Ah, so that explains Encore/his fall off

[Evan C.]

A quote I read from that Vibe interview said he hadn't done a song sober in SEVEN years...and seven years ago was what? 2002. Last time he put out a good album.

So basically his drug/alcohol addiction was the reason for the dramatic decline in the quality of his music prior to Relaspe. He was so wasted he didn't even realize how wack his shit was getting. Man, I really hope he stays clean from now on...for the sake of his health AND his music.

[Throwback24]

I wouldn't solely attribute it to the drugs, and I'm pretty sure he started messing with Shrooms and what not on the MMLP tour which was 9 years ago.

[Ice_Scarred]

A quote I read from that Vibe interview said he hadn't done a song sober in SEVEN years...and seven years ago was what? 2002. Last time he put out a good album.

So basically his drug/alcohol addiction was the reason for the dramatic decline in the quality of his music prior to Relaspe. He was so wasted he didn't even realize how wack his shit was getting. Man, I really hope he stays clean from now on...for the sake of his health AND his music.

But was he a drug / alcohol fiend during the SSLP - MMLP era? Those albums were classic. But your talking about his addiction to like Vicodin and shit? I just think Em had a writers block. He had to meet a deadline and just started going off whatever he felt like. Encore was a great album, just had some bad tracks. Maybe Vicodin and Valiums fucked his shit up, but IDK.

[RTiii320@yahoo.com]

So what that Slim Shady LP which was written while he was mostly on drugs, many claim that as Eminems greatest album.

[Tash8]

MMLP was written in amsterdam, what do you think he was doing there? enjoying the scenery?

[Evan C.]

1. In his book, Eminem said that he didn't even really get into drugs very much (other than weed) until he blew up and started touring.

2. Yes, I'm talking about the harder addictive PRESCRIPTION drugs. Vicodin, Valium, the potent sleep aids, etc.

3. The kind of drugs he became hooked on post-2002 were obviously different. Ecstacy, and weed are quite different on the body than sleep medication...They're not depressants. The drugs Eminem got hooked on basically zapped him of all the energy and creativity he had because he was constantly exhausted from them. Perfectly explains the decline in his lyricism, voice, and physical condition. Turned him into a walking zombie.

4. And even IF he got into those types of drugs during his prime pre-2002 years (who knows) he wasn't ADDICTED to them. Being on them every now and then and being on them 24/7 is a big difference.

[Evan C.]

Quote from VIBE interview:

"I wasn’t only depressed about Proof, I was depressed about my music in general. All I was taking was downers, strictly sedatives. My mood made my music depressing. And in turn, the depressing music made my mood depressed. My brain was thinking slow. My flow, my cadence, everything was just slow. Every record that I made was, Woe is me, and my life is so fucked and everything is wrong...."

[slimsoxshady]

it must be the ganja....

[Evan C.]

"I wasn’t only depressed about Proof, I was depressed about my music in general. All I was taking was downers, strictly sedatives. My mood made my music depressing. And in turn, the depressing music made my mood depressed. My brain was thinking slow. My flow, my cadence, everything was just slow. Every record that I made was, Woe is me, and my life is so fucked and everything is wrong...."

Yeah he's probably on about 06, hence not only being depressed about proof. Probably not on about 04.

Around 06 is when he looked like this. On interviews on BET etc he looked slow and strange.

I wanted to make an overall statement--I'm back," Em said. "It was a slow process. You gotta remember I hadn't recorded a song sober in seven years. So it took me awhile to even feel like I could record a song sober...I don't know the last time I shot a video sober, without drinking or taking anything. It's been years...

I didn't realize it was 2013.

[Cyndi]

The drugs only had a bit to do with Encore. Not everything jeez. As others has stated he wrote SSLP & the others high. U guys seem to love those. I do as well... He had writers block & this album was more of him trying step over eggshells, apologizin' & shit. Then he dealt with the whole beef thing which consumed most of it. After that he was havin fun with tracks. As 4 The Eminem Show, it was more main stream & he tried to please a new audience by changin his style & watchin what he said. The album is still great & I love Encore.

[Evan C.]

I don't get your point. HADN'T, past tense. He was on drugs on SLLP, MMLP as well. he could of meant 7 years from fucking 06.

Um, it's a NEW FUCKING INTERVIEW. Seven years ago from now = 2002. Meaning that on every song he recorded between TES and Relapse, he was under the influence of something.

[AbramIsaac]

I think that the drug thing had something to do with it, but it was really just a combination of things. Yeah, as it's been said, Eminem DID do drugs throughout his career, and pain pills were something he'd do during the SSLP days, as he wrote "Rock Bottom" after taking a bunch of Percoset. That first close call, or as it's been called the "suicide attempt", was on Percoset I think.

For the record though, things like Reefer and Mushrooms are more likely to spark creativity than anything else...So that makes sense too.

Fuck it, it doesn't really matter anyway...he's back now.

[Epidemik]

I dont belive he ever fell off imo
he proved that with No Apologies
even though the production wasnt great and the first two verses were older freestyles (if i remember correctly) This song has something that encore didnt. Passion. I dont think em fell off but just stopped caring or maybe got bored of the rap game.
im not gonna disagree because i dont know.. drugs coulda been a big part of the problem..
but imo he still has the skill... he just isnt putting as much effort and passion into it as he used to.


This song isn't for you, it's for me, a true MC
It's what he'll do just to see if he still has it
And if his skills mastered,
He's able to spill raps long after his killed, that's a real MC
Got you feelin' me, whether willing or unwillingly
You still agree, as long as there's still this hunger and will in me
Then expect a longer life expectancy
I'd be a savage beast if I ain't have this outlet to salvage me inside
I'd be exploding soaked in self loathing an mourning
So I'm warning you, don't coax me
It's silly, I'm really a sheep in wolf's clothing
Who only reacts when he gets pushed, don't be fooled
The press blows up this whole thing, it's stupid
They don't know cause they don't see that I'm wounded
All they did was ballooned it
I'm sick of talkin' 'bout these tattoos cartoon did
That's why I tuned it out, I'm sick of dukin'
An they can suck my dick while I'm pukin', an you too, you can

[vermin]

Encore was a good album. It still is. Even Em can't do nothing with that!

[al passino]

he just wants to say that every thing he recorded prior relapse was on drugs... with seven years he means 99-06.. he jsut wants to tell us that it was a new experience for him to record songs sober...