The Brooklyn rapper who appeared on Eminem’s surprise album, Music to Be Murdered By, has since experienced the rises and falls that fame and success bring to a person whose trauma has not yet healed. She had a lot to discuss with Shannon Sharpe on his podcast. However, the memory of working on a collab with Eminem still holds a special place in her heart.
Long gone are the days when rappers would come together in the studio to record a song. Today, most collaborations happen remotely. Artists exchange files, give feedback and directions through messages. Yet this is too simple for Eminem, who takes security measures a step further.
High security
Asked about working with Marshall, Young M.A looked back on this experience with a sense of disbelief.
“Eminem, man. Shout out to Em, man. He has a very selective way of how you do a song with him. He’s real private and precise with his music. So, it wasn’t just – send a song and record it. No. His people had to come with a laptop and play a song. You couldn’t have access to the song”.
Reacting to this description, the host noted that the security measures stem from Em’s intention to avoid leaks at all costs. As one of the most heavily pirated artists of his era, he had to shift the album release dates so many times to mitigate damage from leaks. And it is far from the most unusual precaution he has taken.
In the documentary “How Music Got Free”, produced by Eminem and LeBron James, Paul Rosenberg shared some of the methods Em used to avoid pirate attacks:
Marshall was very hesitant ever to let his music that was unreleased leave the studio. When he had new music that he wanted me to check out, he would send a physical CD to me. He was worried that people would know that it was Eminem sending a CD to Paul Rosenberg, so they would try to disguise what they were sending. Cans of soda, magazines, and a basketball. I’d come to the office or my house and see this big box. And be like, oh, what’s that? And then I’d look at where it came from, and I was like, “Oh, that’s the CD that Marshall was gonna send me”.
Dream came true
Yet, for Young M.A the secrecy was not the most memorable part. The bigger challenge was accepting that the ultimate rap GOAT knew her music and liked it enough to share a song with her.
“I didn’t even know Eminem was a fan of mine”, Young M.A shared. “That alone is surreal to me ’cause I grew up looking up to, listening to Eminem, seeing Eminem, and it’s like – me?.. This is a GOAT we’re talking about, top dawg!”
But yes, it was her, Young M.A, the first ever female rapper to collaborate with Eminem on his album. She was not the first female rapper to work with Eminem. He had previously collaborated with Missy Elliott and Nicki Minaj on their projects. However, Young M.A became the first female rapper to appear as a featured guest on an Eminem studio album.