You can only play a character so much before it becomes a caricature. While there are elements of the crazy, irreverent Slim Shady on the CD - especially with "W.T.P." ("White Trash Party") - Eminem is not trying to go be the rapper he was on "Without Me" or "The Real Slim Shady," which is good. The tales Eminem tells are gripping, and his delivery is so razor-sharp he even outshines Lil Wayne on their collaboration, "No Love." "Space Bound" is a disturbing yet captivating song about a fatal attraction, and the excellent "Love the Way You Lie" deftly chronicles a violent, volatile relationship having Rihanna, who has been there, sing the chorus makes it even more poignant, and a bit chilling. And on "25 to Life," he even attacks the love of his life who has tormented him for the last time - not Kim, his ex-wife and favorite target, but hip-hop. On "Talking 2 Myself," he lashes out at himself for his jealousy over rappers who have overshadowed him (such as Lil Wayne and Kanye West) while his drug troubles have left the one-time rap champ punch-drunk. The best tracks on the album delve into Eminem's troubled psyche. he's always snappin at you/Marshall, what's happened that you/can't stop with these pills and your fallin off with yer skills and your own fans are laughing at you?" On the gripping "Going Through Changes," Eminem depicts a his miserable existence: grief-stricken over the killing of rapper and best friend Proof addled by drugs and hating what he's become - while his daughter watches his decline. The video game instructions and box are included. The cover art and liner notes are included. No damage to the jewel case or item cover, no scuffs, scratches, cracks, or holes. But on "Recovery," he gets more even personal, which makes his stories even more striking and heartfelt. An item that is used but still in very good condition. Just as he did with a few songs on "Relapse," Eminem details his painful battle with drug abuse with harrowing detail.
There is also more of Marshall Mathers than we've ever seen before on "Recovery" - and that's a good thing. What Eminem goes back to are the best elements that made him such a groundbreaking rapper when he made his debut over a decade ago: sick but hilarious humor clever, biting lyrics and great storytelling. For Eminem, that meant an album that consisted mostly of tired insults and violent imagery without any of the wit that once accompanied it, making it charmless, humorless and forgettable.Įven Eminem acknowledges as much on "Recovery," taking potshots at an album he now calls "trash" on "Not Afraid," he says, "Let's be honest that last Relapse CD was ehh/perhaps I ran them accents into the ground, relax/I ain't goin' back to that now." "Relapse" was a painful listen, with Eminem trying to recapture his former glory after four years off battling drug addiction. 10.Eminem's latest album is called "Recovery," but a better title might have been "Resurrection." On his seventh studio release, Eminem has finally returned to form, which is to say he's obnoxious, misogynistic, violent and often hurtful, but through it all, rarely short of brilliant.Īfter his last album, 2009's "Relapse," many wondered whether rap's most successful and perhaps most talented rapper would ever do anything to merit the tag "brilliant" again. Why: The Everday Struggle co-host was also targeted for his thoughts on Revival. He also seems to know the ins and outs of Ak’s love life as he slammed him for his choice in women. Line: “And don’t make me have to give it back to Akademiks Say this s**t is trash again, I’ll have you twisted/Like you had it when you thought you had me slippin’ at the telly/Even when I’m gettin’ brain, you’ll never catch me with a thot” (“Fall”) READ MORE: Every Sample, Songwriter And Producer On Eminem’s ‘Kamikaze’ Album (So Far) 9. During his Brilliant Idiots podcast with Andrew Shultz, the media personality he called the diss a reach and also included him in his “Trash Artists of the Year” list. Why: Em wasn’t fond of Charlamagne’s critiques of his BET Hip-Hop Awards freestyle, where he took on Trump and police brutality. Line: “Aw, man! That BET cipher was weak, it was garbage/The Thing ain’t even orange-oh my God, that’s a reach!” and “Charlamagne gonna hate anyway Doesn’t matter what I say/Give me Donkey of the Day/What a way for 2018 to get underway” (“The Ringer”)