Fifteen years ago, the American public was introduced to Marshall Mathers, Eminem, and Slim Shady, a triptych of manic personalities whose interests included raising hell, making enemies, and sticking nine-inch nails through each one of their eyelids. To commemorate Shady being set loose upon the world, we’ve decided to rank every single song Em has released to date.

View Lyrics for Marshall Mathers by Eminem at AZ Lyrics.az. Lyrics Platinum Collection '2001 Marshall Mathers AZ lyrics, find other albums and lyrics for Eminem. Features Song Lyrics for Eminem's Platinum Collection 2001 album. Includes Album Cover, Release Year, and User Reviews.

But first, allow us to qualify our countdown with a few rules of eligibility: We only included songs that were given an official retail release — that means tracks featured on studio albums, EPs, and compilations, plus guest verses; we didn’t consult mixtapes or unofficial freestyles, so we offer our deepest apologies to “Nail in the Coffin,” “Til Hell Freezes Over,” and other noteworthy rarities. Skits weren’t considered, either (condolences to all the Ken Kaniff and Steve Berman die-hards out there).

Obviously, we only considered D12 tracks that featured a verse or hook from Eminem. And, finally, if there were multiple versions of a track, we opted to include the rendition we thought superior, so don’t expect to see the live Grammy performance of “Stan” or The Slim Shady EP’s “Just the Two of Us.” And with that, we begin the Eminem show 289. (Skylar Grey feat.

Eminem, Don’t Look Down, 2013) 288. Eminem, The Truth About Love, 2012) 287.

(Kid Rock feat. Eminem, Devil Without a Cause, 1998) 286. Eminem, Kuniva, and Swifty McVay, Bulletproof, 2005) 285. ( Curtain Call: The Hits, 2005) 284. Jamie N Commons ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2 [Deluxe Edition], 2013) 283. (The Notorious B.I.G. Diddy, Eminem, and Obie Trice, Duets: The Final Chapter, 2005) 282.

(D12, D12 World, 2004) 281. (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel [Deluxe Edition], 2011) 280.

(Trick Trick feat. Eminem and Royce da 5’9″, “Twerk Dat Pop That” Single, 2014) 279. Eminem and Skylar Grey, “I Need a Doctor” Single, 2011) No, this track needs a mercy kill.

(Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 277. ( Infinite, 1996) 276.

(Domingo feat. Eminem, Behind the Doors of the 13th Floor, 1999) 275. ( Infinite, 1996) 274. (Trick Trick feat. Proof and Eminem, The People vs., 2005) 273. (Trick Trick feat. Eminem, The Villain, 2008) 272.

( Relapse, 2009) In a promoting his then-just-released Relapse album, Eminem described “Insane” — a stomach-turning, fictional tale of child molestation — as “a prime example of how a rhyme goes bad.” He wasn’t wrong. (Slaughterhouse feat. Eminem and Skylar Grey, welcome to: OUR HOUSE, 2012) 270. ( Encore, 2004) 269. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 268. ( Encore, 2004) 267. ( Encore, 2004) 266.

(50 Cent feat. Eminem and Adam Levine, “My Life” Single, 2012) 265. Skylar Grey ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 264. Sia ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2 [Deluxe Edition], 2013) 263. (Tony Yayo feat. Eminem and Obie Trice, Thoughts of a Predicate Felon, 2005) 262.

(The Alchemist feat. Eminem, Chemical Warfare, 2009) 261. (D12, The Longest Yard [Original Soundtrack], 2005) 260.

(The Anonymous feat. Eminem, Green and Gold, 1998) 259. (Slaughterhouse feat. Eminem, welcome to: OUR HOUSE, 2012) 258. (Bizarre feat. Eminem, Hannicap Circus, 2005) 257. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2 [Deluxe Edition], 2013) 256.

( Infinite, 1996) 255. Eminem, Kastro, and Young Noble, Loyal to the Game, 2004) 254. ( Encore, 2004) 253. Dina Rae, Devil’s Night, 2001) 252. (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 251. ( Relapse: Refill, 2009) Things Eminem should avoid doing on future records: opening a track with a line about tucking his teeny weenie between his thighs; using the phrase “poop chute”; and signing off that same track by adopting a little boy’s voice.

( Infinite, 1996) 249. (Slaughterhouse feat. Eminem, welcome to: OUR HOUSE [Deluxe Version], 2012) 248. (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 247. D12, Searching for Jerry Garcia, 2005) 246. 50 Cent ( Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, 2006) 245.

(50 Cent feat. Eminem, Curtis, 2007) 244. (D12, D12 World, 2004) 243. (Rihanna feat. Eminem, Loud, 2010) 242. ( Curtain Call: The Hits, 2005) 241.

( Relapse, 2009) 240. ( Recovery, 2010) 239. (Obie Trice feat.

Eminem, Big Herk, and Trick Trick, Second Round’s On Me, 2006) 238. (The Game feat.

Eminem, The Documentary, 2005) 237. ( Relapse: Refill, 2009) 236.

( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 235. (Lloyd Banks feat.

Eminem, H.F.M. 2 (The Hunger For More 2) [Deluxe Version], 2010) 234.

( Recovery, 2010) There’s probably a reason you haven’t heard this Recovery cut in years, and it might very well be because this one kicks off with a Ben Roethlisberger rape joke, or maybe because Eminem brags about his “giant scrotum.” B.C. (D12, D12 World, 2004) 232. Obie Trice, Stat Quo, Cashis, and Bobby Creekwater ( Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, 2006) 231. B-Real, D12 World, 2004) 230. ( Encore, 2004) 229. (Yelawolf feat. Eminem and Gangsta Boo, Radioactive, 2011) 228.

( Infinite, 1996) 227. ( Recovery, 2010) 226.

( Relapse: Refill, 2009) 225. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 224. T.I.P., 2007) 223. (Tony Touch feat. D12, The Piece Maker, 2000) 222. (Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E.

Eminem and B-Real, West Koasta Nostra, 2003) 221. (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 220. ( Infinite, 1996) 219. Sia ( Shady XV, 2014) 218. (Tony Touch feat.

Eminem, The Piece Maker: Return of the 50 MC’s, 2013) 217. Bruno Mars (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 216. (D12, D12 World, 2004) 215. Rihanna ( Recovery, 2010) Having Rihanna sing Skylar Grey’s chorus about a masochistic lover in a doomed romance just a year after her own highly publicized domestic abuse trauma was both devilishly exploitive and maybe a little visionary, but either way, Em’s love raps here are shockingly drab, and Alex da Kid’s soupy arrangement sounds like a coffee shop’s hip-hop open mic night committed to tape. (50 Cent feat. Eminem, Before I Self Destruct, 2009) 213.

( Relapse, 2009) 212. ( Infinite, 1996) 211. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 210. ( Recovery, 2010) 209. (D12, D12 World, 2004) 208.

( Encore, 2004) 207. ( Infinite, 1996) 206. Nate Ruess ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 205.

(D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) 204. ( Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, 2006) 203.

(Cashis feat. Eminem, The County Hound EP, 2007) 202. (D12, D12 World, 2004) 201. ( Encore [Deluxe Edition], 2004) 200.

Dre ( Relapse: Refill, 2009) 199. Pink ( Recovery, 2010) 198. (Obie Trice feat. Eminem, Cheers, 2003) 197. ( Relapse, 2009) 196. Slaughterhouse ( Recovery [Deluxe Edition], 2010) 195.

( The Marshall Mathers LP 2 [Deluxe Edition], 2013) 194. ( Recovery, 2010) 193.

( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 192. ( Relapse: Refill, 2009) 191. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) 190.

(Lil Wayne feat. Eminem, Rebirth, 2009) 189. ( Recovery, 2010) 188. X Ambassadors ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2 [Deluxe Edition], 2013) 187. (Obie Trice feat. Eminem, Bottom’s Up, 2012) Obie Trice’s Shady Records situation wrapped up after just two albums but Em still showed up for this deep cut from Trice’s indie album, Bottoms Up, skittering in like a detuned radio station and delivering a scene-stealing guest spot that strikes the expected balance of indecent trash talk and breathtaking wordplay.

(Trick Trick feat. Eminem, The People vs., 2005) 185. 50 Cent ( Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, 2006) 184. ( Encore [Deluxe Edition], 2004) 183. (Obie Trice feat. Dre and Eminem, Cheers, 2003) 182. (D12, Devil’s Night [Deluxe Edition], 2001) 181.

(Thirstin Howl III feat. Eminem, Skilligan’s Island, 2002) 180. ( Recovery, 2010) The production is bombastic — the layered vocals on the chorus are the definition of overdramatic — but this blockbuster comeback single does its job.

Em summons a new kind of strength on his “phoenix from the ashes” narrative. How can you argue with a line like, “It was my decision to get clean / I did it for me”? Don’t even try. BRENNAN CARLEY. ( The Slim Shady LP [Limited Edition Bonus Disc], 2003) 178.

(2Pac with Eminem feat. Outlawz, Tupac: Resurrection [Original Soundtrack], 2003) 177. ( Infinite, 1996) 176. ( Recovery [Deluxe Edition], 2010) 175. Dre ( Relapse, 2009) 174. (50 Cent feat. Eminem and Lloyd Banks, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, 2003) 173.

Lil Wayne ( Recovery, 2010) 172. ( Relapse, 2009) 171. Eminem, Konvicted, 2006) 170. (Sticky Fingaz feat.

Eminem, Blacktrash: The Autobiography of Kirk Jones, 2001) 169. ( Relapse [Deluxe Edition], 2009) 168. ( Straight From the Lab, 2003) 167. Eminem, Swift McVay, and Promatic, “One, Two” Single, 2002) 166. (Bizarre feat.

Eminem and Fuzz Scoota, Attack of the Weirdos EP, 1998) 165. (DJ Kayslay feat. Eminem, The Streetsweeper Vol. 1, 2003) 164.

(Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 163. Hayley Williams and Eminem, B.o.B. Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray, 2010) 162.

(Rihanna feat. Eminem, Unapologetic, 2012) 161.

(D12, D12 World, 2004) D12’s 2004 single “How Come” is easily one of the heaviest cuts in the group’s canon, as Em, Proof, and Kon Artis deliver verses about friendships in disrepair that appear to be about each other. Em smells resentment as fame pulls him away from a close friendship with Proof, and Proof details the rigors of being thrust into the spotlight alongside him, while Kon Artis delivers a too-personal “I told you so” to Em about shacking up with a no-good girlfriend one imagines is Kim. 50 Cent, Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture 8 Mile, 2002) 159. ( Encore, 2004) 158. ( Encore [Deluxe Edition], 2004) 157. Nate Dogg ( Curtain Call: The Hits, 2005) 156. (Da Ruckus feat.

Eminem, Da Ruckus, Episode 1, 1998) 155. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) 154. ( Recovery, 2010) 153. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) 152. Kendrick Lamar ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 151. (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel [Deluxe Edition], 2011) 150. Dre, Devil’s Night, 2001) 149.

( Relapse, 2009) 148. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) 147. (Eminem, Obie Trice, and DMX, Cradle 2 the Grave [Original Soundtrack], 2003) 146.

( Recovery, 2010) 145. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) 144. D12 ( Encore, 2004) 143. Eminem, No Mercy, 2010) 142. ( Encore, 2004) 141.

( Relapse, 2009) 140. Slaughterhouse (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 139.

(Royce da 5’9″ feat. Eminem, Success Is Certain, 2011) 138. ( Recovery, 2010) 137.

( The Eminem Show, 2002) 136. ( Relapse [Deluxe Edition], 2009) 135. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) The debut single from The Marshall Mathers LP 2 is a love letter to the rap music of Eminem’s formative years, and it taps Def Jam founder/beatsmith emeritus Rick Rubin for a crunchy rap-rock flip of Billy Squier’s “The Stroke” as Em channels his inner Beastie Boy. ( The Singles, 2003) 133. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) 132. ( Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, 2006) 131. ( The Slim Shady EP, 1997) 130.

( Recovery, 2010) 129. ( Relapse, 2009) 128. Obie Trice ( The Eminem Show, 2002) 127. (DJ Butter feat. Eminem, Bugz, Proof, Tha Almighty Dreadnaughtz, Kill the DJ, 2000) 126. Eminem, Loyal to the Game, 2004) 125.

Kobe ( Recovery, 2010) 124. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) 123. (Fat Joe feat. Eminem, Ma$e, Lil Jon, and Remy Ma, All or Nothing, 2005) 122. (D12, Devil’s Night [Deluxe Edition], 2001) 121.

Obie Trice, Stat Quo, and 50 Cent ( Encore, 2004) 120. (Lloyd Banks feat. Eminem, 50 Cent, and Nate Dogg, The Hunger for More, 2004) 119. D12 ( The Eminem Show, 2002) 118. (D12, D12 World [Special Edition], 2004) 117. ( Encore, 2004) 116.

(Old World Disorder feat. Eminem, Restaurant: It Ain’t Always on the Menu [Original Soundtrack], 2000) 115. ( Encore, 2004) 114.

(D12, “S–t On You” Single, 2001) 113. Rihanna ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) Here, Eminem’s tried-and-true tactic of drafting a pop star to belt out a hook pays off in spades. When this MMLP2 juggernaut crashes into its chorus, Rihanna’s dulcet yodel makes an otherwise overcooked track feel lively. And for his part, Em’s delivery maintains a confrontational edge but never becomes overbearing — this one was built to conquer the charts, after all. (D12, Devil’s Night [Deluxe Edition], 2001) 111.

( Straight From the Lab, 2003) 110. Dre & Eminem, Wild Wild West [Original Soundtrack], 1999) 109. (Shabaam Sahdeeq feat. Eminem, Skam, A.L., and Kwest, “Sound Clash” Single, 1998) 108. (DJ Kayslay feat. Eminem and Obie Trice, The Streetsweeper Vol. 2: The Pain From the Game, 2004) 107.

( Straight From the Lab, 2003) 106. (D12, D12 World, 2004) 105. 50 Cent and Nate Dogg ( Encore, 2004) 104. Mike Epps (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) 103.

(Obie Trice feat. D12, Cheers, 2003) 102. Eminem, Method Man, and Royce da 5’9″, The Professional 2, 2001) 101. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) 100. Dina Rae ( The Eminem Show, 2002) “Superman” may be the most plainly misogynistic track in Eminem’s oeuvre — no small feat.

Controversially, though, the Eminem Show creeper (which features an assist from singer Dina Rae) also ranks as his most successful sleaze-jam. (Royce da 5’9″ feat. Eminem, Rock City [Version 2.0], 2002) Recorded as mounting tensions between Royce da 5’9″ and D12 boiled over into an all-out feud, “Rock City” almost didn’t happen.

G-Unit associate Red Spyda serves up a sinister Dre approximation as Royce carries the weight, denied a verse from Em, who instead picked up work with D12 after Royce gave up his hypeman spot mid-tour to go solo. (Busta Rhymes feat. Eminem, “Calm Down” Single, 2014) The latest single from Busta Rhymes’ forthcoming E.L.E.

2 album is a friendly joust between two lyrical titans that took weeks to record. Every time one heard the other’s verse he’d go back and revise his own, the end result ballooning out to six brain-bending minutes of abject warfare. If there’s a winner to call, it’s the listener. (The Madd Rapper feat. Eminem, Tell ‘Em Why U Madd, 2000) “I’m crazy with this razor / With this razor I’m crazy,” Eminem shouts on this 2000 stunner, in a prime example of lyrical chiasmus. “Crazy” is one of Em’s more dated verses, but it’s an early look at his long-lasting vitality.

(Plus that Kanye production is the good stuff). 50 Cent ( Straight From the Lab, 2003) Eminem’s feud with Raymond “Benzino” Scott — rapper, record exec, Love & Hip-Hop: Atlanta star, and one-time owner of The Source — spawned several diss tracks on both sides, including Em’s “The Conspiracy,” a syllable-drunk (and sometimes nonsensical) freestyle powered by DJ Green Lantern’s pogoing production.

Off the cuff, Mr. Mathers dismisses the idea that his career is on a comedown and wobbles a line to The Source’s dwindling page-count, 50 Cent’s success, George W. Bush’s foreign policy, and back to his own dominance over hip-hop, all in just under three minutes. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) “Bad Guy” picks up where its predecessor, “Stan,” left off: with the brother of the suicidal Eminem fanatic lamenting his loss as he plots a revenge hit on the man he blames for his family’s tailspin. Loxane Download there. But in the closing moments of the song, we come to see Matthew Mitchell as more than just a disgruntled murderer.

He’s reckoning for a career whose brick and mortar is insult and antagonism. ( Straight From the Lab, 2003) Another product of yet another feud — this one with Jamaican-born battle-rap warrior Canibus — “Can-I-Bitch” isn’t the most cleverly titled of Eminem’s attack tracks, or the best-produced, but it is among his densest and most playful, a foul-mouthed yarn that would smite anyone on the schoolyard. (D12, D12 World, 2004) The greatest strength of “Keep Talkin” — the closing track from D12’s most recent studio album, 2004’s (!) D12 World — is its construction.

Eminem hangs back, electing to talk s–t on a competent (if slightly forgettable) hook that serves as the song’s throughline, clearing space for his bandmates, who spit bullets over a tight, wrist-snapping loop. ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) This Marshall Mathers LP deep cut finds Eminem and Bizarre trading horrorcore shlock until verse three opens up the titular conceit, that their native Detroit is every bit as harsh and dangerous as the haunted house that inspired the supernatural horror classic of the same name. (Masta Ace feat. Eminem and J-Black, Game Over, 2000) Wherein Eminem cops to some left-of-center dietary choices (“I ain’t no f–king G / I’m a cannibal”), rattles off a few of his vices (“Coke and acid / Black magic / Cloaks and daggers”), and figures, f–k it, he’s going to hell anyway. This one also gets extra points for sampling the soundtrack to another classic artifact from the Y2K era: the Sega Dreamcast’s SoulCalibur. 50 Cent, Tony Yayo, and Lloyd Banks ( Straight From the Lab, 2003) Want to remember what it was like to be alive in 2003?

Well, nothing does the job quite like a diss track directed at Ja Rule. The rubbery beat serves as the perfect catalyst for Shady’s relentless stream of lobs at Ja, like, “Got undercover cops that’ll legally pop you.” Don’t cross Em unless you come correct. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) Tucked away as a hidden track on D12’s debut album, “Girls (Limp Bizkit)” takes aim at — who else? — Limp Bizkit, specifically for appearing to buddy-up with another target of Eminem’s, Everlast.

“Now I gotta go grab my s–tlist and add some new enemies,” Em raps, quietly seething over a lullaby-like arrangement. Fred Durst and his boyz never stood a chance. (Obie Trice feat. Eminem, Cheers, 2003) Eminem’s first verse on this track — a thumping, handclap-break-heavy highlight from Obie Trice’s debut album — begins, “I’m internationally known, baby / But, actually, there are few people who know how I am naturally.” That’s likely still true to this day, but at the very least, “Lady” gives listeners a peek at Marshall Mathers the man — a public figure who longs for privacy but relishes the limelight, a guy who’s prone to jealousy and lashing out, and who shrugs while he raps, “I guess it’s do unto others as you’d have ‘em do unto you.” K.M.

Kanye West, Lil Wayne, and Eminem, Relapse: Refill, 2009) Posse cuts with the biggest names in the game are very hit or miss. You can get a bunch of big egos trying to out-rhyme each other for purely selfish reasons, or you can get “Forever,” in which Drake, Eminem, Lil Wayne, and Kanye push each other to be better.

“They’ve been waiting patiently for Pinocchio to poke his nose / Back into the game,” Em raps with the confidence of a man ten years his junior. “Forever” was his “I can still ball with the young pups” moment, and it worked. Buckshot ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2 [Call of Duty: Ghosts Bonus], 2013) If you managed to cop last year’s MMLP2 / Call of Duty: Ghosts tie-in bundle you were blessed with a real treat. Bonus cut “Don’t Front” finds Marshall flashing his underground cred on a gritty boom-bap production sampling “I Got Cha Opin” by ’90s hip-hop legends Black Moon and featuring group leader Buckshot on the chorus. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) The Slim Shady LP’s chronicle of Em’s dealings with “Susan, an ex-heroin addict who just stopped using” devolves into madness quick: He gives her a dose of shrooms to take her mind off opiate cravings, she loses it, and the both of them spend the remainder of their night trying (and ultimately failing) to stop her from harming herself.

Swifty McVay, Bizarre, and Fuzz ( The Slim Shady EP, 1997) Years before Kanye West sampled (which is itself a cover of a song originally by the Canadian band Skylark) for his Late Registration stunner Eminem made the 1973 track an accomplice to this laid-back, blood-soaked bit of braggadocio. 50 Cent and Obie Trice ( Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture 8 Mile, 2002) By the time this foggy bruiser appeared, Eminem had already built out his empire: millions of records sold, a starring role in his own near-biopic, an armful of Grammys, and, soon, an Academy Award. Here’s how untouchable Em was at the time — “Love Me” isn’t even the second or third best song on the 8 Mile soundtrack, and it’s still gripping.

Hell, he doesn’t even have the strongest verse; that title belongs to 50 Cent, who casually skewers R. Kelly, Lil Kim, Lauryn Hill, and D’Angelo in the track’s closing moments. But even though we open with Obie Trice and close with 50, Eminem’s at the center, flanked by two of his finest lieutenants. ( Relapse, 2009) Eminem dove deep into horrorcore camp for his comeback album, 2009’s unjustly maligned Relapse. When he isn’t urging us all to crack a bottle, he’s recounting brutal narratives filled with child abuse, cannibalism, and premeditated murder. But on “Underground,” the LP’s closing track, the violence morphs into pulpy fan-fiction as Em arms himself with a stutter-strobe beat and faces down Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and Hannibal Lecter. In this case — the last gasp of Eminem’s bleakest record — the lower the stakes, the better.

( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) MMLP2 album cut “So Far” loops up sometime-Eagle-guitarist Joe Walsh’s bluesy late ’70s hit “Life’s Been Good” while Marshall strings together a series of humorous observations about life as a fortysomething, a father, and a recovering addict. It’s charming, adult, and honest in a lot of places where MMLP2 prefers to escapist and juvenile. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) Eminem is famously evasive about the negative behavior his music is assumed — by his detractors — to inspire, and this denial is both the spark for much of his greatest work and one of his biggest foibles. D12’s single “Fight Music” sits weirdly in his discography as a moment where he owns it and proceeds to try and incite a riot. ( Relapse, 2009) Em lets his serial-killer persona — and its questionable accent — loose on this unsettling Relapse standout, stalking and attacking his victims, proudly comparing himself to Ted Bundy, and warning over an eerie, throttled track: Stay wide awake, or else. ( Recovery, 2010) Recovery deep cut “Cinderella Man” imagines Em as the comeback kid in Russell Crowe’s 2005 boxing drama of the same name while offering a curt reappraisal of Relapse (“F–k my last CD, that s–t’s in the trash”) and a promise to never fail his fans again.

(Bad Meets Evil, “Nuttin’ To Do” Single, 1999) It wasn’t the first song Eminem and Royce da 5’9″ recorded together, but “Nuttin’ To Do” was their first single as Bad Meets Evil, and as such, it’s a slow-drip distillation of the duo’s impeccable chemistry and a promising sign of more good — or, uh, evil — things to come. ( Relapse: Refill, 2009) This Relapse hold-over — bundled into that album’s bonus-filled Relapse: Refill re-release — possesses a true rarity: a half-sung Eminem hook that works. And the chorus, in which Marshall remembers how his younger self used to laugh at the idea that he’d ever go platinum, is a reminder of just how unlikely Em’s success must’ve seemed pre- Slim Shady. It’s actually kind of endearing.

(Obie Trice feat. Eminem, 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, and Tony Yayo, Cheers, 2003) Mariah diss? Leg-humping joke? Threatening to stab someone? Yeah, “We All Die One Day” has those and more, including a “deez nutz” reference. And we’ll take Eminem rapping a few bars in Spanish any day, if only because it’s so fascinatingly off-kilter.

(Sway & King Tech feat. RZA, Tech N9ne, Eminem, Xzibit, Pharoahe Monch, Kool G Rap, Jayo Felony, Chino XL, and KRS-One, This or That, 1999) For the most part, Eminem has evened himself out on the whole “rape rap” persona he adopted in his early days, but his verse on Sway and Tech’s “The Anthem” doesn’t reflect that maturation. Having said that, Marshall sounds young and hungrier than any of his collaborators on this track, and the video is prime-cornball Em. ( Encore, 2004) For much of Encore, Eminem appears to have run out of things to say — see “Puke” (No. 254) and “Big Weenie” (268) for quick proof. But now, the reflective moments on Em’s fifth LP stand as some of his most level-headed, self-aware, and mature material to date, like “Yellow Brick Road,” a pre-origin story that doubles as an apology for a racist rap () he recorded in his early days, which surfaced years later, thanks to Benzino and The Source’s then-CEO, David Mays. “I’ve heard people say they heard the tape and it ain’t that bad / But it was / I singled out a whole race and for that I apologize,” he admits on “Yellow Brick Road,” with startling sincerity.

(Xzibit feat. Eminem and Nate Dogg, Man vs.

Machine, 2002) Back when Eminem was regularly trading insults with Canibus and Dr. Dre was busy feuding with Jermaine Dupri (remember that non-conflict?), Xzibit chose to go on record supporting his comrades with “My Name,” a muscular cut from his Man vs. Machine LP that features an assist from Nate Dogg and a pair of guest verses from Em, who can’t help but spread the wrath. He lobs insults at both Canibus and Dupri, then closes the track by invoking none other than Nas. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) This Eminem Show favorite was one of the first tracks — if not the first — that cast a spotlight on a truly overwhelmed Marshall Mathers. Up to his eyeballs in personal and legal drama after getting hit with a concealed weapons charge, Em’s not spitting venom at overzealous fans or wishing he could take a chainsaw to journalists here; instead, he’s genuinely worried about the pressure he’s under and realizes that, maybe for the first time in his life, he’s got something to lose. Eminem would contemplate walking away from fame and the rap game on subsequent records, but this song marked a shift, when he started to seriously ponder saying goodbye.

( Recovery, 2010) At first pass, “Seduction” scans as a boast about coldly stealing another guy’s girlfriend, but a more careful read reveals a clever metaphor for Em’s return to hip-hop dominance in the spirit of Common’s “I Used to Love H.E.R.” C.J. (Jadakiss feat. The LOX and Eminem, Kiss of Death, 2004) One of the highlights of Jadakiss’ sophomore album Kiss of Death, “Welcome to D-Block” reunited Kiss with his LOX compatriots and teamed the group up with Eminem, who swoops in on verse two shouting out Kiss’ native Yonkers, cracking Diddy marathon jokes, and plugging G-Unit sneakers.

( Relapse, 2009) There are some clunky rhymes on “3 a.m.” (“coroner” and “corner” couldn’t have been the best Eminem’s got), but Em’s subtle inflections and timing keep the song on track. Sometimes its darkness threatens to eclipse its lighter moments, but Dr. Dre’s production and Marshall’s third-act Silence of the Lambs shoutout keep this one grounded. (Eminem and Redman, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps [Original Soundtrack], 2000) By far the best thing to ever come of Nutty Professor II: The Klumps.

(Nicki Minaj feat. Eminem, Pink Friday, 2010) “Roman’s Revenge” is probably best known as Nicki’s second round K.O. Against Lil Kim, but couching the savage joy of the assault are two workmanlike verses from Em, who leaves Kim alone to razz his favorite subset: haters. Fun fact: An early version of the song featured a chorus that quoted West Side Story’s “I Feel Pretty” instead of Busta Rhymes’ “Scenario” verse. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) A kinda-clumsy crowd-pleaser, “Square Dance” throws jabs at Dubya (“Yeah, the man’s back / With a plan to ambush this Bush administration”), packs in a quick Canibus brush-off (“Can-I-Bitch don’t want no beef with Slim / Nooooo”), and still finds room for a string of tightly coiled rhymes, just for the sake of doing so (“Psychotic, hypnotic product / I got it / The antibiotic / Ain’t nobody hotter / And so on / And yadda, yadda”). So, yeah, we’re willing to look past the over-the-top, down-South affectation Em adopts for the chorus (“Don’t be scurrred / Cuz thur ain’t nuttin’ to wurry ’bout”). 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, and Cashis ( Eminem Presents: The Re-Up, 2006) It’s almost depressing to hear 50 Cent and Eminem at the top of their lyrical game on “You Don’t Know,” because if anything, it just reminds you that time eventually gets the better of us all.

Get past that though, because Eminem goes in pretty hard here. “It’s no pretend s–t, it’s friendship,” he sneers, adding the final nail in every other rapper’s coffin: “Me nemesis is su nemesis.” B.C. (50 Cent feat. Eminem, The Massacre, 2005) Eminem and 50 Cent have terrific chemistry even when they’re not really trying, as you can tell from The Massacre’s “Gatman and Robbin’,” which finds our diabolical duo hurling a volley of violent threats over superhero theme music. Steer clear of the video unless the sight of 50 mugging in a cartoon Gatmobile is your idea of a good time.

( Relapse, 2009) Near the end of Relapse, Eminem drops the psycho killer shtick and instead opens himself up for “Beautiful,” a six-minute self-analysis — and slow-burn power ballad, fueled by a sample of 1996’s by the one-off supergroup Rock Therapy — that casts his life-changing success in a dim light, one that longs to escape the shadow of Slim Shady. (Outsidaz feat. Eminem, Night Life, 2000) Eminem’s affiliation with the Newark, New Jersey’s Outsidaz crew sadly yielded more shoutouts than collaborations before it combusted, but “Rush Ya Clique” — off of the Outz debut EP, Night Life — proved the union of Em, Pacewon, Young Zee, and company was a formidable one.

The Lauryn Hill potshot at the end of Em’s verse is business as usual for him but weird for them, since Hill’s Fugees gave the Outsidaz face time on The Score’s “Cowboys” a few years earlier. ( Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture 8 Mile, 2002) This is vitriolic Em at his finest: looking inward, taking stock of his choices, and unleashing his anger in cleverly controlled bursts. The bravado and urgency are both there (“You gon feel my rush / If you don’t feel it then it must too real to touch”), but it’s both fiery and measured for a change. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) This is how you kick off the lead single for your third major album: Obie Trice fake-out, “Buffalo Gals” faux-sing-along, and Shady-as-Batman theme song, all within the first 30 seconds.

Hard to live up to for another four minutes of run time, but “Without Me” mostly does, featuring some of Em’s most memorable and verbally dextrous hook-spinning (“So the FCC won’t let me be / Or let me be me”) and myth-making (“I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley”). By song’s end, it’s understandable that Slim’s too tired to do anything but yelp “ Kids!” and let the beat rock for another half-minute. ANDREW UNTERBERGER 58.

(The High & Mighty feat. Eminem, Home Field Advantage, 1999) For their 1999 debut album, Philadelphia duo the High & Mighty (a.k.a. Eon and DJ Might Mi) tapped a young, hungry, and punny MC from Detroit to supply a handful of guest verses. If they were hoping to fill “The Last Hit” with bars about dropping acid, spraying bullets, snatching mics, and disposing of bodies, well, the kid didn’t disappoint. (Missy Elliott feat. Eminem, Da Real World, 1999) “Busa Rhyme,” off of Missy Elliott’s sophomore album, Da Real World, is an oddity on account of its marquee star getting one verse to her guest’s three, but it’s also notable as one of only two existing Eminem-and-Timbaland collaborations. It’s a shame they didn’t work together together more; Em’s elastic flow and Tim’s pinball machine production are a heavenly match.

( The Slim Shady EP, 1997) This dark, 2Pac-sampling gem from The Slim Shady EP proves that the violence in Eminem’s world doesn’t always have to be cartoonish, gory, or fueled by rage. Sometimes the blood spills because of simple, lonely desperation.

( Infinite, 1996) The title track from Eminem’s little-heard debut album, 1996’s “Infinite” is a minor record, but if you listen closely, there are hints of the career that would follow. Em hadn’t yet developed his signature flow, but a few key elements are already there: the fascination with hell, the impressive internal rhyme schemes, the references to murder and venereal diseases. And then there’s that titular promise: “I’m infinite.” At the time, it must’ve sounded like requisite hip-hop bravado; but now, nearly 20 years later, it sounds like a self-evident truth coming from someone who knows he’s destined to become an all-time great. He’s just waiting for everyone else to catch up. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) The quasi-title track for The Slim Shady LP, “I’m Shady” might be the friendliest appearance that Eminem’s homicidal-prankster alter ego has ever made on a record. That said, he’s still writing his biggest fan a f–k-you letter, shooting up the playground, cracking AIDS jokes, and dealing drugs.

But for the record, Shady does do pills, doesn’t take speed, doesn’t do crack, doesn’t do coke, he does smoke weed, doesn’t do smack, he does do shrooms, does drink beer, and let’s make one thing clear: At this stage of his output, even Em’s deep cuts are classics. ( The Marshall Mathers LP 2, 2013) Even the most pleasant track to sneak onto MMLP2 has its dark patches. Eminem continues to carry hateful resentment for his absentee father on “Rhyme or Reason,” and devotes himself to nihilism — “There’s no rhyme or reason for nothing,” goes the chorus — but he tempers the song’s thorniness by feeding on an expertly deployed Zombies sample. D12 ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) D12’s first appearance on an Eminem album, and still one of their best posse cuts, has the six members compete for most-f–ked-up honors by shooting gats at Stop the Violence rallies, impregnating pitbulls, and straight-up vomiting on the mic. Em, reigns supreme, of course, even rendering his entire testimony inadmissible on the hook (“I was high when I wrote this / So suck my dick”) like while recounting the Dora Lange case.

Veteran move. (Bad Meets Evil, “Nuttin’ To Do” Single, 1999) The B-side (and, arguably, strongest cut) from the first meeting of Bad Meets Evil finds the two rappers sounding massive while playing slashers over a beat that’s cinematic enough to be worthy of Wes Craven. The obvious datedness of quoting the Scream catchphrase in the intro — not to mention all the Clinton/Lewinsky stuff in Em’s verse — is more than made up for by the gorgeous, Alchemist-like Shirley Bassey sample that propels the song, ironically one of the least horrorcore-indebted productions of Slim’s early years. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) As if it wasn’t enough to call one of the best tracks on his breakthrough album “Just Don’t Give a F–k,” Eminem slapped a follow-up onto the end of The Slim Shady LP to underline his point: “Still Don’t Give a F–k.” Though it’s not quite as strong as its predecessor, the sequel makes for a fitting, middle-fingers-up victory lap to close Em’s sophomore full-length, and it does boast one of his finest homicidal rhymes — “How in the f–k am I supposed to get out of debt? / I can’t rap anymore / I just murdered the alphabet.” K.M. ( End of Days [Original Soundtrack], 1999) Eminem’s favorite subject to rap about is angry parents’ disdain for his crassness, and the End of Days soundtrack cut “Bad Influence” goes for the throat. Em thumbs his nose at inflated ideas about his influence on his youngest listeners, perhaps hitting a few hairs too close to the message of “Who Knew” to be fit for inclusion on The Marshall Mathers LP proper.

( Relapse, 2009) It seems absurd that lead Relapse single “Crack a Bottle” is one of only two officially released Dre, Em, and 50 collabs (the other being “Encore” — and we’re not counting the leak of “Syllables”). It’s a perfect display of the curious multi-regionality of the Shady/Aftermath/G-Unit bond, an important precursor to the studiously inclusive rap crews of today. Om Namo Venkatesaya Om Namo Srinivasa Song Download. (Funkmaster Flex and Big Kap feat. Dre and Eminem, The Tunnel, 1999) Funkmaster Flex’s forgotten Tunnel album is home to one of the great Eminem non-album cuts. “If I Get Locked Up” is all raw Slim Shady-era battle-rap trash-talk, with cursory bars from Dr.

Dre and audacious strings and horns from Redman and Def Squad associate Rockwilder. ( Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture 8 Mile, 2002) “8 Mile” ostensibly tells the same story as “Lose Yourself,” and the latter earned Eminem the Oscar, but the former deserves some accolades as well. Named for the Hollywood adaptation of Marshall Mathers’ life story, the song weaves a narrative thread that’s separate from its better-known companion. The finer, well-drawn details — like the little sister, oblivious to the domestic wasteland around her, who colors with a crayon till it wears down in her hand — are especially honed, and the scope diverges as well. In this six-minute soundtrack cut, Em’s silver-screen counterpart dreams of being onstage and finding success as a famous rapper — just as he does in “Lose Yourself” — but he doesn’t quite get there.

For now, he’s just got to settle for leaving 8 Mile Road behind him. (Xzibit feat.

Eminem, Restless, 2000) The main takeaway from this Eminem-and-Xzibit collaboration? These guys value their privacy, so don’t approach them, and they won’t approach you. Sounds like same ol’ flexing, chest-beating, and gun-waving, you say? It might be, but the rapport between Em and X elevates this Restless knockout. (Bad Meets Evil, Hell: The Sequel, 2011) Eminem and Royce da 5’9″‘s cold war lasted a decade, but 2011’s Bad Meets Evil reunion single “Fast Lane” cashed out on the duo’s latent promise so effortlessly that it’s as if there was never a rift, Em and Royce sparring and and proving themselves equally matched.

Dre and 50 Cent ( Encore, 2004) If only Eminem could resist the urge to overstuff his albums with 20 or so tracks. Strip the skits from Encore, peel off a handful of duds (consult the 150 to 200 range of this list for some contenders), and the chugging “Encore/Curtains Down” could’ve been a powerhouse closer to a lean, reigned-in record. Instead, it’s a strong, star-studded finish — Dr. Dre and 50 Cent contribute guest verses — to Em’s first major misstep. (Him promising, in 2004, that Dre’s still-unreleased Detox was coming soon makes this landing rougher than it needs to be.) K.M.

( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) As the world turns, Slim spreads like germs, perpetrating all sorts of evil whilst dressed like a WKRP in Cincinnati DJ. Em’s own particular brand of soap opera wouldn’t play all that well with the daytime crowd, as the “small obstacles and challenges” that represent his daily tribulations include getting beaten up and having his legs eaten by his attempted-assault victims, before raping them to death with his Go-Go Gadget Dick. About a million times more nauseating than ABC’s traditional 2:00 block, but considerably more entertaining, and uh, definitely less predictable. (D12, Devil’s Night, 2001) One of the most narcoleptic jams ever created, with a hook that teeters on the verge of passing out at the end of every measure and a bridge which basically ends with Eminem falling asleep on the keyboard. Transfixing stuff, and hardly inappropriate for a single (and group) that ingests so many different kinds of narcotics that the basically had to turn it into a completely different (though, really, no less disturbing) song altogether.

Bubba Sparxxx never dreamed of a harmonica outro this funky, either. ( The Marshall Mathers LP [Clean Version], 2000) Learning his lessons from “Drug Ballad” and “My Fault,” Eminem decides to educate a classroom of children on “The Kids,” telling them the stories of Bob, a psychopath who enjoys attacking strange women and smoking marijuana and Zach, a weak-willed 21-year-old who succumbs to peer pressure and, eventually, too much ecstasy. He also warns the youngsters about the dangers of eating “fungus” (read: magic mushrooms), but doesn’t mention the tale of “Susan the ex-heroin addict” from The Slim Shady LP — probably for the best. Shame he also didn’t leave out those ultra-dated South Park imitations, but we’ll overlook it for this Marshall Mathers-era oddity. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) “Sing for the Moment” nicks a hefty chunk of the Aerosmith classic “Dream On” and matches Steven Tyler and company’s stressed, youthful ennui, again lashing out at critics and naysayers who suggest Em’s music drives fans to anything other than comfort and escape. (The Notorious B.I.G.

Eminem, Born Again, 1999) Eminem and Biggie never met in real life but that doesn’t remove “Dead Wrong” — a single from the posthumous B.I.G. Album Born Again’ — from consideration as one of the best songs released by either MC.

Biggie’s performance is typically flawless, but Em swipes the song out from under him in the third verse with an occult-heavy tour de force that ends in a bloodbath. ( Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture 8 Mile [Special Edition], 2002) An underrated Eminem Show-era B-side, “Stimulate” is mostly notable for its uncharacteristically psychedelic chorus — overwhelmed by a massive guitar swirl, and a backmasked Em singing in reverse underneath his own chorus — and for what must be the only reference in hip-hop history to the solo career of ex-Take That singer Robbie Williams. Its lyrics aren’t nearly as pointed as most of Em’s hits from the period, so it’s not surprising it mostly stayed under the radar, but it’s a forgotten cut well-worth unearthing.

( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) Some of the references may feel dated now — that guitar-solo fade-out, the shots taken at ‘NSync, Britney Spears, and $16 CDs — but the feelings of indignation, betrayal, and please-give-me-a-reason irritability are cornerstones of the Eminem mythos. Royce da 5’9″ ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) This is what happens when bad (Eminem) meets evil (Royce da 5’9″): a spaghetti-Western-flavored team-up that leaves no survivors and sows the seeds for a two-man side project. RBX and Sticky Fingaz ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) “Remember Me?” is the only time another rapper gets the best of Eminem on The Marshall Mathers LP. The guest list is unusual: one-time Dre associate RBX (best known for spots on The Chronic) and Onyx’s Sticky Fingaz both show up dishing guttural shock raps, and Em, who swiped the song from inclusion on Dre’s 2001 album, can’t quite get the best of Sticky.

The steepness of the competition and the cold purity of their senseless violence makes for one of the best album-tracks of Em’s career. ( Rawkus Presents Soundbombing II, 1999) Before his Aftermath deal, Eminem was rumored to be interested in work with venerable rap indies Duck Down and Rawkus. He took meetings with Duck Down’s Buckshot and Dru Ha and popped up on Rawkus Records’ label comp Soundbombing II with “Any Man,” an immaculate bit of drug-addled savagery — delivered over production from Buckshot’s longtime collaborators Da Beatminerz — that memorably cuts out in the third verse with Em saying his daughter scratched out the last line in his book of rhymes. ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) The closing track on Eminem’s career-defining effort, “Criminal” is the crowning achievement by his machete-wielding Dennis the Menace persona.

Ecstatic to cause mayhem over a splasy piano beat, Em goads his critics with some of his most viciously homophobic lyrics, robs a bank and blows away a teller for the fun of it (“Thank you!”), and explains the sick joke that’s at the heart of Slim Shady: “S–t, half the s–t I say / I just make it up / To make you mad / So kiss my white, naked ass.” And how does he immediately follow that confession? “And if it’s not a rapper that I make it as / I’m-a be a f–king rapist in a Jason mask.” K.M.

( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) After Eminem handed his third full-length in to Interscope Records in early 2000, the label felt it was missing an accessible first single, so Jimmy Iovine — one of the company’s co-founders and its then-chairman — asked Em to try and write another song like his 1999 breakout hit, “My Name Is.” What Interscope got instead was “The Way I Am,” a smoldering f–k-you aimed at record executives, journalists, and even Eminem’s own fans. Punctuated with dramatic chimes and crackling tape effects, the track features Mathers’ fiercest performance on the mic, as he answers the pressure and expectations placed upon him with teeth-gnashing intensity, wishing he’d die or get released from his record contract, and sniping at the people swirling around the outer edges of his life.

No, it wasn’t exactly the sort of radio-ready jingle that Iovine had in mind, but “The Way I Am” did end up making it onto The Marshall Mathers LP and was, incredibly, released as a single — after “The Real Slim Shady,” the record’s punchline-filled lead-off, which Eminem wrote after he burned off “The Way I Am.” K.M. ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) “My Name Is” was the song that made Eminem a star, but “The Real Slim Shady” was the song that made Eminem a phenomenon, and though it’s inseparable from its cultural moment — the spring and summer of 2000, when Carson Daly, Christina Aguilera, and Fred Durst regularly appeared on TV (and in sentences) together — the first single from MMLP still stands as a pop pillar, a mudslinging but ultimately harmless bit of goofball G-Funk that helped a man amass an army of bleach-blond devils. ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) “I murder a rhyme one word at a time / You never heard of a mind as perverted as mine” Nestled in the middle of The Marshall Mathers LP is one of the finest vocal performances of Em’s career. The wordplay in the first verse of “I’m Back” is genius, but it’s the deft switch in the subject matter, the quick shift from demented radio terror to sad-kid Marshall and back to still-unhappy Eminem, that sets this one apart from the rest of the pack. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) Listening to “Rock Bottom” now, the track’s most disarming element isn’t the ghostly sample of by Big Brother and the Holding Company (though that comes close); it’s how beaten-down and worn-out Eminem sounds. Before his Relapse and Recovery, before his high-profile feuds and two divorces, before “The Real Slim Shady,” Marshall Mathers was, like many people, a husband and father struggling to support his family, a self-described nervous wreck who busted his ass and broke his heart for bum checks, who felt as though his best days were already behind him and that his worst would never end, who fantasized about breaking the law and inflicting pain on others not to hold onto his throne, but to carve out even the smallest part of the kingdom. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) Written in dire straits as Em struggles to nurse a new child and a rap career seemingly nearing its demise, “Just Don’t Give a F–k” chronicles a dark descent into drug abuse.

It also lays out the blueprint for the next five years of Slim Shady diss wars: verse two calls out five white rappers in two lines and puts rap mags on notice that they can get it too, as Em’s Source war would quickly bear out as truth. ( Music From and Inspired By the Motion Picture 8 Mile, 2002) 8 Mile was a quality concept that’s yet to be duplicated: a rapper at the top of his game playing himself in the story of his rise to power. It’s everything Cool As Ice wanted to be but couldn’t. The soundtrack netted the first Best Original Song Oscar to ever be awarded to a hip-hop act.

That’s thanks to “Lose Yourself,” the prototypical Eminem empowerment anthem. It’s a genius melding of hip-hop attitude and rock swagger, a motivational message of empowerment pulled from adversity, the entire Eminem experience distilled into one knockout punch.

( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) Nearly 15 years after its release, “Kim” remains a chilling and uncompromising work. As a song, it’s a punishing listen: a horrifying, six-minute homicide fantasy starring an unhinged Eminem as the murderer and his then-wife (now ex-wife — twice over) as his victim. As a piece of storytelling, it’s an emotional and psychological bloodletting, the most focused and visceral narrative Marshall Mathers has recorded to date. A horror movie that needs no visual, “Kim” depicts the end of a marriage, follows a man’s descent into madness, and ends with no music — just the sound of a body being dragged through some reeds as far-off cars pass on the adjacent highway, right before a trunk slams shut.

Eminem, The Blueprint, 2001) Even if Eminem never achieved and maintained his own success, landing the only true guest feature on Jay Z’s The Blueprint would’ve earned him bragging rights for life. Hova’s 2001 LP was the moment he solidified Shawn Carter’s present-day role as the King of New York; it’s a virtually flawless full-length blockbuster, arguably the greatest hip-hop record of the 21st century, and, for a few moments, Em steals the spotlight from its star. (He also supplied Jay with the track, which was originally recorded as a, who was replaced by Jay Z for this version.) Here’s a bold, but true, statement: The Detroit rapper’s flow has never been better or more natural on record than it is on his two “Renegade” verses. Well-worn territory for Eminem — taunting parents, Shady as Satan’s Little Helper — is discussed and dispensed with breathtaking economy and ease (“See it’s as easy as cake, simple as whistling ‘Dixie’ / While I’m waving the pistol at 60 Christians against me Motherf–kers hate to like you / What did I do?”). Post- Marshall Mathers LP and pre- Eminem Show, this is Eminem at the peak of his powers, a snapshot of a kid from the gutter making his butter from bloodsuckers. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) A rotting wound given a backing track, “Cleanin’ Out My Closet” features an understated but effective arrangement: a simple snare drum, muted electric guitar, mournful strings on the chorus, and a key hook that twinkles all throughout.

That’s all dressing, though, for one of the most personal, pained, and uncomfortable listens in Eminem’s catalog. The second single from The Eminem Show, “Closet” opens with Em responding to his critics, recasting himself as a victim of hate and discrimination; verses two and three take an axe to the Mathers family tree, as Marshall curses and wishes death upon his father, ponders the broken pieces of his marriage, excoriates his own mother for mistreating him as a child, and claims that he was a victim of. Eminem had covered much of this territory before, but never with such plainspoken rage and intimate detail. He’s since apologized to his mom in song for dragging their dysfunctional relationship out in the public, but that doesn’t make “Cleanin’ Out My Closet” any less devastating. And the video — which features Em digging a grave in the rain — hasn’t softened, either. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) Stressed, depressed, and broke, Marshall rattles off a list of life conditions he’s sick of dealing with before musing in the chorus about what he’d do if he ever became a millionaire in a subtle twist on the Barenaked Ladies track “If I Had $1,000,000″ from a few years prior.

We all know the rest of the story: international fame, acclaim and stacks upon stacks of millions. Em doesn’t make records like “If I Had” anymore because he can’t. His fear of starving has long since vanquished.

( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) “Stan” reveals that parents and Eminem share the same fear: that Em’s most die-hard fans would take everything the rapper says literally. ( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) Though Infinite and The Slim Shady EP preceded it, “My Name Is” was Eminem’s introduction to many of his listeners. The character was a lot to take in: a devilishly smart, bleached-blond white rapper with a penchant for violence, a natural disdain for celebrity, and a stunning history of family trauma. “My Name Is” showcased all of these facets, kookily springing a severely unusual character on an unsuspecting public with an infectious Dre beat and a calculatedly absurdist video treatment. His mom was so fried by her depiction in it that she sued her kid, then penned a rap diss and tell-all. ( The Eminem Show, 2002) The Eminem Show’s “‘Till I Collapse” does everything “Lose Yourself” would do months later, but “Lose Yourself” didn’t have Nate Dogg.

( The Slim Shady LP, 1999) Originally featured on The Slim Shady EP with a different musical arrangement and title, “’97 Bonnie & Clyde” was re-recorded and ported over to Eminem’s first major release, The Slim Shady LP. An R-rated bedtime story, the song follows Eminem immediately after the events of “Kim,” which was recorded as a prequel for The Marshall Mathers LP. In this track, Em’s got to dispose of his murdered wife’s dead body and explain to his daughter why her mom won’t be coming home with them. Of all the different facets of Eminem — Em the rapper, Slim the id, Marshall the son, Marhsall the husband — none is more fascinating than Marshall the father, who loves his baby girl more than anything and would do whatever it takes to raise her as he sees best, even if that means letting Slim Shady rob her of her mother. By design, “Kim” covers a lot of the same territory in much more graphic detail, but “’97 Bonnie & Clyde” (previously known as “Just the Two of Us”) plays with the maniac/dad-knows-best dichotomy that’s central to early Eminem. ( The Marshall Mathers LP, 2000) The proper lead track on Eminem’s classic The Marshall Mathers LP is a daring response to criticism about his lyrical content.

Accused of promoting misogyny, drug addiction, and violence in his music, Em leads off his best album by upping the ante, rifling through verses packed with jaw-dropping gore and warning anyone listening to the chorus that, “You don’t wanna f–k with Shady / Cause Shady will f–king kill you.” It’s Russian roulette. No living rapper has mustered the guts to try it since. Eminem, 2001, 1999) Yes, a guest verse. Pause the outrage for a moment to first consider this: Eminem’s guest turn on “Forgot About Dre” is very possibly the best-known verse of his career — and even if you’d point to “The Real Slim Shady,” “My Name Is,” or “Without Me” as proof of otherwise, “Forgot About Dre” doesn’t get tripped up by dated name-dropping like those other tracks do. And, like any major hit single, “Dre” certainly feels of its time, but it’s not hampered by its turn-of-the-century release date; it’s the sort of song that people can get nostalgic about and still enjoy in-the-moment. In a pop sense, this is Eminem at his most likable — if you were anywhere near a radio in the year 2000, the phrase “hotter than a set of twin babies” is still seared into your brain. (And, if you’re, you’ve retained much more than that.) Let’s put it this way: Even people who find Eminem repugnant, offensive, and problematic can get behind “Forgot About Dre.” He’s still got his violent tendencies — he strangles a guy just for giving him an awkward eye, then burns down a house with Dr.

Dre and never gets found out — but he doesn’t come off as dangerous or frightening when he’s rhyming over the symphonic drip cooked up by Dre. And looking back, this feature caught Eminem just as he was peaking, when he wasn’t completely mired in controversy or apologizing for entire albums. “Forgot About Dre” was able to bottle Eminem while he was still, relatively speaking, on the come-up, in between The Slim Shady LP and The Marshall Mathers LP. What could be more exciting than that?

Discography Studio albums 9 Compilation albums 8 Video albums 5 Music videos 57 EPs 1 Singles 46 American rapper 's music has been released on record labels and, along with subsidiaries, and his own. Eminem is the best-selling hip hop artist of all-time and the best-selling artist of the 2000s with US album sales at over 32.2 million during the decade.

As of November 2010, Eminem has four songs that have sold over three million downloads in the United States. Eminem has sold more than 42 million track downloads in the United States alone. His worldwide albums and singles sales stand at more than 172 million. He has earned 42 platinum certifications, five number one singles and six number one albums from the (RIAA).

In this, and collaborations are included as well. In 1996, Eminem released his first studio album,, under Web Entertainment. The album sold about a thousand copies and failed to rank on the national charts. After signing a contract with Interscope Records and Aftermath Entertainment, the rapper released his sophomore and commercial debut album, in 1999 and reached the number two spot on the, and received four platinum certifications in the United States from the RIAA. In the same year, the rapper, along with manager, founded the record label Shady Records. In the subsequent year, Eminem released his third studio album,, which sold 1.76 million copies in its first week of distribution, breaking records for the fastest-selling hip hop album of all-time and the fastest-selling solo album in the United States. It was the second best-selling album of the 2000s, only losing to 's.

With more than ten million copies sold, the album was the third best-selling record of the year in the United States, where it also earned nine platinum certifications. The, ', became Eminem's first song to enter in the top ten of the. ' was the most successful single outside of the States, while it failed to reach the top fifty in the rapper's home country. In 2002, Eminem's fourth album,, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and reached the top spot on various charts internationally, as it went on to sell over nineteen million copies worldwide. In the United States, The Eminem Show was the highest-selling album of the year, with sales of almost ten million copies. The album received a from the RIAA in 2011.

The album also received a diamond certification in Canada, equivalent to the shipment of one million units. The album received eight platinum certifications from New Zealand's.

In the same year, Eminem's ', from the, became the rapper's first number one song on the Hot 100 and remained on the top for twelve weeks. The song also reached the top of various national charts worldwide. The 8 Mile soundtrack peaked at the number one position in the United States, where it sold more than four million of the nine million copies distributed internationally. In 2004, Eminem's fifth studio album became the rapper's third consecutive studio album to reach number one in the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and United Kingdom. Sales, however, were significantly less than the two previous studio albums, with over five million sold copies in the United States and eleven million worldwide. Much success for Encore's singles came from the United Kingdom, where ' and ' went on to top the and two other songs, ' and ' reached position number four. Eminem released a album in 2005, which sold almost three million copies in the US and received a double platinum certification from RIAA.

The following year, Shady Records released, a performed by Eminem along various artists from the record label. The album received a platinum certification from the RIAA in 2007 and sold slightly over a million copies in the United States. In 2009, the song ', a collaboration with label-mates and, became Eminem's second number one on the Hot 100 and broke the record for opening week download sales in the United States, with 418,000 copies sold in the first week. After a hiatus of more than four years,, Eminem's sixth studio album, was released in 2009 and was the rapper's fourth consecutive studio album to once again top the Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom and US as well as various worldwide charts, with domestic sales of over two million copies. In the subsequent year, Eminem released his seventh studio album, which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and reached the top spot on various charts internationally. Recovery's singles ' and ' featuring, became the rapper's third and fourth number one songs on the Hot 100; the latter also reached the top of various national charts worldwide. In June 2014, RIAA certified his song 'Not Afraid' Diamond thus making Eminem the first artist with two digital Diamond awards by RIAA.

In January 2011, Eminem was identified as the first artist in Nielsen SoundScan history to have two year-end number-one albums. He was named the best selling artist in Canada in 2010 and 2013. In August 2013, Eminem released the single ' which debuted number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and released his eighth studio album in November 2013. The album produced the singles ', which was showcased during the reveal trailer, ', and ' featuring Rihanna. In May 2014, Eminem was announced as the most streamed artist of all time on.

• A The 42 platinum certifications by the include twenty-nine platinum certifications credited as a solo artist and eleven certifications with various artists. • B The reported chart positions are of the latter release The Slim Shady LP (Special Edition). The original album release peaked up to number 46 on the Belgian and 77 on the. • C For certifications of The Slim Shady LP and E, enter Eminem in the 'artist name' field. • D The reported peak chart positions are indicative of the UK Compilation Albums Chart, as soundtracks and compilation albums by various artists are not eligible for the.

• E 'Just Don't Give a Fuck' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 14 on the chart. • F 'Jimmy Crack Corn' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number one on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

• G 'Space Bound' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 19 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • H 'Dead Wrong' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 15 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

• I 'Role Model' did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number 11 on the chart. • J 'Kill You' did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number two on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. • K 'Hailie's Song' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 13 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

It did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number 10 on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. • L 'Say What You Say' did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number 10 on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. • M '8 Mile' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number two on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

• N 'Hail Mary' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 11 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • O 'Mosh' did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number 12 on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. • P 'The Re-Up' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 19 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • Q 'No Apologies' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 21 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • R 'Touchdown' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number nine on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • S 'Peep Show' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 16 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • T 'Dr West (skit)' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number five on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

• U 'Drop the Bomb on 'Em' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number three on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • V 'Buffalo Bill' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 17 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

• W 'Taking My Ball' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 23 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • X 'Careful What You Wish For' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 25 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • Y 'The Warning' did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number eight on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. • Z 'Cinderella Man' did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 12 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. • A2 'Campaign Speech' did not enter the chart, but peaked at number nine on the chart. References [ ].