''Relapse'' (stylized as ''℞ELAPSƎ'') is the sixth studio album by American rapper
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
. It was released on May 15, 2009, through
Aftermath Entertainment
Aftermath Entertainment is an American record label founded by hip hop producer and rapper Dr. Dre. It operates as a subsidiary of, and is distributed through, Interscope Records.
Current acts include Dr. Dre himself, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, An ...
,
Shady Records
Shady Records is an American record label founded by rapper Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg, after the highly successful release of Eminem's ''The Slim Shady LP'' (1999).
Shady has seen negative times when being part of the unsuccessful ...
, and
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mus ...
. It was his first album of original material since ''
Encore
An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pres ...
'' (2004), following a four-year hiatus from recording due to his
writer's block
Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author is either unable to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown. Mike Rose found that this creative stall is not a result of commitment problems or th ...
and an addiction to prescription sleeping medication. Recording sessions for the album took place between 2007 and 2009 at several recording studios, and
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
,
Mark Batson
Mark Batson is an American producer, musician and songwriter. He has worked on albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, LeAnn Rimes, Anthony Hamilton, Eminem, India Arie, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Skylar Grey, Grace Potter an ...
, and Eminem handled production.
''Relapse'' is a
concept album
A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
that revolves around
horror,
drug rehabilitation
Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general inte ...
and
relapse
In internal medicine, relapse or recidivism is a recurrence of a past (typically medical) condition. For example, multiple sclerosis and malaria often exhibit peaks of activity and sometimes very long periods of dormancy, followed by relapse or r ...
. A return of his Slim Shady
alter ego
An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...
, Eminem stated that the album's theme was more reminiscent of ''
The Slim Shady LP
''The Slim Shady LP'' is the second studio album and major label debut by American rapper Eminem. It was released on February 23, 1999, by Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records. Recorded in Ferndale, Michigan following Eminem's recruitm ...
'' (1999) and
''The'' ''Marshall Mathers LP'' (2000). In September 2007, Dr. Dre stated his intention to dedicate two months to the production of the album.
Working with Dr. Dre allowed Eminem to pick the
beats from Dr. Dre's catalog that challenged his
rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular recu ...
to experiment with different
flows.
During the recording period, a handful of songs intended for ''Relapse'' were
leaked on the Internet.
One of the most anticipated albums of 2009, ''Relapse'' debuted at No. 1 on the
''Billboard'' 200, selling 608,000 copies in its first week. It also reached number one in twelve other countries. It produced four singles: "
Crack a Bottle", "
We Made You
"We Made You" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his sixth studio album ''Relapse'' (2009). It was released as the second single from the album on April 7, 2009. "We Made You" was written by Eminem, Dr. Dre, Dawaun Parker, Mark Batson, T ...
",
"3 a.m.", and
"Beautiful", as well as the promotional single: "
Old Time's Sake". "Crack a Bottle", featuring
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
and
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...
, reached number one on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100. ''Relapse'' was certified
double platinum
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA).
Critically, the album received mixed reviews. Reviewers generally praised its production, but were divided in their responses towards the writing and overuse of accents throughout the album. Nonetheless, it won Eminem the
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
for
Best Rap Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories ...
, while "Crack a Bottle" won for
Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group was awarded between 1991 and 2011, alongside the Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance. Previously a single award was presented for Best Rap Performance.
The award was discontin ...
. The album later found a strong
cult following
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...
among some fans and critics, who believe that although the album may be lacking in lyricism and subject matter, the rhymes, flows and production are amongst Eminem's best.
Background
After releasing ''
Encore
An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pres ...
'' in 2004, Eminem planned to take some time off from recording his own music to become a
hip hop producer
Hip hop production is the creation of hip hop music in a recording studio. While the term encompasses all aspects of hip hop music creation, including recording the rapping of an MC, a turntablist or DJ providing a beat, playing samples and "s ...
for other rap acts, especially for the artists signed on his own label Shady Records. However, Eminem entered his hiatus after cancelling the European leg of the
Anger Management Tour
The Anger Management Tour was a rap and rock music tour, founded and started in the fall of 2000 by Limp Bizkit, Papa Roach and, after the release of ''The Marshall Mathers LP'', Eminem.
The first "Anger Management" outing took place in 2000. I ...
in the summer of 2005 because of exhaustion and an addiction to prescription sleeping drugs. In the following year, the rapper's remarriage to his former wife Kimberly Scott lasted only eleven weeks before a second divorce,
while his best friend and fellow rapper
Proof was later shot and killed during an altercation outside a
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
nightclub. Devastated, Eminem relapsed into
prescription drug
A prescription drug (also prescription medication or prescription medicine) is a pharmaceutical drug that legally requires a medical prescription to be dispensed. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The rea ...
abuse
Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...
and became increasingly reclusive.
In a June 2009 interview for ''
XXL'', Eminem elaborated on the impact of Proof's death on him, stating:
Speculation on an upcoming album by Eminem was reported since mid–2007 from announcements made by artists
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...
and
Stat Quo
Stanley Bernard Benton (born July 24, 1978), better known as Stat Quo, is an American rapper and record producer.Shaheem Reid (January 12, 2004).Mixtape Mondays: Stat Quo" ''MTV''. Accessed February 5, 2008. Benton worked his way to college a ...
, former members of Shady Records. Also, rapper
Bizarre – a member of the hip hop group
D12
D12 (an initialism for The Dirty Dozen) was an American hip hop collective from Detroit, Michigan. Formed in 1996, the group achieved mainstream success with its lineup of ''de facto'' leader Eminem, Proof, Bizarre, Mr. Porter, Kuniva and Swift ...
– stated that the release of the group's third studio album was on hold because
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mus ...
wanted to release Eminem's album first. By the end of the year, additional musicians associated with Shady Records – including
The Alchemist
An alchemist is a person who practices alchemy.
Alchemist or Alchemyst may also refer to:
Books and stories
* ''The Alchemist'' (novel), the translated title of a 1988 allegorical novel by Paulo Coelho
* ''The Alchemist'' (play), a play by Be ...
,
Bishop Lamont
Philip Brandon Martin (born October 31, 1978), better known as Bishop Lamont, is an American rapper from Carson, California. He was signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment record label and released one project under the label, eventually le ...
,
Cashis
Ramone Johnson (born October 10, 1982), better known by his stage name Cashis (stylized as Ca$his), is an American rapper who was born and raised in Chicago, but moved to Irvine, California. He was most notably featured on the Shady Records ...
and
Obie Trice
Obie Trice III (born November 14, 1977) is an American rapper. He was signed to fellow Detroit rapper Eminem's Shady Records in 2002, where he released the albums ''Cheers'' (2003) and ''Second Round's on Me'' (2006). Trice formed his own record ...
– had confirmed on different occasions that the rapper was effectively working on a new album.
On September 12, 2007, during a call at the radio station
WQHT
WQHT (97.1 FM, ''Hot 97'') is a commercial radio station, licensed to New York, New York, which broadcasts an urban contemporary music format. The station is owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared service ...
''Hot 97'', Eminem stated that he was in limbo and was not sure whether he would release any new material in the near future. He then elaborated that at that point he was constantly working in the recording studio and had come to terms with his personal issues. However, in December 2007, he was hospitalized because of an
overdose
A drug overdose (overdose or OD) is the ingestion or application of a drug or other substance in quantities much greater than are recommended. of
methadone
Methadone, sold under the brand names Dolophine and Methadose among others, is a synthetic opioid agonist used for chronic pain and also for opioid dependence. It is used to treat chronic pain, and it is also used to treat addiction to heroin ...
.
In early 2008, he began a
12-step program
Twelve-step programs are international mutual aid programs supporting recovery from substance addictions, behavioral addictions and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), aided its members ...
to recover from his addiction; in a later interview, he said that he got sober on April 20, 2008.
He has stayed sober since then.
Recording
![Dr](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Dr._Dre_at_Coachella_2012.jpg)
Eminem had continued recording throughout 2005, and released most of this work on his Shady Records compilation album ''
Eminem Presents: The Re-Up''. He also recorded the track "Beautiful" in late 2007, which would later become the fifth and final single on Relapse, and also one of the only songs on the entire album in which Eminem recorded when he wasn't sober. Eminem began the major recording stages of ''Relapse'' in mid-2008, after completing a
12-step program
Twelve-step programs are international mutual aid programs supporting recovery from substance addictions, behavioral addictions and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), aided its members ...
to control his drug addiction.
Record producer
A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...
and long-time Detroit collaborator Jeff Bass of the
Bass Brothers worked with Eminem on 25 tracks, two years after the rapper had received treatment for his sleeping pill addiction in 2005.
Depressed by Proof's death, Eminem fell into a period of "
writer's block
Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author is either unable to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown. Mike Rose found that this creative stall is not a result of commitment problems or th ...
", where he felt everything he wrote was not worth recording.
To compensate for this, Bass chose to follow a production style that would allow the artist to rap "off the top of his head, as opposed to writing a story".
Eminem would then
freestyle or record vocals one line at a time before interrupting and then recording another line.
At the same time, according to Eminem's song rights supervisor Joel Martin, the rapper began to collect additional songs without noticing it. He would often record or produce material initially intended for the musical projects of other artists, but end up with tracks he really liked.
Eminem purchased the Effigy Studio in
Ferndale, Michigan
Ferndale is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It forms part of the Detroit metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 19,190.
Ferndale is well known in the Detroit area for its LGBT population and progr ...
, in 2007, and ended his working relationship with much of his former production team of the 54 Sound
recording studio
A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enoug ...
, including the Bass Brothers.
In September 2007, Dr. Dre stated his intention to dedicate two months to the production of ''Relapse''.
Working with Dr. Dre allowed Eminem to concentrate on the processes of songwriting rather than the production, which was largely taken care of by Dre.
The rapper justified his choice of using Dr. Dre for the vast majority of the production due to their long collaborative history and a musical "chemistry" only he and Dr. Dre shared.
This allowed the rapper to pick the
beats from Dr. Dre's catalog that challenged him
rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular recu ...
-wise to experiment with different
flows.
The making of the album progressed at the Effigy Studio up to a year after, as recording sessions were then moved to
Orlando, Florida
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
in September 2008.
By then, Eminem had begun to start writing verses again at such a pace that he often took more time to record the lyrics than write them. He credited
sobriety
Sobriety is the condition of not having any measurable levels or effects from alcohol or drugs. Sobriety is also considered to be the natural state of a human being at birth. A person in a state of sobriety is considered sober. Organizations o ...
for his new creative run, acknowledging that his mind was free of the clutter that "blocked" him during his drug abuse in the last years.
Dr. Dre would start the song-writing process by giving a number of his beats on a CD to Eminem, who in a separate room in the studio would listen and select the ones he preferred and inspired him the most. Eminem would then write lyrics to the instrumentals, while Dr. Dre and his production staff continued to create new music. Once he felt he had written lyrics for enough songs, Eminem would dedicate an entire day to record his songs to the point that he would lose his voice for the following days. At that point, the rapper would then begin to write lyrics for new songs.
The process continued for the next six months and allowed Eminem to have enough material for a second album, initially called ''Relapse 2'', which became ''
Recovery
Recovery or Recover may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Books
* ''Recovery'' (novel), a Star Wars e-book
* Recovery Version, a translation of the Bible with footnotes published by Living Stream Ministry
Film and television
* ''Recovery'' (fil ...
''.
During this recording period, a handful of songs intended for ''Relapse'' were
leaked on the Internet, including an incomplete version of "
Crack a Bottle".
The song was finished in January 2009 and featured vocals from Dr. Dre and 50 Cent. Despite the leak, the album was being completed in a state of near-total secrecy, according to the British newspaper ''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
''.
Even
Polydor Records
Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...
, the multinational owner of Interscope, had no information on the album at the time.
On April 23, Eminem suggested he and possibly Dr. Dre were the only ones in possession of the final copy of ''Relapse''; his manager
Paul Rosenberg added that even Eminem's record labels were not in possession of the music less than a month before its release to prevent possible
bootlegging.
Music and lyrics
In an interview for
''XXL'', Eminem described the concept behind ''Relapse'' to be the ending of his
drug rehabilitation
Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general inte ...
and thus rap as if he was on drugs again, as well as the return of his fictional
alter-ego
An alter ego (Latin for "other I", "doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a different ...
Slim Shady.
According to the interviewer Datwon Thomas, Eminem's influences for the album came from his own past drug issues and from television shows and documentaries involving crime and
serial killer
A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A
*
*
*
* with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...
s, as the rapper was fascinated by "serial killers and their
psyche
Psyche (''Psyché'' in French) is the Greek term for "soul" (ψυχή).
Psyche may also refer to:
Psychology
* Psyche (psychology), the totality of the human mind, conscious and unconscious
* ''Psyche'', an 1846 book about the unconscious by Car ...
and their mind states".
In a May 2009 interview for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', Eminem discussed his view of serial killers, stating:
Music critic
Robert Christgau
Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...
interpreted the opening line to the album featuring the phrase "horror corridor" as Eminem telling listeners that it is a
horrorcore
Horrorcore, also called horror hip hop, horror rap, death hip hop, or death rap, is a subgenre of hip hop music based on horror-themed and often darkly transgressive lyrical content and imagery. Its origins derived from certain hardcore hip h ...
album. Ben Kaplan of the ''
Vancouver Courier
The ''Vancouver Courier'' was a Canadian semi-weekly local newspaper published in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, by the Van-Net chain owned by Glacier Media Group. In 2007, it was Canada's largest distributed community newspaper, with a wee ...
'' also categorized it as a horrorcore album.
Ann Powers
Ann K. Powers (born February 4, 1964) is an American writer and pop music critic. She is a music critic for NPR and a contributor at the ''Los Angeles Times'', where she was previously chief pop critic. She has also served as pop critic at ''The ...
of the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' said that the album's "horrorcore scenes" show Eminem as "a madman created by the hypocrisy of therapy."
Music journalist
Rob Sheffield
Robert James Sheffield (born February 2, 1966) is an American music journalist and author.
He is a long time contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'', writing about music, TV, and pop culture. Previously, he was a contributing editor at ''Blen ...
remarked on its sensationalist drug references and said that ''Relapse'' is "a hip-hop version" of comedian
Richard Pryor
Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He reached a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, and is widely regarded as on ...
's ''
Live on the Sunset Strip'' (1982).
[
]
Songs
''Relapse'' opens with the skit "Dr. West", where actor Dominic West
Dominic Gerard Francis Eagleton West (born 15 October 1969) is an English actor, director and musician. He is best known for playing Jimmy McNulty in HBO's ''The Wire'' (2002–2008), Noah Solloway in Showtime's '' The Affair'' (2014–2019), ...
voices a drug counselor whose untrustworthiness causes Eminem to fall back to drugs and the return to his Slim Shady character. The skit leads to " 3 A.M.", where Eminem depicts himself as a serial killer
A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A
*
*
*
* with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...
during a murder spree. When "3 A.M." was released as a single prior to the album's own release, Eminem noted that the song closely mirrored what he believed was the overall dark tone of the album. On "My Mom", the rapper traces his addictive tendencies to his mother and shows how he became a drug addict just like her. Eminem continues his family tales on "Insane", where he imagines himself as a victim of child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...
. For Eminem, the goal of "Insane" was to make song that would disgust the listeners and "make them puke", adding that he came up with this idea after thinking of the song's first line ("I was born with a dick in my brain/Yeah, fucked in the head"). Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...
and her then current husband Nick Cannon
Nicholas Scott Cannon (born October 8, 1980) is an American television host, actor, rapper, and comedian. In television, Cannon began as a teenager on ''All That'' before going on to host ''The Nick Cannon Show'', ''Wild 'n Out'', ''America's G ...
are targeted in "Bagpipes from Baghdad", where Eminem raps over a pungi
The pungi (Hindi: पुंगी, ur, پُنگیپُنگی, Burmese: ပုန်ဂိ), originates from the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a reservoir into which air is blown and then channelled into two reed pipes. It i ...
loop
Loop or LOOP may refer to:
Brands and enterprises
* Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live
* Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets
* Loop Mobile, an ...
.
After "Hello", where Eminem re-introduces himself after years of being absent "mentally", he continues his violent fantasies on "Same Song & Dance", where he abducts and murders Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Dee Lohan ( ; born July 2, 1986) is an American actress and singer. Born in New York City and raised on Long Island, Lohan was signed to Ford Models at the age of three. Having appeared as a regular on the television soap opera '' An ...
and Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
. The upbeat
Up beat may refer to:
*Upbeat, in music, the last beat in the previous bar which immediately precedes the downbeat
*Anacrusis, a note (or sequence of notes) which precedes the first downbeat in a bar in a musical phrase
* ''Upbeat'' (album), by t ...
rhythm of "Same Song & Dance" reminded Eminem of a dance track, which inspired him to write something in order to "get women to dance to it and not really know what the fuck they're dancing to" without listening to the lyrics. On the ninth track of the album, "We Made You
"We Made You" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his sixth studio album ''Relapse'' (2009). It was released as the second single from the album on April 7, 2009. "We Made You" was written by Eminem, Dr. Dre, Dawaun Parker, Mark Batson, T ...
", Eminem mocks several celebrities and plays the role of a "pop star serial killer". Eminem noted that his various "celebrity bashings" were not meant to be seen as personal attacks, but it was rather "picking names out of a hat" that rhymed with the words he wanted to use during the writing process. On "Medicine Ball" Eminem mocks and impersonates deceased actor Christopher Reeve
Christopher D'Olier Reeve (September 25, 1952 – October 10, 2004) was an American actor, best known for playing the title character in the film ''Superman'' (1978) and three sequels.
Born in New York City and raised in Princeton, New Jersey, ...
in order to get his audience to "laugh at it, and then almost feel bad for laughing". The next track is "Stay Wide Awake", which Eminem raps about assaulting
An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...
and raping
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or a ...
women. Dr. Dre also has a guest appearance
In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other p ...
on " Old Time's Sake", a duet Eminem described as a "fun, yet reminiscent record old times" in which he and Dre rap back and forth between each other, advocating the use of marijuana for creative and financial benefits. Song "Must Be the Ganja" follows, where Eminem raps that working in the recording studio is like a drug and an addiction for him.
After the skit "Mr. Mathers", where Eminem is found unconscious in bathroom by paramedics due to a drug overdose and taken to a hospital, "Déjà Vu" addresses his overdose in 2007 and drug dependency during his hiatus from music. On the song, Eminem also explains how this has affected him in the last five years, to the point where his daughter has become scared of her father's behavior. "Beautiful", a ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
which samples " Reaching Out" by Queen + Paul Rodgers, also deals with the same time period where Eminem believed he had "reached rock bottom" and lost hope for his future. Eminem felt it was important to include "Beautiful" on the album as a reminder to himself as well as "anybody who is in a dark place ..that you can get out of it". After "Crack a Bottle", a collaboration with Dr. Dre and 50 Cent, ''Relapse'' ends with "Underground". On this final track, Eminem sought to bring back to his music and lyrics the subject matter and punchlines reminiscent of "The Hiphop Shop times" (The Hiphop Shop was a clothing store in Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
where local rappers, including Eminem, would compete in freestyle battles), before he had become famous and thus did not have worry about the explicit content of his lyrics.
''Relapse: Refill''
Because Eminem recorded far more material than he could use for one album and felt that he had to offer his fans more music after staying on hiatus for so long, fellow D12 member Swift confirmed that Eminem in fact had planned to put out two albums the same year, following with '' Relapse 2'', in late 2009. According to Angela Yee's Shade 45
Shade 45 is American rapper Eminem's hip-hop station on Sirius XM Radio channel 45 and Dish Network channel 6045.
History
Eminem established his own channel, Shade 45, that plays uncut hip hop. Eminem also established a new morning show, ''Sway ...
interview with Eminem on April 23, 2009, ''Relapse 2'' was to be a continuation of ''Relapse''. During the interview, Eminem confirmed: "It's extremely close to being finished, it just depends on how many songs I want to put on it." Eminem also explained the album was more "emotionally driven" than ''Relapse'', which was, as he explains, "ust UST or Ust may refer to:
Organizations
* UST (company), American digital technology company
* Equatorial Guinea Workers' Union
* Union of Trade Unions of Chad (Union des Syndicats du Tchad)
* United States Television Manufacturing Corp.
* UST Gr ...
rap records". Guest appearances were expected to come from the likes of Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
, 50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...
, D12
D12 (an initialism for The Dirty Dozen) was an American hip hop collective from Detroit, Michigan. Formed in 1996, the group achieved mainstream success with its lineup of ''de facto'' leader Eminem, Proof, Bizarre, Mr. Porter, Kuniva and Swift ...
, Royce da 5'9"
Ryan Daniel Montgomery, known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Montgomery is currently one half of the rap duo Bad Meets Evil with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, and ...
, Lloyd Banks
Christopher Charles Lloyd (born April 30, 1982), better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, alongside childhood friends 50 Cent and Tony Yayo. After the ...
and Cashis
Ramone Johnson (born October 10, 1982), better known by his stage name Cashis (stylized as Ca$his), is an American rapper who was born and raised in Chicago, but moved to Irvine, California. He was most notably featured on the Shady Records ...
. The album was subsequently pushed back for an early 2010 release, so Eminem decided to re-release ''Relapse'' as ''Relapse: Refill'', which includes a bonus disc featuring seven new tracks, including the single "Forever
Forever or 4ever may refer to:
Film and television Films
* ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice
* ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama
* ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...
" (originally on ''More Than a Game'' soundtrack) and "Taking My Ball" (released with ''DJ Hero
''DJ Hero'' is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the ''Guitar Hero'' franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe. The ga ...
''), as well as five previously unreleased tracks. On its re-release, Eminem stated: "I want to deliver more material for the fans this year like I originally planned. Hopefully these tracks on ''The Refill'' will tide the fans over until we put out ''Relapse 2'' next year."[Eminem "Relapse: Refill" Due Dec. 21](_blank)
''Rap Radar.'.' Retrieved November 20, 2009.
On April 13, 2010, Eminem tweeted "There is no ''Relapse 2''", thus announcing that the album has been scrapped in favor of his new project ''Recovery
Recovery or Recover may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Books
* ''Recovery'' (novel), a Star Wars e-book
* Recovery Version, a translation of the Bible with footnotes published by Living Stream Ministry
Film and television
* ''Recovery'' (fil ...
''. While recording ''Relapse 2'' and witnessing the mixed reaction of its predecessor among fans and critics alike, Eminem decided to throw away most of the recorded material and started from scratch. The result did not seem to him as continuation of ''Relapse'' but more of an individual project that deserved its own name. Eminem said: "I had originally planned for ''Relapse 2'' to come out last year. But as I kept recording and working with new producers, the idea of a sequel to ''Relapse'' started to make less and less sense to me, and I wanted to make a completely new album. The music on ''Recovery'' came out very different from ''Relapse'', and I think it deserves its own title." The now-renamed album debuted at number 1 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, with first-week sales of 741,000 copies in the United States. As of September 25, 2011, the album had sold 4,040,000 copies in the United States and was also the best-selling album of 2010 worldwide, earning a Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
for Best Rap Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories ...
.
;Notes
* signifies an additional producer.
Release and promotion
In 2007, Shady Records rapper Cashis discussed the album, referring to it by the title ''King Mathers'' and adding that it would be released later that year. However, Eminem's publicist Dennis Dennehy would later deny this and stated that "there was no album scheduled for a 2007 release" and that, as of August 2007, there was no confirmed title. No other official statement was made for over a year. It was not until September 15, 2008, at an event held by Shade 45
Shade 45 is American rapper Eminem's hip-hop station on Sirius XM Radio channel 45 and Dish Network channel 6045.
History
Eminem established his own channel, Shade 45, that plays uncut hip hop. Eminem also established a new morning show, ''Sway ...
to celebrate the publication of Eminem's autobiography '' The Way I Am'', the rapper confirmed his plans to release a studio album by the title of ''Relapse''. During the party, he also previewed to the audience a song called "I'm Having a Relapse".
In regards to the album's release date, ''Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' wrote in its October 2008 issue that Virgin Megastores
Virgin Megastores is an international entertainment retailing chain, founded in early 1976 by Richard Branson as a record shop on London's Oxford Street.
In 1979 the company opened their first Megastore at the end of Oxford Street and Tottenha ...
had planned to distribute ''Relapse'' on November 27, 2008, in the United States. On October 27, a spokesperson for Interscope explained that there was no official date at the time, and that any release dates that had been posted on any website were unfounded. In a phone conversation during the finale of ''Total Request Live
''Total Request Live'' (known commonly as ''TRL'') was an American television program broadcast on MTV that premiered on September 14, 1998. TRL featured popular music videos played during its countdown, and was also used as a promotion tool by ...
'' on November 16, 2008, Eminem asserted that ''Relapse'' would be released during the first quarter of 2009, precisely during either of the first two months of the year, explaining that he was in the process of selecting the songs for the album.
Despite the leak two months before, " Crack a Bottle" was eventually released for legal paid digital download as well as a promotional single
A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...
on February 2, 2009, and also reached the number one position on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100; according to Eminem's manager Paul Rosenberg, a music video for the song had been produced and directed by Syndrome and was released in several parts of the world from May to early June. At the time of the release, various contradicting reports disputed whether the song would be included on ''Relapse'', but a press release from head label Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
confirmed the single's inclusion on the album. In similar press statements after March 5, Universal made public the regional release dates for ''Relapse'': as early as May 15, 2009, in Italy and the Netherlands; most other European countries and Brazil on May 18; and the following day in the United States and Australia. Additionally, the record label also announced a second album by Eminem, then called ''Relapse 2'' but later titled ''Recovery
Recovery or Recover may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Books
* ''Recovery'' (novel), a Star Wars e-book
* Recovery Version, a translation of the Bible with footnotes published by Living Stream Ministry
Film and television
* ''Recovery'' (fil ...
'', which was to be released by the end of the year, but expected in June 2010. Eminem explained that he and Dr. Dre had recorded a considerable amount of music and thus, by releasing two albums, would allow listeners to have access to all of his music.
After the release of "Crack a Bottle", the music video of the single "We Made You
"We Made You" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his sixth studio album ''Relapse'' (2009). It was released as the second single from the album on April 7, 2009. "We Made You" was written by Eminem, Dr. Dre, Dawaun Parker, Mark Batson, T ...
" was aired on April 7, and became available for purchase a week later on April 13. The video was directed by Joseph Kahn Joseph Kahn may refer to:
*Joseph Kahn (director) (born 1972), a film and music video director
*Joseph Kahn (journalist) (born 1964), American journalist
* Joseph Kahn (shipping executive) (1916–1979), American businessman
See also
*Joseph Hahn ...
and premiered simultaneously on several MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
channels as well as MTV's website. On April 28, the third overall single for the album, "3 a.m.", was released again for paid music download. A music video for "3 a.m." was directed by Syndrome and filmed in Detroit. It premiered on May 2 on Cinemax
Cinemax is an American pay television, cable, and satellite television network owned by the Home Box Office, Inc. subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Developed as a companion "maxi-pay" service complementing the offerings shown on parent net ...
, several days after a trailer for the video was posted online. Two more singles were distributed prior to the album's release, as " Old Time's Sake" and "Beautiful
Beautiful, an adjective used to describe things as possessing beauty, may refer to:
Film and theater
* ''Beautiful'' (2000 film), an American film directed by Sally Field
* ''Beautiful'' (2008 film), a South Korean film directed by Juhn Jai-h ...
" went on sale on the iTunes Store
The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...
on May 5 and 12 respectively. "My Darling" and "Careful What You Wish For" were made available upon purchase of the Premium version of the album. The track "Insane" peaked at position 85 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart on the album's release via iTunes.
On April 4, 2009, CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
featured Eminem during the network's coverage of the 2009 NCAA Final Four in a segment where he recited the spoken word
Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...
"Love Letter to Detroit". Later on the same day, the rapper inducted the hip hop group Run-D.M.C.
Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of ...
to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...
. Adam Graham of ''The Detroit News
''The Detroit News'' is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival ''Detroit Free Press'' building. ''The News'' absorbed the '' Detroit Tribune'' on Februa ...
'' described this as "all part of the calculated promotional push" for ''Relapse''. The rapper performed live at the 2009 MTV Movie Awards on May 31, while he appeared on the covers of hip hop magazines ''Vibe'' and ''XXL'' in their respective issues in June 2009; the latter was created by a deal struck with Eminem and Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
, where the rapper would pose as Marvel's main vigilante The Punisher
The Punisher (Francis "Frank" Castle, born Castiglione) is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The Punisher made ...
. Marvel created an issue of the comic co-starring Eminem. An iPhone game to accompany the album was released on May 19, 2009.
While on the Never Say Never tour, fellow group members Swifty and Kuniva (D12) along with Royce Da 5'9" stopped by KISS 100FM for a live interview and spoke on ''Relapse''. Royce stated that the album will be a game changer and jokingly said he might have to push his own album back three years after Eminem drops his.[D12 And Royce Interview, Talks About "Relapse"](_blank)
DaShadySpot. Retrieved February 28, 2010. Kuniva added that D12 recorded many tracks for ''Relapse'' but wasn't sure if they would make the album or not. Swifty then confirmed that Eminem would be dropping two albums in 2009, with ''Relapse 2'' following ''Relapse''. ''Relapse'' was re-released on December 21, 2009, as ''Relapse: Refill'', with seven bonus tracks and including the single "Forever
Forever or 4ever may refer to:
Film and television Films
* ''Forever'' (1921 film), an American silent film by George Fitzmaurice
* ''Forever'' (1978 film), an American made-for-television romantic drama
* ''Forever'' (1992 film), an American ...
" (originally on ''More Than a Game'' soundtrack), "Taking My Ball" (released with ''DJ Hero
''DJ Hero'' is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the ''Guitar Hero'' franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe. The ga ...
''), and five previously unreleased tracks. On its re-release, Eminem stated: "I want to deliver more material for the fans this year like I originally planned. Hopefully these tracks on ''The Refill'' will tide the fans over until we put out ''Relapse 2'' next year".
Artwork
The album cover
An album cover (also referred to as album art) is the front packaging art of a commercially released studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to either the printed paperboard covers typically used to package sets of and 78-r ...
for ''Relapse'' was first published through Eminem's Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account on April 21, 2009. It illustrates a head shot of the rapper composed by a mosaic of thousands of pills. A sticker on the cover resembles a prescription drug label, on which the patient is Eminem and the prescribing doctor is Dr. Dre. Gil Kaufman of MTV News
MTV News is the news production division of MTV. The service is available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network. In February 2016, MTV Networks confirmed it would refresh the MTV News brand in 2016, to compete with the likes ...
described the cover as a reference to the rapper's struggle and addiction to prescription drugs, adding that it follows Eminem's habit of displaying personal issues in his art. The album booklet and back cover follow a pill prescription design. On the backside of the booklet is a dedication to Proof, where Eminem explains that he's sober and that he tried to write a song for him, but that he didn't find one of them good enough therefore he dedicates the whole album to him. The CD itself is meant to represent the lid on a bottle of prescription pills, grey with the big red inscription "Push Down & Turn". The cover for ''Relapse: Refill'' is the same, with the background color changed from black to white. The prescription drug label is scratched out and the writing "Refill" is posed next to it.
Critical reception
''Relapse'' received a mostly mixed reception from music critics upon release. It holds an aggregate score of 59, based on 27 reviews, at Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. Despite calling it an "impressively focused and clever work", ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' writer Ann Powers
Ann K. Powers (born February 4, 1964) is an American writer and pop music critic. She is a music critic for NPR and a contributor at the ''Los Angeles Times'', where she was previously chief pop critic. She has also served as pop critic at ''The ...
felt the music was "not transcendent" and commented that "Eminem could have pulled his music into a new category. What he presents is still powerful, but narrowly cast". Andy Gill of ''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' found the album to be "drably repetitive, while its dated tone is emphasised by the return of Dr. Dre as producer." ''NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
''s Louis Pattison found Eminem's wordplay "wicked in the depths of its depravity", but felt that "the overriding feel is of an album just too jaded, too joyless to truly count as a return to form".[Pattison, Louis]
Review: ''Relapse''
. ''NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
''. Retrieved February 28, 2010. Slant Magazine
''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...
's Eric Henderson viewed that "the further ''Relapse'' strays from narrative veracity, the more one suspects his fanbase feels he's tapping into his bottomless well for horror-show grandstanding."[ '']The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' called ''Relapse'' "an album that sits square between what Eminem is theoretically still capable of and what we feared he has become." Nathan Rabin
Nathan Rabin (; born April 24, 1976) is an American film and music critic. Rabin was the first head writer for '' The A.V. Club'', a position he held until he left the ''Onion'' organization in 2013. , writing in ''The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'', panned it as "facile pre-adolescent shock mixed with gory, corpse-strewn, ''Fangoria
''Fangoria'' is an internationally distributed American horror film fan magazine, in publication since 1979. It is published four times a year by Fangoria Publishing, LLC and is edited by Phil Nobile Jr.
The magazine was originally released i ...
''-damaged horrorcore." MSN Music
''MSN Music'' was a part of MSN's web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. The website also served as a digital music store from 2004 to 2008.
History
I ...
's Robert Christgau
Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...
called it a "dud" and accused Eminem of sensationalism
In journalism and mass media, sensationalism is a type of editorial tactic. Events and topics in news stories are selected and worded to excite the greatest number of readers and viewers. This style of news reporting encourages biased or emotion ...
: "this is not a Slim Shady album. Slim Shady had a lightness about him".[Christgau, Robert.]
Consumer Guide: ''Relapse''
". MSN Music
''MSN Music'' was a part of MSN's web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. The website also served as a digital music store from 2004 to 2008.
History
I ...
: June 2009. Archived fro
the original
February 28, 2010.
In a positive review, ''Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' magazine's Rob Sheffield called the album a "more painful, honest and vital record" that is on-par or better than Eminem's 2002 album ''The Eminem Show
''The Eminem Show'' is the fourth studio album by American rapper Eminem. After it had originally scheduled for release on June 4, 2002, the album was released nine days earlier on May 26, 2002, through Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, and ...
''.[ ]Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...
of Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
described the album as "musically white-hot, dense, and dramatic" and said that "his flow is so good, his wordplay so sharp, it seems churlish to wish that he addressed something other than his long-standing obsessions and demons".[ '']The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' commended its honest depiction of Eminem's drug addiction and overuse. Although he found its concept "spotty", ''Vibe
''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...
''s Benjamin Meadows-Ingram praised Eminem's lyricism, writing that "Em works wonders with words, expanding the boundaries of the art of rap itself ..the composition is experimental and abstract, a master toying with form". At the 52nd Grammy Awards
The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards took place on January 31, 2010, at Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009. Neil Young was honored as the 2010 MusiCares Pe ...
, the album won a Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
for Best Rap Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories ...
.
Retrospective appraisals
Despite the lukewarm reviews at its release, the album gained a strong cult following and it is considered by many as one of Eminem's classic albums. Mark Batson, one of the co-producers with Dr. Dre, said: "When we made Relapse with Eminem, it was not well received at the moment but now it is considered to be a classic. That's how it goes." Eminem’s long time collaborator, Paul Rosenberg singled out the song Underground as one of his favorite songs.
Mitch Findlay from ''HotNewHipHop
''HotNewHipHop (HNHH)'' is an online publication that covers daily news about hip hop and pop culture, including streetwear, sports, and sneakers. In addition to its editorial content, HotNewHipHop also produces the video serieses; ''How to Roll ...
'' touted ''Relapse'' as Eminem's strongest project after ''The Eminem Show'': "Relapse is probably the strongest of Eminem’s post-comeback catalog, largely in part to some excellent production from Dr. Dre, Dawaun Parker, and Mike Elizondo. Plus, Em seems to be in the zone here, especially when it comes to his flow. The concept, in which he embodies a depraved, accented serial killer, can be a little tiresome, but it also leads to a gratuitous bout of lyrical and hilarious Grand-Guignol." He singled out "Hello", "Beautiful" and "Deja Vu" as highlights. In 2019, Findlay included "Same Song & Dance" and "Music Box" on his "Dr. Dre's Top 10 Most Haunting Beats". ''Complex
Complex commonly refers to:
* Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe
** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' magazine's "The 100 Best Eminem Song" ranks "Stay Wide Awake" at number 86, "Elevator" at number 81, "My Darling" at number 79, "Underground" at number 74, "3 a.m." at number 67, "Insane" at number 27, and "Déjà Vu" at number 20.
Comedian and writer Drew Landry from DJBooth called ''Relapse'' a "dark, disturbing and often hilarious album" and said: "Relapse sounds like a "how many violent dick jokes can I shout before someone tries to decapitate me" science experiment. If you simply sit back and embrace the depravity, though, it's oddly glorious. Eminem wasn't trying to make radio hits nor was he trying to inspire fans; he just wanted to gross us all out. And in that regard, holy shit does he succeed." He singled out "Insane", "Stay Wide Awake", "Same Song & Dance", "Medicine Ball" and "3 a.m" as the 5 most disgusting songs on the album and referred to the album as "an episode of South Park
''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...
written by Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
".
Patrick Bierut from UDiscoverMusic named ''Relapse'' "the true marvel Of Eminem's sinister return to hip-hop" and said "Relapse remains one of the most overlooked releases not only of Eminem's career, but the mid-to-late 00s. Not only is it the Eminem album in which Dr. Dre had the truest hand in production, it's also the most remarkable demonstration of his raw ability to rap better than almost anyone else. Due to its divisive content, however, Relapse doesn't get enough credit for being the marvel it truly is."
''Spin
Spin or spinning most often refers to:
* Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning
* Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis
* Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
'' also included some songs of the album on the top 100 of ''All 289 Eminem Songs, Ranked'' article, included "Déjà Vu" at 36 position, "Crack a Bottle" at number 48, "Beautiful" at number 62, "3 a.m" at number 68, "Elevator" at number 76, "Stay Wide Awake" at number 79 and "Underground" at number 82. ''HipHopDX
''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group.
...
'' called ''Relapse'' a "horrorcore masterpiece" and said: "the record stands as an artistic achievement that further solidifies Eminem as one of the greatest, most creative MCs to ever pick up a microphone. The article goes on to reflect the changing fan sentiment toward the album, stating that it took "years to uncover its brilliance".
Eminem's thoughts on the album
On his following album ''Recovery
Recovery or Recover may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Books
* ''Recovery'' (novel), a Star Wars e-book
* Recovery Version, a translation of the Bible with footnotes published by Living Stream Ministry
Film and television
* ''Recovery'' (fil ...
'' (2010), Eminem made reference to ''Relapse'' and criticizes it in the second verse of the song "Not Afraid
"Not Afraid" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album '' Recovery'' (2010). It was released as the album's lead single on April 27, 2010, by Interscope Records. "Not Afraid" was first revealed as a single b ...
": "In fact, let's be honest/That last ''Relapse'' CD was 'ehh'/ Perhaps I ran them accents into the ground/ Relax, I ain't going back to that now". He also referenced it in the song “ Talkin’ 2 Myself” saying he was still getting the pills out of his system at that point which led to its subpar status.
He slowed down his feelings about the album after that saying "I don't hate ''Relapse''. I don't hate it at all, but when I'm looking back at an album I do have a tendency, and especially with that album, to run things into the ground. That was one of those instances where I got in a zone, like, "Yo I just want to be this demented serial killer on this album. And part of that was a growing process to get to ''Recovery'', working through those steps, relearning how to rap, and relearning where I need to be at." He reiterates this statement during his 2013 Q&A with ''Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' saying "I don't hate the record. I want to rap and be able to always try to do my best lyrically, but at the same time find the right balance between that and making the right songs. And you know, I don't know if I necessarily found that balance yet, because I was just getting sober and just kind of finding my feet again and so there was a lot of songs that were just like "Ha ha this is funny!" You know, walking around and joking around with your friends and shit and it ends up on the record and you're laughing about it. Because when I got sober it was like – I've said this before – but it just was like "Oh shit! I can think straight again!" So I don't know if that record was particularly my best work as far as songs, writing songs that felt like something, that brought some kind of emotion. I ran accents into the grounds. I got stuck on that kind of serial killer, crazy vibe and just kind of went with it.
In 2013, Eminem also addressed the mindstate he had while working on 2009's ''Relapse'' saying: "It was interesting, man. I don't know if before ''Relapse'', if we're talking the ''Infinite
Infinite may refer to:
Mathematics
* Infinite set, a set that is not a finite set
*Infinity, an abstract concept describing something without any limit
Music
*Infinite (group), a South Korean boy band
*''Infinite'' (EP), debut EP of American m ...
'' album and pre-signing with Dre and all that, from that point on, I don't know if I ever did anything or did much sober at all. ''Relapse'' was the first album and first recordings that I did when the lights went on and I was sober. I was still trying to figure things out...It's interesting. Fun time. I had a fun time." He reiterated his feeling about the album "I felt ''Relapse'' was, I don't know. I don't know if people know what I really had to go through to be able to make ''Relapse'' and to be able to write again and to be able to think again and just normal everyday bodily functions and functions in my mind. I don't want to say I wasn't in a place to record again, but I needed time. I needed time to be able to figure out things. I wanted to be able to make my songs feel like something again. I know a lot of stuff on ''Relapse'' was comical and funny punchline jokes, but a lot of the songs didn't really feel like anything. I had to go back and listen to some of my older music to try to figure out what I was doing wrong. Once I felt like I figured that out, I started making songs that felt like something again."
About the accents he used on the album: "I recorded at least 50 to 60 songs for that album and on each one I would get a little more drastic with the accents, trying to bend the words and make them rhyme in ways they wouldn’t if you just said them regular. It was this gradual thing and I didn’t even realize how accent-heavy the album got. Paul osenbergdidn’t realize it either until he went and played the music for somebody at Interscope and they were like, “Why is he doing all those accents?” So yeah, I don't know how much replay value that album has." He reiterates his statement in 2018 during the Kamikaze
, officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...
four-part interview: "I have made albums that definitely, probably would not be at the top of my list — Encore, Relapse — which I believe Encore is a better album than Relapse. Relapse is something I went back to and cringed at. Like, ‘Jesus Christ, I didn’t realize I was doing that many accents."
On his album '' Revival'' (2017), Eminem also made references to ''Relapse'' especially on the closing song "Arose": "I'm 'bout to, like a rematch, outdo Relapse/ With Recovery, Mathers LP2/ Help propel me to victory laps/ Gas toward 'em and fast forward the past".
In 2020, Eminem looks back positively on the album for the 11th anniversary of its release. Eminem also emulates his ''Relapse'' rap style ''in Music to be Murdered By: Side B (Deluxe Edition)'' on the song ''"Discombobulated"''.
In 2022, Eminem also looks back more positively on the album during his manager and collaborator, Paul Rosenberg’s podcast, although the Relapse vibe is not something he is dreaming of reviving: “I don’t have a problem with some of the rhymes, and I don’t have a problem with some of the verse’s choices lyrically. It’s just the accents. I feel like I sounded so demented in that shit, I got cemented in that shit."
Commercial performance
One of the most anticipated albums of 2009, ''Relapse'' was the top-selling hip hop album of the year. Upon its release, the album debuted at No. 1 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 608,000 copies in its first week. In Canada, the album sold 64,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number 1 on the Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocea ...
. By the end of 2009, the album had sold 180,000 physical units in Canada, making it the ninth best-selling physical album in Canada of 2009. Outside of North America, ''Relapse'' managed to reach the number one spot in its first week in various other countries including Australia, France, Norway, Denmark and New Zealand, while climbing into the Top 5 in many other countries, including Germany, Italy, Finland, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Sweden. In its second week the album stayed at number one and sold a further 211,000 copies, taking its total to 819,000 to become the fifth best-seller of the year. In the third week, ''Relapse'' dropped to number two and sold another 141,000 copies, bringing the total U.S. sales to 962,000, ''Relapse'' dropped to number three in its fourth week, selling 87,000 copies for a total of 1,049,000 in the U.S. The next week, ''Relapse'' went down to number four and sold 72,000 copies. In its sixth week, the album was at number five and sold another 47,000 copies, pushing its total sales to 1,169,000. It dropped down to the number nine in its seventh week, selling 39,000 copies and taking its total U.S. sales up to 1,207,000 copies. In its eighth week, it remained at number nine and sold a further 34,000 copies for a total of 1,241,000.
''Relapse'' became the best selling rap album of 2009. As of March 2014, ''Relapse'' has sold 2.3 million copies in the United States. The album was certified double platinum
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
by the Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
on August 27, 2010.
Track listing
Notes
* signifies an additional producer.
*On the clean version, track 14 is written as "Must Be The".
Personnel
;Musicians
*Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
– vocals (tracks 2–6, 8–10, 12–14, 16-18 and 20)
*Mark Batson
Mark Batson is an American producer, musician and songwriter. He has worked on albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, LeAnn Rimes, Anthony Hamilton, Eminem, India Arie, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Skylar Grey, Grace Potter an ...
– keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Musi ...
s (tracks 1–10, 12–16, 18 and 20)
* Dawaun Parker – keyboards (tracks 1–8, 10, 12–16, 18 and 20)
*Trevor Lawrence, Jr. – keyboards (tracks 1–6, 8 and 12–14)
*Mike Elizondo
Mike Elizondo (born October 22, 1972) is an American producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. A protege of Dr. Dre, Elizondo has worked with 50 Cent, Eminem, Carrie Underwood, Fiona Apple, Mastodon, Ry Cooder, Skylar Grey, Twenty ...
– guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
(tracks 2, 4, 8 and 12), keyboards (tracks 2 and 4–5), bass (track 2)
*Eric "Jesus" Coomes – guitar (tracks 3, 14 and 18), bass (tracks 13, 14 and 18)
*Sean Cruse – guitar (tracks 5 and 16)
* Charmagne Tripp – chorus vocals (track 9)
*Traci Nelson – backing vocals
A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...
(track 14)
*Jeff Bass
Jeffrey Bass ( ; born May 16, 1961) is an American music producer from Detroit, Michigan, best known as one half of the Bass Brothers and for his work with Eminem.
Career
At age 16, Bass, along with 4 of his childhood friends formed Detroit-b ...
– keyboards, bass and guitar (track 17)
* Luis Resto – keyboards (track 17)
;Production
*Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...
– production
Production may refer to:
Economics and business
* Production (economics)
* Production, the act of manufacturing goods
* Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services)
* Production as a stati ...
(all tracks except 17), audio mixing
Audio mixing is the process by which multiple sounds are combined into one or more channels. In the process, a source's volume level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated or enhanced. This practical, aesthetic, ...
(tracks 1–10, 12–16, 18–20), executive production
*Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
- production (Tracks 1, 7, 9, 15, 17)
*Jeff Bass
Jeffrey Bass ( ; born May 16, 1961) is an American music producer from Detroit, Michigan, best known as one half of the Bass Brothers and for his work with Eminem.
Career
At age 16, Bass, along with 4 of his childhood friends formed Detroit-b ...
- production (Track 17)
*Mike Strange – recording engineer
An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...
(tracks 1–6, 8–10, 12–20), audio mixing (track 17)
*Mauricio "Veto" Iragorri – recording engineer (tracks 1–10, 12–16, 18–20)
*Paul Foley – recording engineer (tracks 15 and 20)
*Ruben Rivera – recording engineer (track 20)
*Robert Reyes – assistant recording engineer (tracks 1–10, 12–16, 18–20)
*Joe Strange – assistant recording engineer (tracks 1–10, 12, 15–20)
*Tommy Hicks, Jr. – assistant recording engineer (tracks 3–4, 13–14, 18)
*Conor Gilligan – assistant recording engineer (track 6)
*Lizette Rangel – assistant recording engineer (track 20)
*Brian Gardner
Brian Knapp Gardner, also known as Brian "Big Bass" Gardner, is an American mastering engineer. He has worked on a number of recordings since the mid-1960s, including classic rock, funk, disco, alternative rock, R&B, hip hop, pop punk and dance- ...
– mastering
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
Release history
See also
* Grammy Award for Best Rap Album
The Grammy Award for Best Rap Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums with rapping at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories ...
* List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 2000s
The UK Albums Chart is a weekly record chart based on album sales from Sunday to Saturday in the United Kingdom; during the 2000s, a total of 274 different albums by 170 artists reached number one. The chart was compiled weekly by the Official ...
* List of number-one albums of 2009 (Australia)
The highest-selling albums in Australia are ranked in the Australian Recording Industry Association albums chart, also known as the ARIA Charts, published by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). The data are compiled from a ...
* List of number-one albums of 2009 (Canada)
These are the Canadian number-one albums of 2009. The chart is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan and published by '' Jam!'' Canoe
A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one o ...
* List of number-one albums of 2009 (Ireland)
* List of number-one albums of 2009 (Japan)
* List of number-one albums of 2009 (New Zealand)
This is the Recorded Music NZ list of number-one albums in New Zealand during the 2000s decade. Hayley Westenra's international debut album ''Pure'' charted at number one for 20 weeks. Four of the number one albums of the year have been from New ...
* List of number-one albums of 2009 (U.S.)
These are the US number one albums of 2009, per the ''Billboard'' 200. Note that ''Billboard'' publishes charts with an issue date approximately 7–10 days in advance. ''Fearless'', the second studio album by American country singer-songwriter ...
* List of UK R&B Chart number-one albums of 2009
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Relapse (Album)
2009 albums
Aftermath Entertainment albums
Albums produced by Boi-1da
Albums produced by Dr. Dre
Albums produced by Eminem
Albums produced by Mark Batson
Albums produced by Dawaun Parker
Concept albums
Eminem albums
Interscope Records albums
Shady Records albums
Interscope Geffen A&M Records albums
Grammy Award for Best Rap Album
Horrorcore albums