The Slim Shady LP
The Slim Shady LP is the second studio album by the American rapper Eminem. It was released on February 23, 1999,[2] through Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. Recorded in Ferndale, Michigan following Eminem's recruitment by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine, the album features production from Dr. Dre, the Bass Brothers, and Eminem himself.
The Slim Shady LP
Featuring West Coast hip hop, G-funk and horrorcore musical styles, the majority of The Slim Shady LP's lyrical content is written from the perspective of Eminem's alter ego, named Slim Shady, whom he created on the Slim Shady EP (1997). The Slim Shady LP contains cartoonish depictions of violence and heavy use of profanity, which Eminem described as horror film-esque, in that it is solely for entertainment value. Although many of the lyrics on the album are considered to be satirical, Eminem also depicts his frustrations of living in poverty.
The Slim Shady LP debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, just below TLC's FanMail, and number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It was a critical and commercial success, with critics praising Eminem for his unique lyrical style, dark humor lyrics, and unusual personality.[3] The first single, "My Name Is", became Eminem's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. The album won Best Rap Album at the 2000 Grammy Awards, while "My Name Is" won Best Rap Solo Performance. In 2000, The Slim Shady LP was certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It is often mentioned in lists of the greatest albums of all time. While The Slim Shady LP's success turned Eminem from an underground rapper into a high-profile celebrity, he became a highly controversial figure due to his lyrical content, which some perceived to be misogynistic and a negative influence on U.S. youth.
Background[edit]
Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Bruce Mathers III, began rapping at age fourteen. In 1996, his debut album Infinite, which was recorded at the Bassmint, a recording studio owned by the Bass Brothers, was released under their independent record label Web Entertainment.[4] Infinite achieved very little commercial success and was largely ignored by Detroit radio stations. The commercial disappointment from this experience greatly influenced his lyrical style: "After that record, every rhyme I wrote got angrier and angrier. A lot of it was because of the feedback I got. Motherfuckers was like, 'You're a white boy, what the fuck are you rapping for? Why don't you go into rock & roll?' All that type of shit started pissing me off."[5] After the release of Infinite, Eminem's personal struggles and abuse of methadone and alcohol culminated in a suicide attempt.[6]
The commercial disappointment inspired Eminem to create the alter ego Slim Shady: "Boom, the name hit me, and right away I thought of all these words to rhyme with it."[5] Slim Shady served as Eminem's vent for his frustration and rage to the world. In the spring of 1997, he recorded the eight-song extended play Slim Shady EP. During this time, Eminem and his girlfriend Kim Scott lived in a high-crime neighborhood with their newborn daughter Hailie, where their house was burglarized numerous times.[5] After being evicted from his home, Eminem traveled to Los Angeles to participate in the Rap Olympics, an annual nationwide rap battle competition. He placed second, and the staff at Interscope Records who attended the Rap Olympics sent a copy of the Slim Shady EP to company CEO Jimmy Iovine.[5] Iovine played the tape for hip hop producer Dr. Dre, founder of Aftermath Entertainment. Dr. Dre recalled, "In my entire career in the music industry, I have never found anything from a demo tape or a CD. When Jimmy played this, I said, 'Find him. Now.'"[5] Some urged Dr. Dre not to take a chance on Eminem because he was white. Dr. Dre responded, "I don't give a fuck if you're purple. If you can kick it, I'm working with you."[7]
Commercial performance[edit]
In the album's first week of release, The Slim Shady LP sold 283,000 copies, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 chart behind TLC's FanMail.[59] The record remained on the Billboard 200 for 100 weeks.[60] It also reached number one on the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart, staying on the chart for 92 weeks.[60] On April 5, 1999, The Slim Shady LP was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for sales of over one million copies.[61] On November 15, 2000, the album was certified quadruple platinum by the RIAA.[61] "My Name Is", the album's lead single, peaked at number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100, remaining on the chart for ten weeks.[62] The single additionally peaked at number 18 on the magazine's R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, 29 on the Pop Songs chart, and 37 on the Alternative Songs chart.[62] "Guilty Conscience" reached number 56 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while "Just Don't Give a Fuck" peaked at number 62 on the chart.[63][64]
By November 2013, the album sold 5,437,000 copies in the United States.[65] on the weekly Canadian Albums Chart and remained on the chart for twelve weeks.[60] Additionally, the album was certified triple platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association for shipments of over 200,000 units.[66] The album was also certified double platinum in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number ten on the UK Albums chart and remained on the chart for a total of 114 weeks.[67][68] In Australia, the album peaked at number 49 on the ARIA Chart, and was eventually certified platinum in the country.[69][70] The album had also peaked at the number 20 and 23 chart positions in the Netherlands and New Zealand, respectively. It was certified gold in the Netherlands and platinum in New Zealand.[71][72][73]
Lawsuits[edit]
On September 17, 1999, Eminem's mother, Deborah Nelson, filed a $10 million lawsuit against him for slander based on his claim that she uses drugs in the line "I just found out my mom does more dope than I do" from "My Name Is".[77][78] After a two-year-long trial, she was awarded $25,000, of which she received $1,600 after legal fees.[77] Eminem was not surprised that his mother had filed the lawsuit against him, referring to her as a "lawsuit queen", and alleging that "That's how she makes money. When I was five, she had a job on the cash register at a store that sold chips and soda. Other than that, I don't remember her working a day in her life."[78] She later filed another lawsuit against him for emotional damages suffered during the first trial, which was later dismissed.[77]
In December 2001, DeAngelo Bailey, a janitor living in Roseville, Michigan who was made the subject of the song "Brain Damage" in which he is portrayed as a school bully, filed a $1 million lawsuit against Eminem for slander and invasion of privacy.[33] Bailey's attorney stated "Eminem is a Caucasian male who faced criticism within the music industry that he had not suffered through difficult circumstances growing up and he was therefore a 'pretender' in the industry ... Eminem used Bailey, his African-American childhood schoolmate, as a pawn in his effort to stem the tide of criticism."[33] In 1982, Eminem's mother unsuccessfully sued the Roseville school district for not protecting her son, as she claimed that attacks from bullies caused him headaches, nausea, and antisocial behavior.[33] Additionally, Bailey had previously admitted to bullying Eminem in the April 1999 issue of Rolling Stone Magazine.[5] The lawsuit was dismissed by judge Deborah Servitto in 2003, who wrote her ruling in the form of rap-like rhyme. She ruled that the lyrics—which include the school principal collaborating with Bailey, and Eminem's entire brain falling out of his head—were too exaggerated for a listener to believe that they were recalling an actual event.[79] The verdict was upheld in 2005, and Bailey's lawyer ruled out any further appeals.[79]
In September 2003, 70-year-old widow Harlene Stein filed suit against Eminem and Dr. Dre on the grounds that "Guilty Conscience" contains an unauthorized sample of "Go Home Pigs" composed for the film Getting Straight by her husband, Ronald Stein, who died in 1988.[80] Although the album's liner notes state that the song contains an interpolation of "Go Home Pigs", Stein is not credited as a composer and his wife was not paid royalties for use of the song.[80] The lawsuit requested for 5 percent of the retail list price of 90 percent all of the copies of the record sold in America, and 2.5 percent of the retail price of 90 percent of the copies of the album sold internationally.[80] The suit was dismissed in June 2004 for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.[81]
Notes