dre discovered his demo tape on the floor of Interscope label chief Jimmy Iovine's garage, but the reality was that Eminem took second place in the freestyle category at 1997's Rap Olympics MC Battle in Los Angeles and Iovine approached the rapper for a tape afterward. It wasn't until a month or two later that he played the tape for an enthusiastic Dre, who eagerly contacted Eminem. Upon meeting, Dre was taken back by his skin color more than his skill, but within the first hour they had already started recording "My Name Is." Dre agreed to produce his first album and the two released "Just Don't Give a Fuck" as a single to preview the new album. A reconciliation with his girlfriend led to the two getting married in the fall of 1998, and Interscope signed the rapper and prepared to give him a massive push on Dre's advice. An appearance on Kid Rock's Devil Without a Cause only helped the buzz that was slowly surrounding him.

The best-selling Slim Shady LP followed in early 1999, scoring a massive hit with the single and video "My Name Is," plus a popular follow-up in "Guilty Conscience"; over the next year, the album went triple platinum. With such wide exposure, controversy ensued over the album's content, with some harshly criticizing its cartoon-ish, graphic violence; others praised its edginess and surreal humor, as well as Eminem's own undeniable lyrical skills and Dre's inventive production. In between albums, Eminem appeared on Dre's Dr. Dre 2001, with his contributions providing some of the record's liveliest moments.

The Marshall Mathers LP appeared in the summer of 2000, moving close to two-million copies in its first week of release on its way to becoming the fastest-selling rap album of all time. Unfortunately, this success also bred more controversy, and no other musician was better suited for it than Eminem. Among the incidents that occurred included a scuffle with the Insane Clown Posse's employees in a car stereo shop, a bitter battle with pop star Christina Aguilera over a lyric about her fictional sexual exploits, a lawsuit from his mother over defamation of character, and an attack on a Detroit club goer after Eminem allegedly witnessed the man kissing his wife. Fans ate it up as his album stood strong at the top of the charts. But the mainstream media was not so enamored, as accusations of homophobia and sexism sprung from the inflammatory lyrics in the songs "Kill You" and "Kim." It was this last song that ended his marriage, as the song's chosen topic (violently murdering his real life wife Kim Mathers) drove his spouse to a suicide attempt before they divorced. Eminem toured throughout most of this, settling several of his court cases and engaging a mini-feud with rapper Everlast.

The annual Grammy Awards nominated the album for several awards, and to silence his critics the rapper called on Elton John to duet with him at the ceremony. In 2001, he teamed with several of his old Detroit running buddies and re-formed D-12. Releasing an album with the group, Eminem hit the road with them that summer and tried to ignore the efforts of his mother, who released an album in retaliation to his comments. After getting off of the road, he stepped in front of the camera and filmed 8 Mile, a film loosely based on his life directed by an unlikely fan, Curtis Hanson (Wonder Boys). His constant media exposure died out as well, leaving him time to work on new music.

When he re-emerged in 2002, he splashed onto the scene with "Without Me," a single that attacked Moby and Limp Bizkit and celebrated his return to music. Surprisingly, the following album, The Eminem Show, inspired little controversy. Instead, the popular second single, "Cleanin' Out My Closet," told of his dysfunctional childhood and explained his hatred toward his mother in a mannered, poignant fashion. And being Eminem, he followed this up with an appearance at MTV's Video Music Awards that inspired boos when he verbally assaulted Moby. Targets on his third straight chart-topper, 2004's Encore, ranged from Michael Jackson ("Just Lose It") to war-hungry politicians ("Mosh"). The album was another smash hit for Eminem, but the resulting touring was fraught with setbacks and controversy. First there was a bus crash in Missouri that injured protégé Stat Quo. Then there were reports of the tour being under-attended. There were also rumors of Eminem retiring, which he quickly quelled. However, the tour's European leg was eventually canceled due to "exhaustion," and Em entered rehab for a dependency on sleeping pills. However, by the end of 2005 he was back with a new video. In typical Eminem fashion, the clip for "When I'm Gone" riffed on his recent rehab stay. He also issued the greatest-hits set Curtain Call that December.

The year 2006 was a turbulent one. Mathers remarried Kim on January 14, 2006, but the couple filed for divorce in April. Also in April, D-12 member Proof, Mathers' best friend, was killed in a shooting at a Detroit nightclub. In August, Eminem resurfaced as producer on Obie Trice's Second Round's on Me and in October he was rapping on Akon's hit single "Smack That." He capped the year off with Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, a mixtape featuring artists from his Shady label.

Jason Ankeny & Bradley Torreano
allmusic.com
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tapes
Tape	Songs	Comments	Author
GOOD SHIT sequenced so as to make as little sense as is possible	55	2	monokhromenite
I'm Yours. Songs to my best friend who I love to death. Who knows but is afraid to hurt me. Who I will live the rest of my life hoping for.	30	8	Meguca
Songs That Have Changed Me These are songs I've come across that have had a great impact on me or have helped me in some way. These are the songs I listen to in comple...	21	0	pleasebeatme92
LIFE. Love, Heartbreak, Nostalgia, Moving Forward, etc; All songs I can relate to on some level.	30	0	x24kate
Fuzzy Mix I love all types of music, so my tape will probably be very ecclectic, but filled with songs that move me.	44	0	fuzzball73
July Feel-Good Mix This is a mix of songs that just make you feel good. They come from several different genres, but they're all power jams for me right now.	13	0	hager693
My favourites This mixtape contains a variation of different types of genres.	30	1	Lewie9021
You're the only mistake I'll never regret.	15	0	Frostilina
If it wasn't for your misfortune I'd be a heavenly person today "Never let me go," she says. "Hold me like this for a hundred thousand million days."	19	4	Enooby
my life and life in general in my own ways a mix about how i am and my feelings towards my life and life in general.music is really important in my life and is probably my only real f...	27	0	nikytann
My Music	27	0	Dragoniss
Thinking songs Songs that make you think, Songs with a deeper meaning than being in love or being sad	25	1	Ladysphinx
Fav Songs 1	21	0	icarter
CRAPPY dayz when im feeling glum, and need a good release....	12	0	loveJungleBoogy
Best songs My favorite songs	36	0	MetaKnightXL
The end or the beginning what takes you there got you there	9	4	ALWAYSYOURS4EVER
Get You There	25	1	fauxtwenny
7:02	18	0	Leblanc
wow! i love to jump around!	22	2	XtraELITE
mad? when im upset....	15	0	XtraELITE
It's Complicated Theres alot of things that we as individuals put into relationship's. You will always know they will alway's have a piece of your heart no m...	30	0	shadowz0789
Eminem It's time for an Eminem tape	7	0	Sebastian1985
Creme De La Creme The best of the best in music.	20	0	OneNOnlyNatie
laneteg	18	0	laneteg
♥ Volume 1 ♥	30	1	ghostthefestivals
Soundtrack to the Movies A collection of some great songs from movies.	9	0	MidnightzMagick
The Good Ol' Days (of Slim Shady) some of my personal favourite Eminem songs from back in the day	12	0	ShadyShineMetalUndead
Love Struck This mixtape is filled with songs that describe how I feel when I like somebody. Whether the feelings are mild, medium, or hot. . . kind of ...	15	4	xxFireHazardxx
Cry Me A River Volume 1 Heartbreak. Some of the songs are from a boy's perspective, but I just change them to a girls.	27	0	liljojo204
Moody	20	0	malouza
Broken Hearted When my heart is broken there are always certain songs that I listen to. I try to take my mind off of whatever I've been thinkin. These are ...	14	0	xxFireHazardxx
MyMusic	32	0	DieToLive
jamalamsssssssssssssssss <3	1	0	hannahmaeve
emi/freddy emi heart and freddy krueger playlist for my story on quizilla	4	0	emikrueger
Ginny	30	0	sleighr
Eminem	4	1	LovinAutumn88
Life, lately. Just about life lately.	3	0	inkeater
Juanchis Many genres	5	9	TopFH
??????????????????????	24	3	moonshadowbird396
Dangerously In Love An abusive relationship, but you're really in love.	30	3	liljojo204
Chris and Heidi	9	0	LovinAutumn88
Street cred	22	1	Enooby
Lun@tic's mix This is dedicated to my late brother,through struggle and hardships there is good to come,I miss you!!!	18	0	superdunx
now he's gone	12	0	golshid
Favorite Volume 2	28	0	melomano
Angry Music Self explanatory	10	0	pleasebeatme92
May 2012	13	1	abasketcase1992
The greates hip-hop/rap songs These are some of my favorite hip-hop and/or rap songs. I don't listen to much rap, but when in "that mood" these are awesome! Some songs an...	7	0	jeanraymond
Hip Hop Life	4	0	srogers900
Fav Lyrics	17	0	kate22689
Hiddleston's Songs of the Day Volume 2 Second volume of the songs actor Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers, War Horse) has been tweeting since October 2011. You can find him at twitter....	30	7	Reinbeast
Faves	4	0	HeatherFox
Toys! Songs related to acting like kids, not growing up, toys and children games :)	3	0	maili111
Pump Yourself Up and move on songs These songs are to pump yourself up to prepare for something. Be it a workout or moving on from a failed relationship. They empower me and f...	17	0	DraconiusK
August 2012	7	0	abasketcase1992
smokin' some of tht guud stuff ( ; me goin out and smokin' tht guud stuff if yew kno wudt i m tlkn' bout ! ! ! !	21	0	angel97
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj-hOg9DkEE new video ...	2	0	smsm11
001	1	0	jaybee12
Illuminati celebs mixtape! After much research, these are some celebrities that have been found as being involved in illuminati. There must be a great deal more........	28	0	radionuts
FAVES.... Just some of my favorites songs. Different genres. What I love.	3	0	Lynn1974
Songs That Make Me Happy :)	11	1	alphapeyt
hannahjewellx	2	0	hanjewell
Wedding Reception Music Here are some songs I think people will always know and want to dance to at a wedding. Enjoy!	81	0	makattack
Best of the BEST So I thought it would be fun for everyone to say some of their favorite songs, and we can make a big mixtape of them all. Comment with your ...	10	2	Lovely97
Music As Inspiration Songs that mention music as an inspiration, music moves them, keeps them alive. Kinda like me!	25	0	Sue866

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