If you go to any urban city in the country, odds are you’ll find 1,000 MC’s on every street corner sharpening their skills, and praying for super stardom. But as for the industry itself, you can easily count Hip-Hop superstars on one hand, and Marshall Bruce Mathers III is clearly among that elite and very short list.
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Releasing his platinum return to music in Relapse last year after a five-year hiatus, the lyricist strikes again while the iron is still hot with Recovery.
In doing so, the retired battle rapper from Detroit hits up producers like Just Blaze, Havoc (Mobb Deep), DJ Khalil, Boi-1da, Jim Jonsin, and some guy named Dr. Dre to man the boards; while high-profile guest spots come in the form of Rihanna, Lil Wayne, and P!nk.
He then begins his release therapy with the sinister sounds of ‘Cold Wind Blows’ (prod. by Just Blaze), and in true Eminem fashion; he christens the track with lines like:
“I’ll kick a b*tch in her cunt till it makes her queef, and it sounds like a f*ckin whoopee cushion.”
He then leaves all jokes behind on the DJ Khalil-produced ‘Talkin 2 Myself’ (feat. Kobe), where he honestly opens up about his resentment toward people like Lil Wayne and Kanye West during their hot periods, while he was on the shelf watching them catch momentum.
The rock-inspired ‘Won’t Back Down’ (feat. P!nk) then comes into play, where Eminem becomes one with the production, with the fiery pop singer handling the rest with her vocals.
On ‘Going Through Changes,’ Eminem once again gets personal with listeners, as the subject matter consists of his failed relationship(s) with his ex-wife, the fear of disappointing his children, Proof’s death, and drug addiction.
Making more than one appearance on Recovery, Just Blaze makes the most of his time, and resurrects Haddaway’s massive 1993 dance hit ‘What Is Love,’ and molds it into ‘No Love’ (feat. Lil Wayne). As he’s done throughout his career when it comes to collaborations, Eminem outshines his guest, who happens to be Young Money’s incarcerated front man, but Weezy does give a valiant effort in keeping up.
Slim Shady completes his twelve-step program with sincere material like ‘Space Bound,’ ’25 To Life,’ his song to Proof in ‘Never Over,’ and the Rihanna-assisted ‘Love The Way You Lie.’
Where Relapse missed the mark, Recovery lands directly on the X. Besides the fact of being a lyricist’s lyricist, Eminem’s other intangible trait has been his ability to connect with his listeners in a way that many other artists cannot.
Opting to minimize his silliness this time around in exchange to further let people into his world, Eminem once again proves why he one the best in the business at sharing his pain, struggles, and triumphs with just his words alone.
