Music Review: Eminem "Relapse"

By Bonita Holmes

After a four-year hiatus, Eminem is back and more expressive than ever with the release of his sixth studio album "Relapse." It seems that Eminem hasn't lost his touch, making "Relapse" his fifth consecutive # 1 album selling 608,000 during the first week.

Throughout the album, Eminem revisits some very emotional periods in his life and speaks out about his drug addiction to cough syrup and prescription medicines, the death of his best friend Proof and a second attempt at marriage with his ex-wife Kimberley Scott. The title of the album itself represents Em coming face to face with his addiction and relapsing back into the hip hop world, or maybe relapsing back into depression.

In the song “My Mom,” Eminem continues to express his anguish towards his mother, blaming her for his drug addiction and emotional distress. Many of Em's songs from previous albums expressed how he felt growing up without a father and witnessing his mother abuse drugs. On the this album, Em admits in the song "Insane" that he was molested by his stepfather. On the very popular song titled “Beautiful,” Eminem raps about still being one of the best rappers despite disappearing from the entertainment world for a few years.

Many of the songs on the album have a funky hardcore beat which complement the new sound Em has adopted. He does a great job of touching on various subjects besides his personal triumphs.

Many fans and other rappers and artists wonder if this is the last album for Eminem who once again collaborated with his longtime friend, labelmate and producer Andre “Dr. Dre” Young. With "Relapse," Eminem has more than proven that despite tough times and years spent away from his passion, that he still has what it takes to make good music. You could even say that he's reclaiming his thrown.