The Eminem Show
Encyclopedia
The Eminem Show is the fourth studio album
by the American rapper Eminem
, released in 2002. It was the best-selling album of 2002 in the United States, with sales of 7.6 million copies. At the Grammy Awards of 2003
it was nominated for Album of the Year
and became Eminem's third LP in four years to win the award for Best Rap Album. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
chart, selling approximately 284,000 units in its first week, which due to a premature release by retailers and street-date violations, counted only a day and a half of sales. The album sold 1,322,000 copies the following week, where it registered a full week of sales. The album topped the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks. The album also spent five consecutive weeks at the top of the UK Albums Chart
. It has gone on to sell over ten million copies. On March 7, 2011, the album was certified ten-times-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
, making it Eminem's first album to receive a Diamond certification
in the United States. In 2003, the album was ranked #317 on Rolling Stone's
list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
, and was later ranked at #84 on the same magazine's best albums of the 2000s decade. The album received critical praise by most music critics and is often debated as Eminem's most personal and best work. Eminem himself acknowledged during an interview with MTV that was recorded on May 25, 2002, that he felt that The Eminem Show was his "best record so far". The Eminem Show was Eminem's first album to be mainly self-produced.
stores during that period. Despite the confusion over the exact release date, the album still managed to have a very successful debut on the charts. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 with sales of 284,000 copies. This marked the first time an album had topped the charts with such an abbreviated sales week. The album sold 1,322,000 copies in its first full week of sales. It sold 809,000 copies in its third week and 529,562 copies in its fourth week, to bring its four-week sales total to just under three million copies. The album sold 381,000 copies in its fifth week and topped the Billboard 200 for the fifth consecutive week. The first 2 million copies of the album shipped in the US included a bonus DVD with an exclusive interview and live footage. The Eminem Show was Eminem's first album to include lyrics to all songs inside the CD booklet. It was Eminem's most successful album in terms of charting singles. It spawned two top-ten and four top fifteen singles with "Without Me
", "Cleanin' Out My Closet
", "Sing For The Moment
" and "Superman", which managed to reach the top ten without a widely-available video counterpart (the video was mostly available on the 8 Mile
DVD, rarely being shown on music video channels). In addition, "My Dad's Gone Crazy", "Business
", "Hailie's Song", and "White America
" were selected airplay singles of the controversial album.
("White America"), his childhood ("Cleanin' Out My Closet"), the United States government, and terrorism
. ("Square Dance"), his 2000 assault
on a nightclub bouncer and his following conviction ("Soldier"), him coming to terms with fate the downside of fame ("Say Goodbye Hollywood"), his status as a rapper ("Sing for the Moment"), and his relationship with his ex-wife Kim and daughter Hailie ("Hailie's Song"). Also, the song "Say What You Say" (featuring Dr. Dre
) is an attack on Jermaine Dupri
, and was also the first time that The Source
magazine controversy was mentioned by Eminem. Unlike The Marshall Mathers LP
, The Eminem Show's release came off without significant complaints about misogyny
or homophobia
. Some shock-oriented and extremely explicit lyrics are still present, but for the most part they are toned down. Q Magazines May 2006 review of the album proposes "His two first albums aired dirty laundry, then the world's most celebrated rapper examined life in the hall of mirrors he'd built for himself."
, which remains prominent throughout the album. The next track is "Business", which is a song with a light beat that touches on Eminem's success and talent. Following that is "Cleaning out My Closet" a serious song in which Eminem raps about his childhood and explains the reasons behind his distaste for his mother (some being her drug abuse, constant accusations of him stealing money, attempts to take credit for his success).
"Square Dance" is next, a song which criticizes the Bush Administration for its involvement in the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, and warns young men of being drafted. "The Kiss", a skit, follows, which is a recreation of Eminem's 2000 pistol-whipping assault of John Guerrra, a bouncer who Eminem witnessed kissing his wife, Kimberly Mathers. "Soldier" follows, a powerful track which takes shots at lawyers, judges, and many who have insulted Eminem or hurt him in some way. This particular song was very well-received by critics for its production and lyrical content. "Say Goodbye Hollywood" is the next track. Eminem raps about "selling" his soul to the Devil and wanting to put an end to the fame and success because it has deadened his character and hurt his life.
"Drips" is the next song, featuring fellow Detroit rapper Obie Trice. The song follows the sexual escapades of both men and concludes with them learning they have contracted a sexually transmitted disease
from the same woman. Following is "Without Me" a popular single which ridicules pop artists and displays Eminem's wide range of lyrical talent. "Paul Rosenberg", a skit, follows next. Paul, Eminem's manager, has left a voicemail message for the rapper upset with him after learning he has been shooting his gun behind the studio and instructing him to "leave the fucking gun at home."
Following the skit is the single "Sing for the Moment", in which Eminem discusses his fame and the negative effects of it, justifies his actions and admits his mistakes, criticizes authority and hypocrisy, and concludes with Eminem supporting children who seem to have nothing else to hang onto but music.
After is "Superman" featuring Dina Rae. The song explains Eminem's perception of women, explaining that he does not want to get involved in a relationship and does not appreciate the fact that most women are simply attracted to him because of his wealth. "Hailie's Song" is next, a song which Eminem had not planned to include on the album (but did so after Dr. Dre played the track for two female friends who were crying at the end of it). The track is mainly sung as opposed to rapped. The rapper sings the first two verses and raps the third. The entire content of the song focuses on his daughter, Hailie Jade, and his love for her. The final verse touches on his wife and how he has stayed strong through all of the issues he has faced, simply for his loved daughter.
"Steve Berman", another skit, follows in which Eminem is requested to be seen. On The Marshall Mathers LP
, a skit with the same title featured Berman criticizing the rapper for the lyrical content of the album. It is implied that Eminem has been called again this time for the same reason, but the rapper is armed with a weapon and the skit concludes with Berman being shot, unbeknownst to listeners whether he is fatally wounded. A skit on Relapse
from 2009 indicates Berman survived the shot. "When The Music Stops" featuring D12, follows. The song features each rapper talking about their life and how it has been changed by their fame. "Say What You Say" is next, featuring Dr. Dre. The track insults rappers Canibus
and Jermaine Dupri
, whom Eminem and Dr. Dre feuded with, respectively. It also touches on Eminem and Dr. Dre's hardworking habits and ends with an insult directed at Dupri by Dr. Dre collaborator Timbaland
.
The next track "Till I Collapse" features Nate Dogg. The song is considered a classic and considered by many to be Eminem's best song by many people. It is a motivating track which encourages listeners to persevere in times of weakness. Eminem also raps about the denial of his talent by many due to skin color, and criticizes the industry for untalented rappers being popular while those he perceives as having true skill are not popular. The next track is "My Dad's Gone Crazy" featuring Eminem's daughter Hailie Jade (who was 6 years old at the time of recording). The song is comical and opens up with Eminem presumably snorting lines of cocaine when his daughter interrupts him and the song kicks off. Most interpret the song as Eminem explaining that he is comfortable with saying whatever he wants to regardless of how people perceive it. The second verse is laden with profanity.
The album closes with "Curtain Close" similar to the opening skit, in which the curtains are now being drawn, indicating the "end of the show." Ken Kaniff, Eminem's fictional gay character, is reintroduced briefly at the end of the skit who makes fun of Eminem's song "Without Me
" by changing the words at the beginning of the song.
co-producing several tracks (mainly the eventual singles). Dr. Dre
, in addition to being the album's executive producer, produced three individual tracks: "Business
", "Say What You Say", and "My Dad's Gone Crazy". In an interview with The Face magazine in April 2002, Eminem said that he treated the album like it was a rock record, in terms of production, incorporating the use of guitars whilst still having elements of hip-hop. He said that he wanted to capture the '70s rock vibe, which he felt "had this incredible feel", for most of the record. He said that he "tried to get the best of both worlds" on the album.
", due to thinking there were so many profanities that editing the song would be pointless. But some copies feature an edited version of "Drips." Though there was a clean version of the song, it was left only on the PA version of the album. However, in the skit "The Kiss", it can still be clearly heard that Eminem shouts "Motherfucker!" on the censored version. "Hailie's Song" censors "abort her" when he says "God, I'm a daddy, I'm so glad that her mom didn't abort her." Also, in "White America", in Eminem's speech the word "flag" is backmasked when he says "To burn the flag and replace it with a parental advisory sticker
".
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 75, based on 20 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Alex Needham from NME gave it a positive review, calling it a "fantastic third album" that "is bigger, bolder and far more consistent than its predecessors". In his review at AllMusic, Stephen Erlewine said the album "proves Eminem is the gold standard in pop music in 2002, delivering stylish, catchy, dense, funny, political music that rarely panders".
With a rating of 4 out of 5 stars, Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani said The Eminem Show "reveals a little bit of the real Marshall Mathers" that "displays a—dare I say it?—more 'mature' Eminem." And he called "Without Me" "a pop-friendly ditty that displays enough of Eminem's talent for tight rhymes and well-timed controversy to validate his perpetual upward climb."
David Browne at Entertainment Weekly
concluded, "[l]ike its predecessors, though, The Eminem Show is a testament to the skills of its star. The sludgy rapping of such guests as D12 only confirms Eminem's dizzying prowess, gob-spewing individuality, and wickedly prankish humor." He gave it a grade of B+.
Robert Christgau
gave the album an A- and said "I like it and I enjoy it; I think it represents an articulate, coherent, formally appropriate response to Eminem's changing position and role, one that acknowledges the privileges and alienations that accrue to all fame as well as the resolution of Marshall Mathers's worst traumas and the specifics of his success." while the reviewer at Pitchfork gave it a 9.1/10 rating, and said "he's playing the same old marshall vs shady real-or-fake game as usual ... and its as interesting and complex as it ever was." Uncut said "Behind the hype and the swagger, he's still baring enough of his soul for The Eminem Show to be compelling theatre.
The reviewer at HipHopDX admired both the musical and lyrical aspects of the work, and gave a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars: "Em flows on beat so effortlessly and naturally you'd swear it was his everyday style. Overlooking his lyrics would be a crime though." RapReviews gave it a rating of 8 out of 10 and Rolling Stone
gave it a 4-star rating.
The record became Eminem's third to win the Grammy Award
for Best Rap Album and also swept the MTV Music Video Awards, winning four awards for Best Male Video, Video of the Year, Best Direction, and Best Rap Video. It won Album of the Year & R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year at the 2002 Billboard Music Awards. It won Best International Album and International Album of the Year at the Brit Awards
and the Juno Awards respectively in 2003. It also won Best Album at the 2002 MTV Europe Music Awards
.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by the American rapper Eminem
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
, released in 2002. It was the best-selling album of 2002 in the United States, with sales of 7.6 million copies. At the Grammy Awards of 2003
Grammy Awards of 2003
The 45th Grammy Awards were held on February 23, 2003. Musicians accomplishments from the previous year were recognized. Norah Jones was the night's big winner winning five awards including Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Best New Artist, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Best Pop Vocal...
it was nominated for Album of the Year
Grammy Award for Album of the Year
The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
and became Eminem's third LP in four years to win the award for Best Rap Album. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, selling approximately 284,000 units in its first week, which due to a premature release by retailers and street-date violations, counted only a day and a half of sales. The album sold 1,322,000 copies the following week, where it registered a full week of sales. The album topped the Billboard 200 for five consecutive weeks. The album also spent five consecutive weeks at the top of the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
. It has gone on to sell over ten million copies. On March 7, 2011, the album was certified ten-times-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
, making it Eminem's first album to receive a Diamond certification
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
in the United States. In 2003, the album was ranked #317 on Rolling Stone's
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the title of a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005.Related news articles:...
, and was later ranked at #84 on the same magazine's best albums of the 2000s decade. The album received critical praise by most music critics and is often debated as Eminem's most personal and best work. Eminem himself acknowledged during an interview with MTV that was recorded on May 25, 2002, that he felt that The Eminem Show was his "best record so far". The Eminem Show was Eminem's first album to be mainly self-produced.
Release
The Eminem Show was first scheduled for release on June 4, 2002; however, pirated and bootleg copies appeared online on peer-to-peer networks and began surfacing on the streets. Interscope decided to release the album early on May 28 to combat bootlegging. However, many stores in the US began selling it early on Sunday, May 26, and some put the album out as early as Friday. Promotional posters in stores read, "America Couldn't Wait". Due to the premature release by many retailers on a Sunday, the album had only one day of official sales for the chart week and was unavailable in Wal-MartWal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
stores during that period. Despite the confusion over the exact release date, the album still managed to have a very successful debut on the charts. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 with sales of 284,000 copies. This marked the first time an album had topped the charts with such an abbreviated sales week. The album sold 1,322,000 copies in its first full week of sales. It sold 809,000 copies in its third week and 529,562 copies in its fourth week, to bring its four-week sales total to just under three million copies. The album sold 381,000 copies in its fifth week and topped the Billboard 200 for the fifth consecutive week. The first 2 million copies of the album shipped in the US included a bonus DVD with an exclusive interview and live footage. The Eminem Show was Eminem's first album to include lyrics to all songs inside the CD booklet. It was Eminem's most successful album in terms of charting singles. It spawned two top-ten and four top fifteen singles with "Without Me
Without Me
"Without Me" is a rap song by American rapper Eminem. It was released as the lead single from his fourth studio album titled The Eminem Show in 2002, and re-released on his greatest-hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005....
", "Cleanin' Out My Closet
Cleanin' Out My Closet
"Cleanin' Out My Closet" is a song by American rapper Eminem released in 2002. It was from his worldwide hit album, The Eminem Show and was later re-released in 2005 for Eminem's greatest hits album Curtain Call: The Hits. "Cleanin' Out My Closet" was the second single released from the album...
", "Sing For The Moment
Sing for the Moment
"Sing for the Moment" is a song by American rapper Eminem from the album The Eminem Show, released in 2002. It was released as a music single in 2003.-Song information:Eminem samples the song "Dream On" by rock group Aerosmith...
" and "Superman", which managed to reach the top ten without a widely-available video counterpart (the video was mostly available on the 8 Mile
8 Mile (film)
8 Mile is a 2002 American hip-hop drama film written by Scott Silver, directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Eminem, Mekhi Phifer, Brittany Murphy, and Kim Basinger....
DVD, rarely being shown on music video channels). In addition, "My Dad's Gone Crazy", "Business
Business (song)
"Business" is a song by the rapper Eminem, released in 2003 as a single internationally, except in the U.S.. It was from his worldwide hit album, The Eminem Show, which was released in 2002. In the song, Eminem talks about him and Dr...
", "Hailie's Song", and "White America
White America (song)
"White America" is a political hip hop song by rapper Eminem released in 2002 from his album The Eminem Show.The song was also performed at the MTV Video Music Awards. The song talks about the controversy Eminem had created and the impact on America it has had...
" were selected airplay singles of the controversial album.
Subject matter
The Eminem Show is a reflective album, featuring Eminem's more personal and serious side. This change gives the album a lighter tone, a departure from his previous albums. One of the most noticeable changes is the generally lighter lyrical content. Over the course of the album, he touches on the issues of race in hip hopHip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
("White America"), his childhood ("Cleanin' Out My Closet"), the United States government, and terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
. ("Square Dance"), his 2000 assault
Assault
In law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact. The specific meaning of assault varies between countries, but can refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, or in the more...
on a nightclub bouncer and his following conviction ("Soldier"), him coming to terms with fate the downside of fame ("Say Goodbye Hollywood"), his status as a rapper ("Sing for the Moment"), and his relationship with his ex-wife Kim and daughter Hailie ("Hailie's Song"). Also, the song "Say What You Say" (featuring Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
) is an attack on Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
, and was also the first time that The Source
The Source (magazine)
The Source is a United States-based, monthly full-color magazine covering hip-hop music, politics, and culture, founded in 1988. It is the world's second longest running rap periodical, behind United Kingdom-based publication Hip Hop Connection. The Source was founded as a newsletter in 1988...
magazine controversy was mentioned by Eminem. Unlike The Marshall Mathers LP
The Marshall Mathers LP
The Marshall Mathers LP is the third studio album by American rapper Eminem. Released May 23, 2000, the album sold more than 1.76 million copies in its first week just in the US. In 2001, the album won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album and was nominated for Album of the Year...
, The Eminem Show's release came off without significant complaints about misogyny
Misogyny
Misogyny is the hatred or dislike of women or girls. Philogyny, meaning fondness, love or admiration towards women, is the antonym of misogyny. The term misandry is the term for men that is parallel to misogyny...
or homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
. Some shock-oriented and extremely explicit lyrics are still present, but for the most part they are toned down. Q Magazines May 2006 review of the album proposes "His two first albums aired dirty laundry, then the world's most celebrated rapper examined life in the hall of mirrors he'd built for himself."
Musical content
The album opens up with a skit of stage curtains apparently being opened, indicative of the "start of the show". It is followed by "White America" a song in which Eminem touches on numerous subjects ranging from his mainly white suburban youth fanbase, his own amazement at his success, and his reception by parents and politicians, it contains a rock based soundRap rock
Rap rock is a cross-genre fusing vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with various forms of rock. Rap rock is often confused with rap metal and rapcore, subgenres that include heavy metal-oriented and hardcore punk-oriented bands, respectively....
, which remains prominent throughout the album. The next track is "Business", which is a song with a light beat that touches on Eminem's success and talent. Following that is "Cleaning out My Closet" a serious song in which Eminem raps about his childhood and explains the reasons behind his distaste for his mother (some being her drug abuse, constant accusations of him stealing money, attempts to take credit for his success).
"Square Dance" is next, a song which criticizes the Bush Administration for its involvement in the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, and warns young men of being drafted. "The Kiss", a skit, follows, which is a recreation of Eminem's 2000 pistol-whipping assault of John Guerrra, a bouncer who Eminem witnessed kissing his wife, Kimberly Mathers. "Soldier" follows, a powerful track which takes shots at lawyers, judges, and many who have insulted Eminem or hurt him in some way. This particular song was very well-received by critics for its production and lyrical content. "Say Goodbye Hollywood" is the next track. Eminem raps about "selling" his soul to the Devil and wanting to put an end to the fame and success because it has deadened his character and hurt his life.
"Drips" is the next song, featuring fellow Detroit rapper Obie Trice. The song follows the sexual escapades of both men and concludes with them learning they have contracted a sexually transmitted disease
Sexually transmitted disease
Sexually transmitted disease , also known as a sexually transmitted infection or venereal disease , is an illness that has a significant probability of transmission between humans by means of human sexual behavior, including vaginal intercourse, oral sex, and anal sex...
from the same woman. Following is "Without Me" a popular single which ridicules pop artists and displays Eminem's wide range of lyrical talent. "Paul Rosenberg", a skit, follows next. Paul, Eminem's manager, has left a voicemail message for the rapper upset with him after learning he has been shooting his gun behind the studio and instructing him to "leave the fucking gun at home."
Following the skit is the single "Sing for the Moment", in which Eminem discusses his fame and the negative effects of it, justifies his actions and admits his mistakes, criticizes authority and hypocrisy, and concludes with Eminem supporting children who seem to have nothing else to hang onto but music.
After is "Superman" featuring Dina Rae. The song explains Eminem's perception of women, explaining that he does not want to get involved in a relationship and does not appreciate the fact that most women are simply attracted to him because of his wealth. "Hailie's Song" is next, a song which Eminem had not planned to include on the album (but did so after Dr. Dre played the track for two female friends who were crying at the end of it). The track is mainly sung as opposed to rapped. The rapper sings the first two verses and raps the third. The entire content of the song focuses on his daughter, Hailie Jade, and his love for her. The final verse touches on his wife and how he has stayed strong through all of the issues he has faced, simply for his loved daughter.
"Steve Berman", another skit, follows in which Eminem is requested to be seen. On The Marshall Mathers LP
The Marshall Mathers LP
The Marshall Mathers LP is the third studio album by American rapper Eminem. Released May 23, 2000, the album sold more than 1.76 million copies in its first week just in the US. In 2001, the album won the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album and was nominated for Album of the Year...
, a skit with the same title featured Berman criticizing the rapper for the lyrical content of the album. It is implied that Eminem has been called again this time for the same reason, but the rapper is armed with a weapon and the skit concludes with Berman being shot, unbeknownst to listeners whether he is fatally wounded. A skit on Relapse
Relapse
Relapse, in relation to drug misuse, is resuming the use of a drug or a dependent substance after one or more periods of abstinence. The term is a landmark feature of both substance dependence and substance abuse, which are learned behaviors, and is maintained by neuronal adaptations that mediate...
from 2009 indicates Berman survived the shot. "When The Music Stops" featuring D12, follows. The song features each rapper talking about their life and how it has been changed by their fame. "Say What You Say" is next, featuring Dr. Dre. The track insults rappers Canibus
Canibus
Germaine Williams , better known by his stage name Canibus, is a Jamaican-born American rapper. He is a part of supergroup The HRSMN. Canibus rose to fame in the mid-nineties...
and Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
, whom Eminem and Dr. Dre feuded with, respectively. It also touches on Eminem and Dr. Dre's hardworking habits and ends with an insult directed at Dupri by Dr. Dre collaborator Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
.
The next track "Till I Collapse" features Nate Dogg. The song is considered a classic and considered by many to be Eminem's best song by many people. It is a motivating track which encourages listeners to persevere in times of weakness. Eminem also raps about the denial of his talent by many due to skin color, and criticizes the industry for untalented rappers being popular while those he perceives as having true skill are not popular. The next track is "My Dad's Gone Crazy" featuring Eminem's daughter Hailie Jade (who was 6 years old at the time of recording). The song is comical and opens up with Eminem presumably snorting lines of cocaine when his daughter interrupts him and the song kicks off. Most interpret the song as Eminem explaining that he is comfortable with saying whatever he wants to regardless of how people perceive it. The second verse is laden with profanity.
The album closes with "Curtain Close" similar to the opening skit, in which the curtains are now being drawn, indicating the "end of the show." Ken Kaniff, Eminem's fictional gay character, is reintroduced briefly at the end of the skit who makes fun of Eminem's song "Without Me
Without Me
"Without Me" is a rap song by American rapper Eminem. It was released as the lead single from his fourth studio album titled The Eminem Show in 2002, and re-released on his greatest-hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005....
" by changing the words at the beginning of the song.
Production
The album also saw Eminem take a substantially more predominant production role; most of it was self-produced, with longtime collaborator Jeff BassBass Brothers
Bass Brothers is the professional name for the team of Mark and Jeff Bass, the Detroit producers responsible for grooming megastar Eminem in his early days and collaborating on much of his subsequent music. Before that they worked with George Clinton...
co-producing several tracks (mainly the eventual singles). Dr. Dre
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
, in addition to being the album's executive producer, produced three individual tracks: "Business
Business (song)
"Business" is a song by the rapper Eminem, released in 2003 as a single internationally, except in the U.S.. It was from his worldwide hit album, The Eminem Show, which was released in 2002. In the song, Eminem talks about him and Dr...
", "Say What You Say", and "My Dad's Gone Crazy". In an interview with The Face magazine in April 2002, Eminem said that he treated the album like it was a rock record, in terms of production, incorporating the use of guitars whilst still having elements of hip-hop. He said that he wanted to capture the '70s rock vibe, which he felt "had this incredible feel", for most of the record. He said that he "tried to get the best of both worlds" on the album.
Censored version
The clean version of The Eminem Show censors all profanities, compared to his previous albums, in which the words "goddamn", "bitch", "ass", and "shit" were allowed. This album allowed no profanities, and the profanities were either muted or back masked. Following this, the censored version even took out entire sentences because they were too sexually charged. In fact, the entire song "Drips" is removed in the clean version and is just heard as four seconds of silence moving on to "Without MeWithout Me
"Without Me" is a rap song by American rapper Eminem. It was released as the lead single from his fourth studio album titled The Eminem Show in 2002, and re-released on his greatest-hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005....
", due to thinking there were so many profanities that editing the song would be pointless. But some copies feature an edited version of "Drips." Though there was a clean version of the song, it was left only on the PA version of the album. However, in the skit "The Kiss", it can still be clearly heard that Eminem shouts "Motherfucker!" on the censored version. "Hailie's Song" censors "abort her" when he says "God, I'm a daddy, I'm so glad that her mom didn't abort her." Also, in "White America", in Eminem's speech the word "flag" is backmasked when he says "To burn the flag and replace it with a parental advisory sticker
Parental Advisory
Parental Advisory is a message affixed by the Recording Industry Association of America to audio and recordings in the United States containing excessive use of profane language and/or sexual references. Albums began to be labeled for "explicit lyrics" in 1985, after pressure from the Parents...
".
Critical reception
Initial critical response to The Eminem Show was distinctly positive. It was viewed by many critics and fans as a growth in Eminem as an artist. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 75, based on 20 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Alex Needham from NME gave it a positive review, calling it a "fantastic third album" that "is bigger, bolder and far more consistent than its predecessors". In his review at AllMusic, Stephen Erlewine said the album "proves Eminem is the gold standard in pop music in 2002, delivering stylish, catchy, dense, funny, political music that rarely panders".
With a rating of 4 out of 5 stars, Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani said The Eminem Show "reveals a little bit of the real Marshall Mathers" that "displays a—dare I say it?—more 'mature' Eminem." And he called "Without Me" "a pop-friendly ditty that displays enough of Eminem's talent for tight rhymes and well-timed controversy to validate his perpetual upward climb."
David Browne at Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
concluded, "[l]ike its predecessors, though, The Eminem Show is a testament to the skills of its star. The sludgy rapping of such guests as D12 only confirms Eminem's dizzying prowess, gob-spewing individuality, and wickedly prankish humor." He gave it a grade of B+.
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave the album an A- and said "I like it and I enjoy it; I think it represents an articulate, coherent, formally appropriate response to Eminem's changing position and role, one that acknowledges the privileges and alienations that accrue to all fame as well as the resolution of Marshall Mathers's worst traumas and the specifics of his success." while the reviewer at Pitchfork gave it a 9.1/10 rating, and said "he's playing the same old marshall vs shady real-or-fake game as usual ... and its as interesting and complex as it ever was." Uncut said "Behind the hype and the swagger, he's still baring enough of his soul for The Eminem Show to be compelling theatre.
The reviewer at HipHopDX admired both the musical and lyrical aspects of the work, and gave a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars: "Em flows on beat so effortlessly and naturally you'd swear it was his everyday style. Overlooking his lyrics would be a crime though." RapReviews gave it a rating of 8 out of 10 and Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
gave it a 4-star rating.
The record became Eminem's third to win the Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for Best Rap Album and also swept the MTV Music Video Awards, winning four awards for Best Male Video, Video of the Year, Best Direction, and Best Rap Video. It won Album of the Year & R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year at the 2002 Billboard Music Awards. It won Best International Album and International Album of the Year at the Brit Awards
Brit Awards
The Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain" or "Britannia", but subsequently became a backronym for British Record Industry Trust...
and the Juno Awards respectively in 2003. It also won Best Album at the 2002 MTV Europe Music Awards
MTV Europe Music Awards
The MTV Europe Music Awards were established in 1994 by MTV Networks Europe to celebrate the most popular music videos in Europe. Originally beginning as an alternative to the American MTV Video Music Awards, the MTV Europe Music Awards is today a popular celebration of what MTV viewers consider...
.
Track listing
Sample credits- "Without MeWithout Me"Without Me" is a rap song by American rapper Eminem. It was released as the lead single from his fourth studio album titled The Eminem Show in 2002, and re-released on his greatest-hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005....
" contains sample from "Buffalo GalsBuffalo Gals (Malcolm McLaren song)Buffalo Gals is a hip-hop single released by Malcolm McLaren & the World's Famous Supreme Team as a single in 1982 and on their 1983 album Duck Rock. The song is composed of extensive scratching with calls from square dancing...
" by Malcolm McLarenMalcolm McLarenMalcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...
, "It's Gonna Be Such a Beautiful Day" by The MomentsThe Moments (English group)The Moments were a rhythm and blues English group from London, England, formed in late 1963 by Steve Marriott age 16, after giving up a promising early film acting career.-Career:...
and "Rap NameRap Name"Rap Name" is Obie Trice's debut single, featuring Eminem. Shady released this song as promotional single for the newly-signed rapping upstart. This song sampled Eminem's song "Drips" from The Eminem Show, which Eminem says "That why I ain't got no [time]", which is a reference to Rap Name...
" by Obie TriceObie TriceObie Trice III is an American rapper and songwriter. He began rapping at the age of 11, and is most known for his time spent signed to Shady Records. Obie Trice has formed his own record label, Black Market Entertainment.-Biography:...
, and contains several references to Eminem's own song "The Real Slim ShadyThe Real Slim Shady"The Real Slim Shady" is a hip hop song written by Eminem for his third studio album The Marshall Mathers LP . It was released as the lead single a week before the album's release...
" - "Sing for the MomentSing for the Moment"Sing for the Moment" is a song by American rapper Eminem from the album The Eminem Show, released in 2002. It was released as a music single in 2003.-Song information:Eminem samples the song "Dream On" by rock group Aerosmith...
" samples "Dream OnDream On (Aerosmith song)"Dream On" is the first single by Aerosmith from their 1973 debut album, Aerosmith. Written by lead singer Steven Tyler, this blues-influenced power ballad became their first major hit and classic rock radio staple...
" by AerosmithAerosmithAerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many... - "Till I Collapse" uses the stomp-and-clap interpolation made famous by "We Will Rock YouWe Will Rock You"We Will Rock You" is a song written by Brian May and recorded and performed by Queen for their 1977 album News of the World. Rolling Stone ranked it #330 of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and the RIAA placed it at #146 on its list of Songs of the Century...
" by QueenQueen (band)Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor... - "Drips" doesn't appear in the clean version of the album.
Charts
| Chart (2002) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Argentinian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
1 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Flanders) |
1 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Wallonia) |
3 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
1 |
| Czech Republic Albums Chart IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... |
1 |
| Danish Albums Chart | 2 |
| Europe Albums chart | 1 |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 1 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
2 |
| German Albums Chart | 1 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
2 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
1 |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
1 |
| Netherlands (Mega Album Top 100) | 1 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
1 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 1 |
| Polish Albums Chart Polish Music Charts The Polish Music Charts are two official album charts and seven singles charts in Poland, provided by ZPAV, the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . The first, the Top 100, is a monthly chart based on data received from the album companies... |
7 |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 1 |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 1 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
1 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
1 |
Certifications
Singles chart positions
| Year | Song | Chart positions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
UK Top 40 | Hot Rap Singles | Rhythmic Top 40 | Top 40 Mainstream | Top 40 Tracks Top 40 Tracks Top 40 Tracks is a defunct airplay chart from Billboard Magazine. It was created in 1998, when Billboard Magazine changed the airplay profile of The Hot 100 Airplay to include more R&B, Country, and Rock stations to its profile . To preserve the notion of the former chart, Top 40 Tracks was... |
||
| 2002 | "Without Me Without Me "Without Me" is a rap song by American rapper Eminem. It was released as the lead single from his fourth studio album titled The Eminem Show in 2002, and re-released on his greatest-hits compilation album Curtain Call: The Hits in 2005.... " |
2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| "Cleanin' Out My Closet Cleanin' Out My Closet "Cleanin' Out My Closet" is a song by American rapper Eminem released in 2002. It was from his worldwide hit album, The Eminem Show and was later re-released in 2005 for Eminem's greatest hits album Curtain Call: The Hits. "Cleanin' Out My Closet" was the second single released from the album... " |
4 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 5 | |
| 2003 | "Business Business (song) "Business" is a song by the rapper Eminem, released in 2003 as a single internationally, except in the U.S.. It was from his worldwide hit album, The Eminem Show, which was released in 2002. In the song, Eminem talks about him and Dr... " |
— | 6 | — | — | — | — |
| "Superman" | 15 | — | 10 | 5 | 10 | 9 | |
| "Sing for the Moment Sing for the Moment "Sing for the Moment" is a song by American rapper Eminem from the album The Eminem Show, released in 2002. It was released as a music single in 2003.-Song information:Eminem samples the song "Dream On" by rock group Aerosmith... " |
14 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 5 | 5 | |