Eminem is one of the most successful music artists of all time. Marshall Mathers is Eminem's birth name, but he is also known as the Real Slim Shady!
Eminem is a well-known Hip Hop artist from the United States (Michigan). Infinite, Eminem's first studio album, was released in 1996. Eminem is still active in the music industry.
1. 'Lose Yourself'
This 2002 classic was written during the production of the film 8 Mile, and it captures the intensity of Em's character, "B-Rabbit," as he prepares for a rap battle.
Mathers rhymes as he describes his own movements on stage: "His palms are sweaty / knees are weak, arms are heavy." "There's already vomit on his sweater/mom's spaghetti," says the narrator."
In terms of pure lyricism, "Lose Yourself" is one of the rapper's finest achievements, and the rapped-sung hook is by far the best in his discography. But don't forget about Jeff Bass, the producer/co-writer who contributed one of the most instantly recognizable guitar riffs of all time.
2. 'Stan'
The Marshall Mathers LP, Eminem's third album, was released in 2000 and is overwhelmingly dark, focusing on Marshall's drug addiction, newfound celebrity status, and troubled (to say the least) relationship with his ex-wife, Kim.
The album's darkest moment is "Stan," the album's critically acclaimed third single. Lyrically, the song is structured as a series of angry fan letters, culminating in the narrator driving his car into a lake with his pregnant girlfriend bound in the trunk. Meanwhile, Dido's gentle, rainy-day hook ("It reminds me that it's not so bad") is constantly counterbalancing the rising tension.
3. 'The Way I Am'
On "The Way I Am," the second single from The Marshall Mathers LP, Mathers raps, "I'm not Mr. "I'm not what your friends think," says 'NSync.
While it's unlikely that anyone mistook Eminem for Justin Timberlake in the early 2000s, this energizing track still serves to separate the rapper from his achievements, framing him as an outsider in both his personal and professional lives.
Em delivers each line in a razor-sharp, syncopated cadence against a backdrop of minimal percussion and piano, railing against his record label, family, and commercial radio (who "won't even play my jam").
4. 'Criminal'
Eminem gained notoriety for both his pure rapping ability and his extremely morbid sense of humor on his breakout album, The Slim Shady LP, released in 1999. He was also labeled a pervert, a homophobe, and a loose cannon with a murder fantasy, of course.
With "Criminal," the album's closer, Eminem responds in characteristically demented fashion, flipping a massive bird in the face of his detractors
5. 'Sing for the Moment'
One of Eminem's best lyrical achievements is "Sing for the Moment," a highlight from his fourth album, The Eminem Show. Within, he defends himself against crucifying critics, enraged journalists, and outraged parents who believe his rhymes promote violence among American children."
They say music can change your mood and talk to you / Can it load and **** a gun for you?" he raps. But "Moment" isn't a pity party; by the end, Em's focus has shifted to his young fans and hip-redemptive hop's power. The classic rock riffs only add to the visceral thrill of the music.
6. 'Kill You'
Eminem walked a fine line between fiction and reality on his first few albums, terrifying conservative America with his graphic murder fantasies. But on "Kill You," the album's electrifying opener, he took that approach to its logical conclusion.
Within, Mathers purposefully blurs the line between ****** and satire, spouting one-liners about ******, rapping his own mother, and a beheading a la Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The menace is almost overwhelming, but Em's virtuoso flow and Dr. Dre's old-school G-funk production help to balance it out.
7. 'Rap Godd'
"Rap Godd," the third single from Em's latest album, The Marshall Mathers LP 2, is a return to the schizophrenic insanity of his early work, as the album title suggests.
Mathers, on the other hand, instead of focusing on a specific target or deep personal issue, simply boasts about his longevity in the rap game, referencing his heroes (Tupac, Rakim, Dr. Dre) in between random references to planking and The Walking Dead.
The loose theme is as follows: Eminem is a phenomenal rapper, as evidenced by a 15-second avalanche of syllables that makes Busta Rhymes look like a Bush League chump.
8. 'Mockingbird'
This Grammy-nominated rap-ballad is nothing like "My Name Is," for example. "Mockingbird," a love letter to Mathers' daughter, Hailie, is the emotional high point of Eminem's fifth album, Encore.
"I know you'll miss your mom and dad when I'm gone," Em rhymes over moody piano chords, but "I'm tryin' to give you the life that I never had."
9. 'Drug Ballad'
On this funky non-ballad from The Marshall Mathers LP, Em rhymes, "You have the right to remain violent and start wildin'." Although the track's moaning bass and soulful back-up vocals provide some relief from the album's oppressive darkness, the lyrics are deceptively introspective: Mathers discusses his drug addiction throughout his life, from his childhood ("All I used to do in third grade was sniff glue through a tube and play Rubix cube") to his much scarier adulthood as a rap superstar ("Let the X destroy your spinal cord / So it's not a straight line no more") to his much scarier adulthood as a rap superstar ("Let the X destroy your spinal cord / So it's not a straight line no more").
10. 'Without Me'
On the rousing lead-off track for The Eminem Show, Em boasts, "This looks like a job for me." "We need a little squabble." And nobody did controversy better in 2002 than Eminem.
This sax-driven beat-monster is basically a **** you parade: With some of his sharpest wisecracks to date, Mathers runs through a checklist of musical enemies (Limp Bizkit, Moby, even poor Chris Kirkpatrick of 'NSync).