Rapper Eminem is reportedly re-releasing his 1999 album, The Slim Shady LP.
The mere announcement that the rapper (born Marshall Mathers) is re-issuing his second studio album (and first commercially successful album) may immediately cause his longtime fans to wonder what will be different.
Eminem To Re-Release “The Slim Shady LP” On Cassette https://t.co/c37SuTyEAa pic.twitter.com/v7nxU3w5CI
— HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) March 5, 2016
According to the rapper’s official Facebook page , the re-release of The Slim Shady LP will consist of the songs being released on a cassette tape instead of a CD or DVD. In most cases, recording artists re-release and reissue their hit albums in order to celebrate the anniversary of the album’s initial release or to simply share unreleased tracks as bonus features for their fans and critics.
The fact that The Slim Shady LP will be re-released as a cassette tape provides a completely different type of unexpected bonus feature that many other recording artists simply have not done with their own music — yet.
Eminem’s ‘The Slim Shady LP’ is getting a cassette tape re-release: https://t.co/7xn5XKdMxw pic.twitter.com/q7LzWRkPh4
— Pigeons & Planes (@PigsAndPlans) March 5, 2016
Even though it was his second studio album, The Slim Shady LP was the first album that pushed Eminem into the world of mainstream media.
“My Name Is” was just one of the hit singles that made headlines from that album in addition to his first collaboration song with Dr. Dre, “Guilty Conscience.” The Slim Shady LP was first released in stores on February 23, 1999, nearly one month after the release of the memorable hit song “My Name Is.”
A March 1999 article published by MTV focused on what Eminem himself said about The Slim Shady LP before it was released. The Oscar-winning rapper made it crystal clear that he wanted to shock the world with the music released on that album.
“The world’s gonna know when they pop in this Slim Shady [album] that something’s wrong with this guy. It’s deeper than me. Oh, I want shock value, I want to shock the world.”
There was apparently a method to the madness of The Slim Shady LP — a systematic method that Eminem highlighted within the same article.
“I have a strategy… let people know there’s something wrong with this…guy. And as soon as they hear the next album, it’s gonna explain why there’s something wrong [with Slim Shady].”
His systematic method also paid off in a big way for the rapper. As promised, he revealed a lot more about himself in his life within his follow-up releases, including his third studio album, The Marshall Mathers LP , which was released in 2000.
So…Eminem’s a hipster now? https://t.co/Pt9RqvwBdb
— Rock Hits 92.3 (@rockhits923) March 5, 2016
I’m getting that Slim Shady LP cassette tape and add that to my Eminem collection????
— Roderick T Martin Jr (@mroderick16) March 5, 2016
@Eminem I bought your Slim Shady LP when i was in 5th grade. If you buy me a cassette player, i’ll totally buy it again.
— Joe Kerr (@LazyAvenger) March 5, 2016
This makes me feel cool again! I have no way to play it and Im not a huge eminem fan but makes me want to break ou… https://t.co/ItbGesE6HU
— Joshua Macciola (@JoshuaMacciola) March 5, 2016
The Slim Shady LP first made its way into stores over 17 years ago. Its re-release may not have any brand new or previously unreleased songs, but the fact that the 17-year-old album is being released on cassette tape by Eminem during a time when most consumers don’t even buy CDs anymore is still impressive.
According to the official Eminem website, fans can sign up to find out more information and receive early access to The Slim Shady LP cassette.
[Image Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty Images]
