Eminem offers rare look inside his world
'The Marshall Mathers LP2' is officially released Nov. 5.
Dressed in a black tracksuit and white tennis shoes, Eminem bobbed his head back and forth as a recording of his song Rap God echoed through the open, empty space of the Detroit warehouse.
Working in front of one stationary camera and a production crew of a couple dozen people, the Detroit rapper was hard at work on the upcoming video for the song - a boisterous, six-minute verbal fusillade that both drops respect for past hip-hop stars and declares Eminem as the man of the moment.
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Inside the Russell Industrial Center complex just north of downtown, the production crew had created an ominous mood - minimal lighting, the air filled with smoke. Among those watching were Eminem's longtime manager, Paul Rosenberg, and music video director Rich Lee, who also helmed the videos for Lighters and Not Afraid.
Eminem, like a prizefighter about to step into the ring, moved from one corner of the designated floor space to the other corner. Then he'd jump in front of the camera, performing a full, six-minute take. After almost every shot, Eminem would go immediately to one of the video monitors looking for things he liked - and didn't. He'd huddle with his cohorts, take some water and get right back out in front of the camera. This scene repeated itself for hours during the Detroit Free Press visit, which was just a small chunk of the two-day shoot.
'I am excited about making the music and I want people to hear it. '
- Eminem, on new album
It was a rare look behind the scenes of Eminem's famously tight-lipped and closely held world, just a week before his first new album in more than three years was to be released. As is usual, a new Eminem disc is cause for speculation, big headlines and high-profile appearances, including Billboard and Rolling Stone covers hitting newsstands this week and a scheduled performance on Saturday Night Live.
Speaking Wednesday from New York, where he'd arrived for the SNL gig, Eminem reflected on the video work he'd done days earlier in Detroit.
'I want people to hear it'
'I'm always imagining shooting video; visualizing the picture. What everything could, should look like. I'm always thinking about music videos and ideas, concepts. I do that for almost all of my songs.'
Tuesday's release of The Marshall Mathers LP2 is like any Eminem arrival: There are lofty expectations from virtually everyone. What will probably be one of the biggest-selling records of the year also takes the bold step of tipping its hat to The Marshall Mathers LP, the 2000 album that is considered by many to be the hallmark of Eminem's career. The album was leaked online six days early.
Eminem said he's looking forward to the music getting out.
'I do get excited to make the music. Obviously, I'm not the type to say I'm so excited to hear my (profanity). Never been that kind of dude. But I am excited about making the music and I want people to hear it,' Eminem said.
Eminem's new 'The Marshall Mathers LP2' will be released Tuesday.(Photo: Interscope)
What fans will hear is a 21-track album that is both experimental and wide-ranging. The benchmark third single Rap God features a rat-a-tat delivery of 97 words during one 15-second sequence. The psychotic character from the heralded hit Stan returns on the album's seven-minute opener, Bad Guy. Eminem even sings for about 3 minutes to open anti-love song Stronger Than I Was. Perhaps more surprisingly, he even attempts to mend a famously fractious relationship by apologizing to his mother on Headlights: 'I love you Debbie Mathers/Oh what a tangled web we have,' he raps.
'I felt like a kid'
'These are very personal topics - the same topics he's been talking about over these last 10 years or even longer,' said Rosenberg. 'He's telling stories from a 40-year-old man's perspective now. When he started 15 years ago with these stories, topics he was in his 20s. Perspective changes. You've raised your own children, had your own successes and failures. One of the coolest things about this album are these themes he explores and looking at this same world totally differently.'
The 41-year-old, who was born Marshall Bruce Mathers III, said that one of the reasons he named his new record after The Marshall Mathers LP was that there were some things early in the recording process that reminded him and others of his earlier days.
'While recording the album, people who would hear a song would say it reminded them of the first time they heard me. The more I listened to it, the more it made sense to call it that.'
'He's telling stories from a 40-year-old man's perspective now. When he started 15 years ago with these stories, topics he was in his 20s. Perspective changes. '
- Paul Rosenberg, Eminem's manager
Today, the original Marshall Mathers LP is pushing 11 million units sold worldwide. It's considered by critics one of the best hip-hop albums of all time and the defining piece of Eminem's career. Referencing it was something Eminem and Rosenberg discussed.
'We knew that if we called it that, we needed to have the right songs. There needs to be a certain kind of vibe,' Eminem said.
While looking to the past, Eminem also took a bold new step while recording part of the album in Malibu, Calif., at Rick Rubin's studio. Rubin is a legendary rock and rap producer, noted for developing the Beastie Boys, LL Cool J, Public Enemy and Run-D.M.C, founding Def Jam Recordings with Russell Simmons and helping revive the career of Johnny Cash.
'I felt like a kid in the studio working with Rick,' Eminem said. 'Obviously, it's an incredible honor. The way he can dip in and out of different genres ... he's like Yoda, a Jedi master.'
Eminem said that he was nervous about working with Rubin at first, but soon learned collaborations can be rewarding when there's trust.
'Trying ... to find the right balance'
'Once the nerves wore off, you just see how cool he is, and I instantly became comfortable telling him about different ideas, things that weren't fully worked out yet that I would've been afraid to say in front of him. ... We just ran ideas off each other, lots of what-ifs. It was great.'
In his personal life, Eminem has famously withdrawn from the public eye in recent years. His focus has been daughter Hailie Jade Scott (who recently made national headlines by being elected homecoming queen at Chippewa Valley High School) and his two adopted daughters Alaina (Lainie) Mathers and Whitney Mathers. He also is the legal guardian of younger half brother Nathan.
'I think with this album you are seeing a focused artist that is about to kill the game on pure skill. He is pushing things forward by paying respect to what got him here in the first place. '
- Rich Lee, music video director
Other than occasional one-off and festival performances, he has for the most part avoided touring live since 2005, when he canceled a European tour and entered rehab for prescription drug addiction. In 2009, he delivered Relapse, his first record after a four-year hiatus from recording because of writer's block and the addiction issues. Relapse was followed a year later by Recovery, which was darker and generally more well-received.
Both Rosenberg and Lee say they think he's performing at a high level.
'I'm just so impressed by his ability to continue to make music that is so relevant, so interesting to so many people,' Rosenberg said. 'That it's this far along in his career, that's a remarkable testament to his talent.'
Said Lee: 'I think with this album you are seeing a focused artist that is about to kill the game on pure skill. He is pushing things forward by paying respect to what got him here in the first place.'
Rosenberg said the Rap God music video is scheduled to come out in about two weeks. And while he won't reveal much about touring plans or what's coming next, he said Eminem fans should be excited.
'Marshall's settled into a good place in his life, career,' Rosenberg said. 'He's a lot more comfortable being who he is, and I think that's really going to be beneficial for his fans.'
And Em? Well, he's finding balance. Starting with MMLP2.
'I always try and have as much fun with it, performing, music, my career,' Eminem said. 'At the end of the day, I'm blessed that I'm able to do something I'm passionate about.'
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