Eminem Opens Up About “Relapse,” Acting, declares “I Am Back”
As promised, Eminem appeared on his Sirius XM radio station this morning to answer questions regarding his new album Relapse, rappers he wants to work with and getting back into the acting game. Rap Radar has audio clips from the interview. While Slim Shady didn’t premiere any new tracks from his comeback LP, he did reveal more details about the May 19th release, including why we don’t know more about it. “We’re just extremely careful with our shit. I keep a CD with me, I’m the only one who usually has a CD,” Eminem said. “Maybe me and Dre… Other than that, nobody has it.”
Eminem also announced that the album’s next single will be “3AM,” and a video has already filmed in his native Detroit. The song has a darker tone than Relapse‘s snarky first single “We Made You” and Em noted that “3AM” more closely mirrors the overall sound of the album. Dr. Dre produced the entire LP with the exception of one song, which was produced by Marshall Mathers himself.
“Dre made a lot of tracks, and I would get to pick from them and just go through them, and I picked the ones that challenged me rhythm-wise, I tried to experiment with a bunch of different flows,” Em said. There are no cameos outside of 50 Cent and Dr. Dre. Eminem also gave a progress report on Relapse 2, due out later in the year: “If that album’s not finished, it’s extremely closed to being finished.”
As for returning to acting, the 8 Mile star said, “We’re open to scripts and I’m definitely looking to get back into it soon.” He hinted that he has a cameo in a “big” film coming out this summer but wouldn’t elaborate. Eminem, who has reportedly battled with weight and health problems since 2004’s Encore, also revealed how he’s gotten back in shape: Running 17 miles a day. “I’ve been running a lot, taking care of myself. I’m at the point where I’m a little obsessive compulsive about running and the treadmill,” Em said.
Finally, responding to Lil Wayne’s offer to collaborate, Eminem said he hopes to work with Weezy but now isn’t the time. “There hasn’t necessarily really been a time for me to really get out there and do collaborations and shit lately because I’ve been locked down in the studio. But I’m hoping for whatever because there are a lot of artists in the game that I respect right now,” Eminem said. “Hip-hop will be in a great place because I am back.”
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