Run That Back: Eminem - The Slim Shady LP

Eminem was truly an unknown quantity in music, even after releasing the commercially successful The Slim Shady LP. On a re-listen to the turbulent, aggressive, and controversial album, did The Slim Shady LP provide listeners a hint at how high Eminem's ceiling would be or was that album simply made to piss the world off?

Pushing Boundaries and Redefining Expectations

In 2010, The Social Network, a movie that dramatized Facebook’s creation, provided an interesting yet comical time capsule that revisited the advent of modern social media. One of Facebook’s creators is presented as myopic, because he cannot see the endless potential and profit surrounding his idea. In the movie, Sean Parker, a Facebook stockholder, who is played by Justin Timberlake, attempts to convince his partners of Facebook’s possibilities by stating, “You don't even know what the thing is yet. How big it can get, how far it can go. This is no time to take your chips down. A million dollars isn't cool, you know what's cool? A billion dollars.”

The creation, growth, and rise to influence that Facebook experienced is the best analogy for Eminem’s trajectory in the music industry. Just as Facebook represented potential, controversy, and escapism, in it’s evolution toward being the medium of a generation, Eminem embodied those same characteristics as he established himself as a generation’s music artist. The most glaring comparison between Facebook and Eminem is clearly stated in the quote from Timberlake’s character in The Social Network. Both properties would achieve overwhelming influence in our society, which the masses were either in denial of admitting or slow to recognizing.

The Slim Shady LP was an album that pushed boundaries in it’s themes, language, and range. The aggressiveness of the album foreshadowed Eminem’s potential to be a force in music. Eminem’s honest delivery combined with his “Slim Shady” persona caused backlash against the album. The youthful sound paired with relatable subject matter provided teens music to “lose themselves to”. Combine those elements with the delivery of Eminem’s rhymes and curiosity surrounding the rapper’s persona, and it was the perfect storm to launch Eminem’s unique but influential career.

Name an album that delivers a deep song about life’s struggles, followed by a track that narrates the murder of an ex-wife, which leads into a satirical song, titled Role Model, which lists qualities opposite those desired in an influencer. The Slim Shady LP provides listeners with a turbulent, deranged, and humorous introduction to the psyche of Eminem. The album delivers an imaginative listening experience, unlike anything prior to it. Making his debut all the more captivating is Eminem’s blatant disregard for filtering or editing the themes and subject matter he addresses.

Backround

The Slim Shady LP showcased Eminem’s alter ego, "Slim Shady", who was rooted in the rapper’s personal and financial struggles. Ironically enough those same struggles pushed Eminem to participate in the Los Angeles Rap Olympics, which led him placing second in the competition and being discovered by employees of his eventual record label, Interscope Records. These music scouts passed Eminem’s demo to Interscope C.E.O., Jimmy Iovine, and the label’s star rapper and producer, Dr. Dre. The rapper took Eminem under his wing, despite industry colleagues urging Dr Dre against it, and the pair recorded Eminem’s major label debut together.

The Slim Shady LP was released and debuted on the Billboard 200 Album Chart at number two moving 283,000 units in the first week. The first single, My Name Is, being a top 40 hit, contributed to those sales, but the real engine for Eminem’s success was MTV. The music video channel embraced and played Eminem’s unique and over-the-top videos, such as My Name Is and Guilty Conscious. MTV’s staple show, Total Request Live (TRL), promoted the videos, which led the TRL fans voting Eminem’s music videos on the countdown show daily. This increase of exposure eventually led to The Slim Shady LP to sell over 5,000,000 copies in the United States!

High Note: If I Had

This blues influenced track begins with a deep monologue from the rapper referencing fake friends and money-driven corruption. It leads into a smooth flow of relatable lyrics centering on Eminem’s frustration of being broke, unaccepted, and helpless. Supported by an entrancing female back-up vocalist, Eminem’s voice communicates genuine emotion in clever rhymes. If I Had is a rap song paying homage to blues music by presenting a combination of anger and sadness in both instrumentals and lyrics. The song is certain to strike a chord to the majority of listeners.

Under the Radar: I'm Shady

This song contains a simple mid-tempo drum machine beat and a catchy hook with Eminem crooning, “I’m Shady!” The lyrics are the highlight, because, in one of the versus, I’m Shady humorously uses alternating bars to contradict each other. For example one bar has Eminem labeling himself a positive influence, but on the following bar he talks about shooting up a playground. Eminem is able to keep this cunning layout through the entire verse.

“I try to keep it positive and play it cool Shoot up the playground and tell the kids to stay in school 'Cause I'm the one they can relate to and look up to better Tonight I think I'll write my biggest fan a fuck you letter” - I'm Shady

Very Vintage: Eminem being obscure

On Brain Damage, the chorus has Eminem crooning that the majority of people he knows still view him as a loser drug addict, despite his first single starting to garner radio play. Rock Bottom has Eminem narrating his life as a frustrating and discouraging abyss, while he strives to find success. On Still Don’t Give a Fuck, Eminem raps a hilarious line about going over the recording budget while making his first album, leading him to accrue debt.

Spoiler alert… Eminem not only makes it out of his obscurity and financial woes, but also becomes the artist of a generation. Listening to Eminem rap and narrate knowing his ascent to stardom provokes a similar feeling to watching Jesse Eisenberg act as college aged Mark Zuckerberg in the movie The Social Network, prior to him discovering Facebook. Before their pinnacles, Eminem and Zuckerberg seemed much more relatable, but taking hindsight into consideration; it feels hard to relate to either figure, knowing their eventual peaks.

“I wanted an album so rugged nobody could touch it Spent a million a track and went over my budget Now how in the fuck am I supposed to get out of debt? I can't rap anymore, I just murdered the alphabet” - Still Don’t Give a Fuck

Hitting the Point Home

Throughout the The Slim Shady LP, it is clear that peak Eminem is not fully formed, which makes a listen in hindsight an interesting exercise. Eminem wrestles with the identity he wants to convey to his audience. Most songs deliver lyrics that depict him as an irresponsible, deranged, and ignorant kid, but scattered throughout those overall tones are lyrics that hint at brilliance, wit, and ingenuity. It is the type of bi-polar nature expected from Eminem albums, but unlike The Marshall Mathers LP or Music to Be Murdered By, this bi-polar sound seems less crafted and more natural.

Imagine being told a story by a narrator whose credibility cannot be trusted and whose description is sometimes doubted, which poses the question, “what the hel am I listening to?” It is that turbulent nature of The Slim Shady LP that makes this album an intoxicating debut. From telling fat jokes, to rapping imagined murder accounts, to narrating fucked up childhood memories, it is clear from the beginning that Eminem never aimed to make his audiences’ listening experience comfortable. While he is perfecting his craft at this point in his career, Eminem still challenges anyone listening to his music, whether that’s his art or just some sick joke, only Eminem knows.

Top of the Charts

The Slim Shady LP helped Eminem hit mainstream success by selling over 5,000,000 copies. With the impressive debut, he went from an underground rapper to an instant celebrity. While The Slim Shady LP kick-started both Eminem’s fame and controversy, it is far from the artist’s pinnacle, as his success will start to grow exponentially, including a week where he would have the number one movie, album, and single simultaneously. Eminem’s rise to fame will provide a roadmap for artists to use imaginative videos being played on MTV to garner fame.

The Crescendo

Watching the movie Social Media is an intriguing revisit of a cultural turning point, just as re-listening to The Slim Shady LP marks an interesting footnote in music. It is the hindsight that creates additional enjoyment in revisiting both Social Media and The Slim Shady LP. Thinking about the context at the time of these events, while knowing the destination adds to the intrigue and fun.

Remember… The Slim Shady LP chronicles Eminem as a starving artist at his most raw form, not shaped by the industry, unaffected by fame, and not burdened by his social influence. The context of the album release is that a major record label is releasing this debut, not knowing how the public would respond to such turbulent, violent, and deranged music. Combine those two elements together, and despite lyrics that would probably draw ire in today’s society, a re-listen of The Slim Shady LP is downright engaging!

While radio, the record labels, or the music industry didn’t know what Eminem was at the time, it became clear on his first album that the rapper laid out an early formula for success, which he will spend the years and decades following to fine tune the process. Shock the listener enough to peak curiosity. Challenge the listener enough to draw emotion. Charm the listener enough to gain good will. Perplex the listener enough to come back for more. Over two decades later, listeners keep coming back.