Did you take Eminem seriously when Slim Shady first hit? Because I sure as hell didn’t – I wrote him off as a novelty act, a violent-hijinks pop-culture clown who deserved little more respect than Vanilla Ice. That feeling stayed pretty constant over the next decade or so, until the Detroit native’s hyper-evolving flow reached undeniably incredible levels.
The man behind most clever, obliterating character annihilations and hilarious, rewind-demanding multilayered entendres the game’s ever seen is far more than a lyrical menace on record. Even in freestyle mode, he remains one of the most gifted rhymespitters the world has ever known, despite openly rejecting political correctness and social standards involving violence and misogyny.
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Now, at 42 years old, Mathers has reached heights of lyrical dexterity that go beyond impressive, and defy comparison. The wordplay off the top of his head is on a jaw-dropping level of incredible that no rapper alive comes within screaming range of.
Check out Eminem’s freestyle in the Shady cypher, which also featured Slaughterhouse members and Yelawolf. While the rest of the freestyles laid down are impressive, the Shady Records founder and chief steps up and absolutely devastates his section. He spends a minute setting a comically impressive cadence pace, then turns the heat up past any dial. From Lana Del Rey to Britney Spears and any fad-hit rappers in his view, you can see the sparkle in his eye when a new takedown couplet comes to mind. Violence? Yes. Misogyny? Yes. Consider yourself warned, roughly two decades ago.
