1999 Rewind: Remembering Eminem’s The Slim Shady LP

Are y’all ready to party like it’s 1999? We all love the 90s here at Soul In Stereo, so it’s only right to revisit albums that are marking 25 years in 2024. 1999 Rewind looks back at all your old faves and see how well they hold up.

Hi, my name is (ficky ficky) Slim Eddie and in 1999, Eminem’s arrival on the scene was unlike anything we have seen before or since. His technique was matchless. His storytelling was incredible. And oh yeah, he was a white dude cosigned by Dr. Dre, one of the game’s true legends. Troy Smith is back to chop it up with me as we revisit an album that changed everything in rap.

Take us back to when you first heard this album.

Troy: I was a freshman in high school when this came out (Yes, I’m trying to make Ed feel old). I’ll admit, I didn’t take Eminem seriously at first. “My Name Is” felt gimmicky. Dude could rhyme, but to my 14-year-old ears, he sounded too sadistic. He was blowing up on MTV and everyone had The Sim Shady LP, but it wasn’t until his features and The Marshall Mathers LP that I truly appreciated his genius.

Edd: Playa I don’t need you to remind me that I’m old – my left knee is throbbing as I write this post. And sadly, that’s not a joke.

Speaking of jokes, that’s kinda what I wrote Em off as in 1999. True story – the first time I heard was during Va’s late night hip-hop show. It was where you heard all the underground records, gritty album cuts and new acts just breaking out. When I turned on the radio that night, “My Name Is” was playing and I thought it was a goofy commercial. As the song continued I was like “yo, this is a really long commercial,” until I realized that the madness coming from my speakers was a real song. Although I would later learn all about Eminem and would be impressed by his lyricism, I remained skeptical. That changed a few months later when that same late-night show premiered “Scary Movies,” Em’s track with his eternal rap BFF Royce da 5’9. The unbound lyrical fury they both showed on that track convinced me to take Eminem seriously as an MC, and for years he was in my top 5 of all time.

What’s your choice for best song?

Troy: “Just Don’t Give a F***”

“Just Don’t Give a F***” is the song that sums up this entire era of Eminem. There are so many iconic bars over deranged carnival sounds. The idea Eminem could say some of the stuff he was saying while still having you appreciate the wordplay was insane.

Edd: “’97 Bonnie & Clyde”

Let me be as clear as possible for the reading impaired – there is NO WAY on Earth a song like “97 Bonnie & Clyde”  gets made in this climate. Em makes his OWN BABY an accessory to a triple homicide! But look beyond the shock value of the whole murder thing for a second: the way this story unfolds – from Em innocently telling a story to his daughter, to the listener learning that they’re actually at a crime scene, to Em’s twisted reasons for why all this took place – this is a level of storytelling you don’t even see in Hollywood these days. It’s sheer madness, no doubt, but one of the best stories told in rap. And the man would go on to top it a year later with “Stan,” creating a whole category of Internet fandom in the process!

And what about best video?

Troy: “My Name Is”

It’s hard not to go with “My Name Is.” I don’t know if a rapper had introduced himself in such a manner, meshing such anti-establishment vulgarity with pop appeal. Eminem really understood that era of music that had MTV’s “TRL” at its center. “My Name Is” might be the greatest a-star-is-born moment in hip-hop history.

Edd: “My Name Is”

The visuals for “Guilty Conscience” are cool, but “My Name Is” wins this easily. As Troy said, it was a warped version of the TRL era, so weird and captivating that you couldn’t turn away.

What’s the most underrated song on this project?

Troy: “Cum on Everybody”

“Cum on Everybody” certainly isn’t the best song, but it can be a bit misunderstood. It’s another example of Eminem’s genius, crafting a parody of a dance song that’s supposed to sound a little whack while still getting stuck in your head.

Edd: “Role Model”

I almost went with “Bad Meets Evil” here but that one has a bit of a cult following, so I’ll go with “Role Model” instead, since it doesn’t get the shine of the other singles. Not only is Em’s demented imagination on full display and his wordplay remains wicked, it’s a great example of the genius that Troy mentioned above. Even at this point in his career, he knows he’s destined to be Public Enemy No. 1 in mainstream America, so why not thumb your nose at the establishment ahead of time?

“My middle finger won’t go down, how do I wave?/And this is how I’m supposed to teach kids how to behave?” Em’s message is clear – if parents are putting the responsibility of raising kids in the hands of rappers, well, good luck with the results. There’s always been a method to his madness.

There’s so much great storytelling on this album. Which hit hardest?

Troy: “Guilty Conscience”

“Guilty Conscience” for sure. The back-and-forth between Em and Dre is sensational. It was a unique concept that proved Eminem was a different kind of songwriter. I will say, I prefer the video version where the beat never stops.

Edd: “‘97 Bonnie & Clyde”

There are so many examples on this record, but I already told y’all my answer – “97 Bonnie & Clyde” is on another level:

Ready now, here we go, on the count of three
One, two, three, WHEEE
There goes Mama, spashin’ in the water
No more fightin’ with Dad, no more restraining order
No more step-dada, no more new brother
Blow her kisses bye-bye, tell Mama you love her
Now we’ll go play in the sand, build a castle and junk
But first, just help Dad with two more things out the trunk

The man was Stephen King in the booth.

“Bad Meets Evil” – who went hardest?

Troy: Royce da 5’9

Two raw talents with so much brilliant lyricism ahead of them. Royce’s second verse steals the show (“The disaster with dreads, I’m bad enough to commit suicide/And survive long enough to kill my soul after I’m dead…”). At the end of the song, he says “See you in hell for the sequel.” We didn’t realize it would take 12 years.

Edd: Royce da 5’9

Yep, this is the Royce show, and that’s no slight to Em. As always throughout this album, Em’s imagination is a thing to behold – I can’t fathom how he comes up with 90% of the things that fly through his brain. But in terms of straight-up MC’ing, Royce’s hunger is palatable. He’s spitting like this as his one chance to make an impression, and he doesn’t waste one syllable.

Where does The Slim Shady LP rank in Eminem’s catalog?

Troy: It’s his second-best album. I think The Marshall Mathers LP is Eminem’s clear-cut best album. Then it’s a toss-up between The Slim Shady LP and The Eminem Show. The latter has better production and higher highs, but The Slim Shady LP has no bad tracks. The Eminem Show, meanwhile, has “Drips.” And I hate “Drips.” 

Edd: I’d put this one at No. 3, slightly behind The Eminem Show (and yes, nothing compares to The Marshall Mathers LP). I sorta agree with Troy here – Slim Shady has less terrible songs (“I’m Shady” is pushing it, though) but there are several “just aight” songs here. As noted, Eminem Show has much higher highs and better production, edging it ahead of this project. But that’s picking nits – both albums are very solid.

This album is often subject of criticism – sometimes revisionist history, sometimes the criticism is justified. What do you think – is Marshall evil or an evil genius?

Troy: I suppose it’s a mix of both. There are times when he’s brilliantly executing shock-rap. On “Role Model,” he asks the question “Don’t you want to grow up to be just like me?” knowing the answer for some kids in a generation of disturbed and ignored youth is hauntingly yes. Then there are times when he’s just saying the vilest stuff he can think of. It wasn’t until The Marshall Mathers LP and, even more so, The Eminem Show that he seemed fully self-aware and delivered truly subversive content.

Edd: Oh yeah, there’s been a lot of revisionist history regarding Em’s early days. I always roll my eyes when someone jumps on Twitter to say “no one was rocking with Eminem” like dude wasn’t doing tracks with everybody from Jay and Nas to Missy and DMX. He might not have been in your CD player but he was definitely in the hood. But that’s beside the point – did Em really take it too far? The short answer is … yeah. But it’s also important not to judge the 1999 landscape with 2024 eyes. Em’s raps were always supposed to be taken tongue in cheek – if you couldn’t tell by the weird antics on his videos. It’s a level of nuance that’s impossible to achieve in today’s GOTCHA culture. Am I defending this lunacy? Certainly not. But I also never took it seriously either. I respected the skill it took to create such twisted stuff, even if it weirded me out.

Is The Slim Shady LP a classic?

Troy: Not quite. The Slim Shady LP is one of the best and most important debut albums of all time, given how huge Eminem became. Yet, the album is a bit too long and the shock-rap schtick wears thin. He should’ve moved “Bad Meets Evil” up in the tracklist and then ended the album on “Just Don’t Give a F***.” As far as Em classics go, The Marshall Mathers LP is where real discussion lies.

Edd: Agree, Em has one certified classic, and it’s MMLP. I GUESS you can argue for The Eminem Show, but that feels more like an album skating by on its commercial success instead of cultural impact. I wouldn’t put SSLP on the level of a classic. I see it more as a building block for the true greatness that was still to come.

Whom did you side with, Troy or Edd? And share your memories of The Slim Shady LP below!