Multi-platinum rap star Eminem came by AOL Live on June 12 to chat with members about the huge success of his new release, The Marshall Mathers LP. Straight out of the Detroit hip-hop scene, Eminem’s music has dominated the airwaves since the days of his debut single “My Name Is.” Check out what the real Slim Shady had to say below! Scroll down to read the full transcript…
LIVEJesse: Eminem, it is really great to have you with us. Do you know there have been people in this virtual auditorium since, like, 1PM today? You have MAJOR fans here.
Eminem: Great! That’s two hours before I woke up.
LIVEJesse: Question: In a song, you say you wish you had a butt big enough so the whole world could kiss it. Well, your CD is flying up the charts. Looks like you may have your wish. Feeling good?
Eminem: I wrote this song before all this stuff happened, and now I am just glad to be making a CD that deals with all of this. That’s a lot of room on my ass still for everyone to kiss.
LIVEJesse: One of the things you do best is make people crazy. Why do you think it’s so hard for some people to get the joke?
Eminem: Some people just don’t get it. Those people need more in their life than just my music, I guess.
LIVEJesse: We have a zillion audience questions. Let’s go there.
Question: How did you come up with the song ” … Slim Shady”?
Eminem: Dre gave me the song, and the idea just jumped out of me. It was the last song that I recorded for the album, so it really dealt with what was going on currently.
LIVEJesse: You’ve said in an interview how much you care for your daughter. You said, “I want to be there every step of the way.” There’s a lot in gangsta rap that’s not very pretty about women. Any thought of making music that would make the world kinder for your daughter?
Eminem: First of all, I wouldn’t classify my music as gangsta rap. It’s not up to me to make the world kinder — I just make music.
Question: What’s the most difficult thing about writing music?
Eminem: For me it’s the actual recording process, because I try to make my delivery perfect every time.
LIVEJesse: And it’s true, the sound of your stuff is really amazingly good. Does it cheese you off when people reject it just because it’s rap?
Eminem: People reject my music for all kinds of reasons — it just gives me the fuel to make more angry music. The more people piss me off, the more I have to write about.
Question: If you weren’t involved with the music industry, what do you think you would be doing?
Eminem: I’d still be a short-order cook, going out of my mind.
Question: What is you opinion of the NWA reunion, in spite of the fact that Dre and Eazy’s relationship was strained?
Eminem: As far as I know, Dre and Eazy made amends before Eazy passed, and I am sure that he would like the legacy of NWA to live on.
Question: Did you read the recent RS mag w/Christina on the cover where she says, “It was wrong of Eminem to dis me. All year I’ve been recognizing his talent”? What do you think of the article/quote?
Eminem: She should have been talking about my personal business on MTV –should NOT have been — and [I] probably would have left her alone. Plus, it’s very fun to do.
Question: You are a brilliant song/rap writer, but your material is reaching kids who are too young to separate the art from the artist — they are following your words too closely. Don’t you feel any responsibility about that? I’m talking kids like 10, 11, 12.
Eminem: I can’t parent every kid in the country. Just like parents cannot prevent their kids from seeing adult films, they can’t prevent them from hearing my music, I guess.
LIVEJesse: Bruce Springsteen has written a new song about the shooting of an African immigrant in New York by the cops, and word is he’ll be playing it in New York. Do you ever think of writing songs that are directly political?
Eminem: Politics were never a big interest of mine. I write about things that affect me personally and that I can use to get reactions from people. Half of the satisfaction that I get from releasing music comes from the look on people’s faces when they hear it.
LIVEJesse: You have a line: “ignorant men with hair triggers.” Why are rappers so fascinated with guns?
Eminem: That line is Dre’s line. Rap is an urban music, and guns have always been a part of urban culture and hip-hop culture.
Question: Eminem, when you made that song up about your one fan sending letters, did that truly happen?
Eminem: It’s a mixture of different things that have happened, combined with some fantasy. Who is this Stan?
Question: What’s the craziest thing someone has done when they met you?
Eminem: They try to leap through security to serve me with a court summons.
Question: Hey Em, who do you admire the most in music?
Eminem: If I had to pick one person, of course it’s Dr. Dre. But I like a lot of artists.
LIVEJesse: You’re such a good writer. Are you a reader, or is your talent working off only what you’ve lived and thought?
Eminem: I don’t really read too much. It all comes from my mind and experience. Remember, I failed ninth grade three times.
LIVEJesse: On your best day off, what happens?
Eminem: I get to stay at home, watch TV and play with my daughter.
Question: Do you have plans to introduce new artists, like Puff Daddy and Master P have done in the past?
Eminem: The first group I plan on putting out is D-12. They’ll be released on my home label, Shady Records. There will be a single coming out late this summer and an album next year.
LIVEJesse: What was the hardest song to write?
Eminem: Probably “Kim” because it took every bit of rage that was in me to put it on paper.
LIVEJesse: When you finish recording a song like “Kim,” do you feel more peaceful?
Eminem: Yeah, like I’ve said before, my music is my therapy. It’s the only thing that keeps me partially sane.
LIVEJesse: It’s funny… they say in Alcoholics Anonymous, “You’re only as sick as your secrets.” You don’t seem to have any. It’s all in your work. True?
Eminem: I still got plenty of things to talk about. Just wait until the next album.
LIVEJesse: Can we guess that the next album will deal with some of the stuff you’ve been going through recently?
Eminem: I haven’t thought about starting to record it yet, but let’s just say that no stone ever goes unturned.
LIVEJesse: Well, you can come turn over stones here on AOL anytime. There’s a huge audience that wants to hear you and talk to you. Thanks for coming.
Eminem: Thanks for having me. Come and see me on the Up In Smoke Tour, and tour dates are on the http://www.eminem.com/. And middle fingers for everybody. AOLiveMC19: Thanks to all you fans for showing up tonight!
