Recently published by Spotify top songs and artists of the decade put Eminem in top 5 global artists and business magazine Forbes dedicated an article to the analysis of Eminem’s career and success.
The article starts with a reminiscence about some of his undeniable achievements:
At 47, Eminem is by far the oldest artist on Spotify’s end-of-decade list. His career has spanned more than 20 years, and he recently released a 20th anniversary edition of his major-label debut, The Slim Shady LP. Eminem is the bestselling rapper of all time and the bestselling artist of the 2000s in the United States, with two consecutive diamond albums under his belt. Yet he’s also a holdover from the CD era, when such massive album sales were still rare, but not quite unfathomable as they are today. (The only artist to claim a diamond album in the 2010s is Adele, with 21 and 25.)
Eminem has continued to thrive commercially over the past decade, with each of his studio albums topping the charts and earning platinum certifications (with the exception of 2017’s gold-certified Revival). […] Eminem has carved out an impressive career as a singles artist over the past decade. During that time, he has scored three No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100—“Not Afraid” and two Rihanna-assisted tracks, “Love the Way You Lie” and “The Monster”—and four additional Top 10s. In 2014, Eminem also became the first artist to earn two digital diamond certifications from the RIAA. Last year’s surprise-released Kamikaze granted him the best streaming week of his career, while his Machine Gun Kelly diss track “Killshot” did similarly huge numbers.
After that, the author casts doubt on the future success of Eminem thinking that in the new era of music consumption and increased scrutiny towards the narrative offered by artists, it might be difficult for him to stay on top. It is true that critics have been consistently disappointed in Eminem throughout this decade. However, we know that his commercial success signals about warm reception from the audience. We also know that Eminem is able to reinvent himself while staying true to his beliefs. For Eminem fans the new decade is not something to fear but anticipate, as it is clear that Marshall is not going to slow down.
