The author of the column highlighted two tracks from Eminem's Slim Shady EP: 'Just the Two of Us', and 'Murder, Murder'. Eminem was featured in the March 1998 edition of The Source magazine's (#102), 'Unsigned Hype' column. XXL, despite originally giving the EP three out of five stars 'L' rating, listed it on their '100 Most Essential Rap EPs of All Time – The Best of the Short & Sweet' list. AllMusic gave the EP two and a half out of five stars without a written review. Though rare, reviews of the EP were generally mixed to positive. Artwork Īccording to an interview with Zane Lowe, Eminem made 500 copies of the EP, but sold only slightly higher than 250. Dre subsequently began work on his major-label debut album The Slim Shady LP.

When Jimmy played this, I said, 'Find him. Dre recalled, 'In my entire career in the music industry, I have never found anything from a demo tape or a CD.

Iovine played the tape for record producer Dr. He placed second, and the staff at Interscope Records who attended the Rap Olympics sent a copy of the Slim Shady EP to company CEO Jimmy Iovine. After being evicted from his home, Eminem traveled to Los Angeles to participate in the Rap Olympics, an annual nationwide rap battle competition. During this time, Eminem and his wife, Kim Scott lived in a high-crime neighborhood with their newborn daughter Hailie, where their house was burglarized numerous times. Slim Shady served as Eminem's vent for his frustrations, and in 1997, he released the extended play entitled Slim Shady EP simultaneously on cassette, vinyl, and CD. The disappointment of Infinite inspired Eminem to create the alter ego Slim Shady: 'Boom, the name hit me, and right away I thought of all these words to rhyme with it'. According to Billboard, at this point in his life Eminem had 'realized his musical ambitions were the only way to escape his unhappy life'. Porter - was also noticeably higher than on prior album efforts. The production value of the music on the tracks - from previous collaborators DJ Head, The Bass Brothers, and Mr. Eminem also began utilizing story telling on this EP. His flow is also noticeably different from Infinite where critics claimed he sounded too much like Nas and AZ. Another departure was his exploration of more serious themes of dealing with poverty, his direct and self-deprecating response to criticism, and of marital and family difficulties. His lyrics are a marked departure from those found on Infinite, featuring constant references to drug use, sexual acts, mental instability, and over-the-top violence. Since the EP was released before he was signed to Interscope and Aftermath, it is now placed at a high price. Eminem first introduced his 'Slim Shady' persona on this EP.

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